All companies must learn how to manage risk. One of the difficulties is that there is a tendency to regard taking action as more dangerous than maintaining the status quo. It turns out that in today's rapidly changing business environment, inaction is often the riskiest choice of all. "Staying the course" can be a recipe for failure.
Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) implementations are a perfect example. When the right product is chosen, and the implementation is handled intelligently, an ERP system will actually reduce risk, not increase it. The greater danger today is continuing to conduct business as usual, and being left behind as competitors gain the remarkable advantages that come from some of the ERP products now available.
