Erp System for Riordan Manufacturing

ERP System for Riordan Manufacturing

Team A

University of Phoenix

Riordan Manufacturing is the leading global industry manufacturing company of plastic injection molding. With over 550 employees and their overall annual projected earnings of $46 million dollars, Riordan Manufacturing accredits their success to their focus on sales and marketing to gain additional business and maintain a good relationship with existing clientele. Although the company has been successful thus far, it is always important and essential to continually improve and take the business to the next level in order to stay competitive in today's world. Who doesn't want to be the best at what they do, and especially within the industry they represent? In order to gain that status, it is important for Riordan Manufacturing to evaluate and determine a new edge that will give them the status they strive to obtain.

Having the ability to recognize the weaknesses and areas where improvement is necessary or welcomed is the best way to develop a good set of goals. Although they currently hold the title of industry lead, it is important to acknowledge that changes have to be continually made to uphold that title. Streamlining and standardization of the organization will be an essential task to improving the quality of the product Riordan produces, as well as the image they portray within the industry and to their customers and clients. It will also be essential to continually launch new products and have the ability to market those products in the most effective way. Showing the customer how Riordan is an essential part of their solution by delivering the best product with the best customer support. Implementing partnerships shows the industry that the acknowledgement of teamwork is essential to the success of any business, and in order to be the best, you have to work with those that compliment your business.

Of course will any project there will always be a fair share of challenges that will be faced with this new approach to success. Standardization within the company will be a challenge in itself, because it generally means expending resources and providing additional training to acclimate and educate employees on new technologies or procedures for doing business. Integrating and connecting business structures requires an extensive degree of preparation and dedication. As always, the most difficult challenge will be to minimize the amount of disruption in the overall business activity. Because every minute of downtime results in a loss of revenue, which is the driving force behind any business. Reducing carrier costs and cycle time will help offset any downtime the company may experience during this transition. A clear and concise inventory management system will help with excess materials on hand, shortage of materials, as well as the overall outcome of productivity. Another issue, resulting from Riordan's use of non-interconnected business structures, will be the potential need for outsourcing. This could create a huge challenge with quality control, production, and the need for compliance with federal regulations. Developing a solid customer interface will also pose a challenge, forcing a thorough evaluation of the existing or non-existent plan and developing something that works far more effectively.

It is essential that the entire company be represented during this project to minimize the negative business impact. The right people must be part of and responsible for the restructuring project. Development of this team is crucial and will comprise of a Project Manager, a representative from Information Services, Financial Services, Human Resources and the Inventory Department. This team will be responsible for identifying the essential goals necessary to accomplish the tasks needed to provide the best service for the lowest cost. There are several methods in technology that will need to be thoroughly evaluated in order to accomplish this assignment. The team will have to review and understand all possibilities including the potential for outsourcing and purchasing or leasing of equipment and software. Once all of the options and methods have been identified, researched and evaluated, the team will have to collectively decide on the best solutions and vendors that will provide the best return on investment.

The Vice President of International Operations, Charles Williamson, will be in charge of overseeing the entire project. With the support of the Vice Presidents from each department, Charles Lacy - Sales and Marketing, Bob Havings - Product Support, Mark Neitzel - Operations, and Clyde Cousins - Transportation, Charles and his team will have to carry and delegate responsibilities to other team members within their departments to make this project successful. Of course extensive input from the Chief Information Officer, Maria Trinh and her team will be extremely important, along with the Director of Human Resources, Yvonne McMillan and Chief Legal Council, Lowell Bradford. Once the plan is laid out, each department will be responsible for acknowledging how the changes could cause a negative impact and what could be done to prevent an excessive amount of downtime. Each department should elicit input from their employees to get the broadest range of opinions and ideas. It will then be up to the department lead to collaborate those ideas into a common consensus and present to the team for review. Each goal should be assigned to the respective department and a time line should then be assessed.

A project schedule should be developed, noting each component, the respective time frame, and who is responsible for completing the task. A budget should be compiled from each department's requests and needs, keeping in mind the importance of the return on the investment. It is important to continually evaluate the progress, success and monitor the control of their perspective budgets as well.

In order to measure the success of this project, various areas will need to show vast improvement. Reduction of carrier costs, cycle time, and excess of materials on hand is essential to demonstrating the success or failure of this project. An overall reduction of material shortages from suppliers will prove the customer relation's portion of the project took a step in the right direction. A vast improvement in inventory accuracy will be a key to the success of production and standardization throughout the company. A reduction in the workload and processing times in the F&A department will mark an important step toward achieving the company's