Cisco Systems, Inc.

:Implementing ERP
Group 6 Section H


Chayanika Agarwal(2014PGP092)
Sayan Halder (2014PGP340)
Tatsat Pandey (2011IPM112)
Aravindh R (2014PGP055)
Rohit Kumar (2014PGP309)
B Ramasubramanian (2014PGP074)
Navya Jagarlamundi (2014PGP447)



Introduction: Case Facts
Cisco Systems Inc., founded in 1984 by two Stanford graduates
Launched Router as the primary product, a combination of hardware
and software acting as a traffic cop
Among the top 5 companies by Fortune500
Became publicly listed in 1990 passing $100 billion mark
John Morgridge joined as CEO in 1998 and maintained a disciplined
management structure focusing on centralization
Rise of internet technology encouraged demand for Cisco products

IT at Cisco
Pete Solvik joined in 1993 as CIO at the time when Cisco was a $500
million company
They were running a Unix based software package for core transaction
processing which supported the Financial, Manufacturing and Order
Entry system
The UNIX application lacked scalability and was unable to provide
redundancy, reliability and maintainability
As incremental modifications increased, system outages became a
routine
Due to shortcomings in legacy system failed and the company
shutdown for 2 days


Implementing ERP
1. Selecting ERP Product
Decided to replace the autonomous system under the guidance of Senior Vice President of Digital,
Redfield. He had experience of large scale implementation of IT project.
Industry partner selection
KPMG was selected as integration partner for involvement of IT plus business community. KPMG did the
market research on best ERP solutions available in the market.
Software selection
Oracle was selected as software vendor after guidance research from sources like Gartner group
Decision supported by promise of long term sustainable relationship, Oracles manufacturing capability
and and flexibility due to close proximity of offices.
Oracle wanted a successful implementation of the new version of ERP product.
2. Board Approval
Board approval was garnered after deciding on project cost of 15 million and duration of 9 months
3. Building team implementation
The brightest of the firm was selected after deliberating on the size, role and responsibility and
organisation of the team

Oracle Implementation
CRP 0
Focused on training the teams on different oracle applications and getting the applications up and running.
Some significant changes were required for the software to produce optimum results

CRP 1
Focused on each track to make various systems work within their own areas
Detail scripts were created to document the various procedures used to complete a process
Gaps found in the system were categorized and evaluated individually.

CRP 2&3
Framing after sales support package
A holistic approach was employed to address major modifications
Data ware house was used by all of CISCOs applications to act as a single source for all their information needs
While CRP 2 focused on testing booth the hardware and software to support the load and transaction volumes the CRP 3
focused on testing the performance of the system
Conclusion Reasons for success
Adaptability by the company
Thoroughness of testing of software and modifications were made immediately
whenever required
Processes were changed when it was difficult to modify the software
Top management supported the change and implementation of new IT solution and
incorporated as top 7 goals for the year.
Team organisation and culture
Cohesive organisation led to better workflows and keeping to schedules
ERP project implementation was given highest priority by the entire team
Systematic and structured approach
Way in which the vendor was selected
Correct estimation and project management