Run a fit-gap assessment that separates standard configuration change from custom code requiring remediation.
Information & Communications Technology
Enterprise Resource Planning System Upgrade Planning
Plan an enterprise resource planning system upgrade from fit-gap assessment through custom code remediation, regression testing and a phased cutover with minimal business disruption.
🗓️Duration5 training days
📚Content4 modules · 8 sessions
🎓On completionAccredited attendance certificate
About the programme
Course Overview
An enterprise resource planning upgrade touches finance, procurement, inventory and human resources processes at once, and a single unresolved custom code conflict can halt payroll or order processing on go-live day. Treating an upgrade as a technical patch rather than a business change project is why so many upgrades overrun their schedule. This course teaches participants to run a fit-gap assessment that separates configuration changes from custom code that must be remediated, and to build a test strategy that covers integrations, reports and workflow customisations before they reach production. Participants plan sandbox environments for iterative testing, design regression test scripts against critical business processes, and coordinate user acceptance testing with process owners across departments. Sessions also cover data migration validation, cutover sequencing across time zones and business units, and hypercare support planning for the weeks immediately after go-live. A case exercise works through an upgrade where a custom pricing extension conflicts with a new release, requiring participants to assess remediation options, adjust the test plan and communicate a revised go-live date to stakeholders. By the end, participants can build an upgrade plan, a test strategy and a cutover runbook that protects business continuity.
Expected Learning Outcomes
Build a test strategy covering integrations, custom reports and workflow customisations before an upgrade goes live.
Plan sandbox and test environments that support iterative upgrade testing without disrupting production operations.
Design regression test scripts for critical business processes across finance, procurement and inventory modules.
Coordinate user acceptance testing with process owners across departments and track sign-off against a schedule.
Validate migrated data and interface behaviour before committing to a production cutover date.
Plan a phased cutover and hypercare support period that limits business disruption during go-live.
Who Should Attend
ERP programme managers planning a system upgrade or version migration.
Business process owners in finance, procurement or inventory affected by an upgrade.
ERP functional consultants responsible for fit-gap assessment and configuration.
IT test managers designing regression and user acceptance test strategies.
Change managers coordinating business readiness for an ERP cutover.
Support managers planning hypercare coverage for the post-go-live period.
Course Modules
Select any module to see its sessions and points.
01Assessing the Upgrade Scope
2 sessions · 8 points
Session 1Fit-Gap Assessment and Impact Analysis
- Compare current configuration and custom code against the new release to identify what will break, change or be retired.
- Classify custom code by business criticality and technical risk to prioritise remediation effort.
- Assess third-party integrations for compatibility with new application programming interfaces in the target release.
- Document process owner sign-off on which gaps will be remediated through configuration versus custom development.
Session 2Planning Environments and Timeline
- Plan a sequence of sandbox, test and staging environments that support iterative upgrade validation.
- Sequence remediation, testing and training activities against a realistic upgrade timeline with contingency buffer.
- Identify business-calendar constraints such as period-end close that the cutover date must avoid.
- Secure resourcing commitments from business process owners for testing and training phases, not only from IT.
02Remediating Custom Code and Integrations
2 sessions · 8 points
Session 1Custom Code Remediation
- Remediate custom code flagged as incompatible using the recommended upgrade or extension approach for the platform.
- Retire custom code that duplicates new standard functionality to reduce the long-term maintenance burden.
- Re-test remediated custom code in isolation before including it in end-to-end regression scenarios.
- Track remediation progress against the fit-gap register so no flagged item is missed before go-live.
Session 2Integration and Interface Testing
- Test interfaces to payroll, banking and supplier systems against the upgraded application's data formats.
- Validate batch and real-time integration error handling under the new release's processing behaviour.
- Coordinate testing windows with external system owners who do not report into the upgrade programme.
- Document interface test results and outstanding defects against a severity and business-impact scale.
03Testing and Business Readiness
2 sessions · 8 points
Session 1Regression and Process Testing
- Design regression test scripts that exercise critical business processes end to end, not isolated transactions.
- Prioritise regression coverage on high-volume and high-risk processes such as order-to-cash and procure-to-pay.
- Track defects found during regression testing against severity and business impact to guide fix sequencing.
- Re-run regression scripts after each remediation cycle to confirm fixes did not introduce new defects.
Session 2User Acceptance Testing and Training
- Coordinate user acceptance testing sessions with process owners against realistic business scenarios.
- Capture and triage user acceptance feedback separately from technical defects to keep sign-off criteria clear.
- Plan role-based training and updated process documentation ahead of the go-live date.
- Confirm formal sign-off from each business area before the cutover decision gate is approved.
04Cutover and Post-Go-Live Support
2 sessions · 8 points
Session 1Planning the Cutover
- Design a cutover runbook that sequences data migration, configuration deployment and validation checkpoints.
- Validate migrated master and transactional data against source records before opening the system to business users.
- Define go or no-go decision criteria and the stakeholders authorised to make that call on cutover day.
- Plan a rollback path for the cutover window in case validation checkpoints are not met.
Session 2Post-Go-Live Stabilisation Support
- Plan a period of dedicated elevated support coverage for the weeks immediately following go-live.
- Track post-go-live incidents by affected business process to identify recurring issues needing further remediation.
- Review incident volume and severity data to decide when elevated support coverage can be stepped back down.
- Capture lessons learned from the upgrade programme to refine the approach used for the next upgrade cycle.
What the participant receives
4 course modules
A structured syllabus
8 training sessions
across 5 days
32 detailed points
Applied, detailed content
Accredited attendance certificate
On completing the programme
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