Using modified grey relational analysis approach for ERP system providers

The rise of e-commerce renders the emerging application service providers (ASPs) due to the demands for corporate realtimeness, high efficiency and professional labor division. On the other side, businesses start to introduce enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems applied to business intelligence and supply chain management. However, there are ERP providers with a variety of specifications and features of products, so it is necessary for an enterprise to select an adequate ERP supplier in terms of factors concerned. A ERP system in need of a considerable sum of corporate budget is expected to obtain optimal profits and effects of administration rather than cause the failure or bankruptcy after introduction thereto. A preliminary overall assessment prior to introduction can lessen such risk. A modified grey relational analysis (MGRA) applied to this study for generalizing criteria of selecting a ERP system in terms of literature review; moreover, industry experts concerned participated in the questionnaires survey. The criteria were assessed under the importance. Finally, the scores obtained were analyzed and outcomes were ranked in terms of GRA as the references to decision-makers of businesses for selecting ERP providers among so many options.