Capabilities

Your independent ERP implementation partner in the UK

Independent ERP implementation, delivery and recovery. We do not resell licences, so the only thing we are selling is a programme that works.

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Independent and vendor neutral. No licences sold. Insured to £10m. A senior consultant replies within one business day.

PEF Consulting Partners is a senior led, independent ERP implementation partner working across the UK. We do not resell software or licences, and our leadership has delivered ERP at the largest scale there is, including a global ERP and Microsoft Dynamics estate for BP spanning five continents. Before you commit, try our free ERP Readiness Assessment, and if a programme is already in trouble, see ERP rescue and recovery.

Most ERP programmes do not fail because the software is wrong. They fail because the business case was never testable, the data was worse than anyone admitted, and nobody owned the decisions that mattered. We are an independent ERP implementation consultancy. We do not resell licences and we are not tied to a systems integrator, so the advice you get is the advice we would give ourselves.

Our consultants have run ERP and finance transformation programmes valued between one million and nine billion pounds across energy, utilities, telecoms and regulated markets. We deliver against agreed KPIs, we do not land and expand, and we leave your team able to run the system without us.

Where we help

ERP vendor selection and business case

An honest options appraisal across SAP, Oracle, Microsoft Dynamics, Workday, NetSuite, IFS and Unit4, scored against your actual process requirements rather than a feature matrix supplied by the vendor. We build the business case so that finance will sign it and the board can hold someone to it.

Readiness assessment

Before you commit budget, an independent view of whether your organisation can absorb the change. Data quality, process maturity, resource availability, governance and the appetite to standardise rather than customise. Most of the programmes we later rescue would have been fixable at this stage for a fraction of the cost.

Implementation delivery and programme management

We run the programme, or we strengthen the team already running it. Scope control, integration management, testing strategy, cutover planning, data migration oversight and the difficult conversations about what is genuinely mandatory before go live.

Delivery assurance

An independent read on programme health for boards, audit committees and investors. Where is the plan optimistic, which risks are being managed by hope, and what will the real cost be. We report to the sponsor, not to the delivery team, which is the only way assurance means anything.

ERP programme recovery

Programmes that are late, over budget or heading for a failed go live. We stabilise first, then re baseline against what can actually be delivered, then rebuild confidence with the sponsor and the board. Recovery work is where our experience earns the most.

ERP consultancy and ERP consultants, independent of every vendor

Many ERP consultancies are also resellers or implementation partners for a single platform, so their advice and their revenue point the same way. We are an ERP consultancy with nothing to sell but our time: no licences, no commissions and no preferred vendor.

That lets our ERP consultants do the work a vendor aligned partner cannot do credibly: compare SAP, Oracle, Microsoft Dynamics 365, NetSuite and Sage against your requirements, test an integrator’s plan before you sign it, and tell a board when a programme is off track. When you want us to deliver as well, we act as your ERP implementation partner through Part A assurance and Part B full integration.

How we work

Sectors we know well

We work most often in complex, regulated and asset heavy environments where an ERP programme touches operational and compliance obligations as well as finance. See our work in energy and utilities, telecoms and regulated markets.

ERP implementation best practices

Most ERP implementations that go wrong have broken at least one of these, whatever the platform.

Whether you need ERP consulting before you buy, an ERP implementation consultant to lead an ERP system implementation, or assurance over an ERP software implementation already under way, the same senior people do the work.

Frequently asked questions

What does an independent ERP consultant actually do?

An independent consultant works for you rather than for the software vendor or the systems integrator. That means selecting the right platform on merit, challenging the implementation partner where the plan is unrealistic, and protecting your business case throughout delivery.

How long does an ERP implementation take?

For a mid sized organisation with a single instance and disciplined scope, twelve to eighteen months is realistic. Multi entity, multi country programmes with significant integration typically run two to three years. Any timeline materially shorter than this usually means scope has been deferred rather than removed.

Can you help if our programme is already in trouble?

Yes. Recovery is a significant part of what we do. The first step is an independent assessment of where the programme actually stands, which usually takes two to three weeks, followed by a re baselined plan you can take to your board.

Do you work outside the UK?

Yes. We support programmes across the UK, Ireland and continental Europe, including multi country rollouts with local statutory and tax requirements.

With electronic invoicing becoming mandatory in Ireland from 2028 and in the UK from 2029, see e invoicing in the UK and Ireland for what your ERP needs.

What is the difference between an ERP consultancy and an ERP implementation partner?

An ERP consultancy advises: it helps you choose a platform, shape the business case and keep delivery honest. An ERP implementation partner builds and configures the system. Many firms are both for a single vendor. We are independent of every vendor, so we can be your consultancy, your implementation partner, or both.

Do you offer fixed fee ERP implementation?

For a defined piece of work, such as a readiness review, a vendor selection or a recovery plan, we agree a fixed price before we start. For longer delivery we agree a day rate or a fixed price up front, so you know the cost before you commit. How we work and what it costs sets this out.

Do you provide ERP implementation consultants?

Yes. We provide senior ERP implementation consultants to lead or assure delivery, either alongside your systems integrator or through our own Part B full integration work.

Our ERP services

ERP Programme Recovery

Stabilise a failing implementation, re baseline against reality and rebuild board confidence.

ERP Vendor Selection

Independent, requirements led selection across the major platforms, with no vendor commissions.

ERP Readiness Assessment

An honest verdict on whether your organisation is ready before you commit budget.

Talk to us

If you are selecting an ERP platform, preparing a business case, or worried about a programme already underway, we will give you a straight answer on whether we can help. Get in touch.

Where we work

We support ERP programmes across the UK, with dedicated local pages for Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Manchester and London.

Honest guides before you commit: what an ERP implementation really costs, how long it really takes, and why implementations fail. Independent advice by system: Dynamics 365, Business Central, SAP, Oracle, NetSuite and Sage. Pricing guides by platform: NetSuite, Sage Intacct, SAP Business One, SAP S/4HANA and Business Central, and an independent shortlist of the best ERP software for UK businesses.

How we engage on ERP

Every ERP engagement with us is built from two parts, which you can take separately or together.

Part A: assurance

We assure the vendor, the implementation partner and the programme on your behalf, from selection and contract through each stage gate to go live.

Part B: full integration

We lead the implementation from the client side and deliver the integration with the systems around your ERP, with data migration, testing, cutover and hypercare.

Both together

You can start with assurance and add the full integration later, without changing team.

What clients say

“Chris delivered a significant global transformation programme for the key BP Pulse rollout. A highly complex programme with many moving parts but PEF created a sustainable scalable structure and executed to time and budget. Fantastic to work with and always positive.”

Jeff McQueen, Global VP, BP Pulse

FINANCE PLATFORMS DELIVEREDNineteen years across every major finance platformOOracleDeliveredDMicrosoftDynamics 365DeliveredSSAPS/4HANADeliveredNNetSuiteDeliveredSSageDeliveredUUnit4DeliveredAAccessDeliveredVendor independentNo reseller agreements or commissionsSelection, delivery and recoverySystems our people have implemented and delivered for clients, with no vendor ties and no commissions.

Unit4, Access and the platforms beyond the big five

Not every organisation needs SAP, Oracle, Dynamics, NetSuite or Sage. For charities, universities, professional services and public bodies, a Unit4 ERP implementation in the UK is often the right call, and Access, IFS and Infor each have sectors where they fit well. We have implemented Unit4 and Access alongside the larger platforms, so the advice is about which system suits your operating model, not which one we happen to know.

ERP guides

Before you start, read our guides to the ERP implementation plan and the ERP business case, and if you are in manufacturing or construction, the independent guides to ERP systems for manufacturing and ERP for construction.

Planning or rescuing an ERP programme?

We bring independent, senior delivery to ERP programmes, from business case to go live and recovery. Honest about risk, and accountable for the result.

Book a confidential conversation Message us on WhatsApp

Or email chris.fagan@pefconsultingpartners.co.uk directly. You will hear back from a named person within one business day.

Platform independent

Independent across every major platform.

No reseller commissions and no vendor loyalties. We advise on and deliver the platform that is right for you, then make it work.

Microsoft Dynamics 365SAPOracleNetSuiteSageKraken100% independent