Transformation Ground Control: Digital Transformation, ERP Implementation, Change Management, and Digital Strategy IT’s Having Its Best Year Since 1996, The 2025 ERP Awards, How Your ERP System Is Making You Weaker
Jan 7, 2026
In this discussion, Greg Benton, Chief Strategy Officer at Third Stage Consulting, shares his expertise in ERP strategy and happenings from the 2025 ERP Awards. He highlights the shift in IT, declaring it’s experiencing its best year since 1996. The conversation also dives into the critical insights about how ERP systems can inadvertently weaken organizations and the need for a shift towards better vendor evaluations. Benton also shares notable ERP winners, emphasizing the importance of understanding the evolving landscape of technology and its impact on businesses.
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Start With A Phase Zero
- Do run a Phase Zero before any ERP project to surface risks and set governance and QA guardrails.
- Use a populated risk log as a litmus test for realistic risk mitigation planning.
Match Modernization To Your Risk Appetite
- Incremental modernization often outperforms big-bang rewrites when risk tolerance is low and ROI is unclear.
- Adopt the approach that matches your culture, tolerance for disruption, and risk-adjusted ROI.
AI Is Forcing An IT Reckoning
- AI spending pulled forward long-delayed IT investments in infrastructure, data platforms, security, and core systems.
- AI exposed which organizations were structurally ready versus those that must now catch up on foundational work.
