Overview
In this episode of The Dashboard Effect, Brick Thompson and Caleb Oaks make the case against one of the most common and most costly assumptions in data project planning: that data work should wait until after an ERP implementation is complete. The argument they build is direct and well-grounded in how ERP projects actually unfold, which is almost always slower and more unpredictable than the original timeline suggested.
The episode reframes the relationship between ERP transitions and data initiatives from sequential to parallel, and explains why that reframing produces better outcomes for the business at every stage of the transition. See how Blue Margin’s Managed Data Service helps organizations build data infrastructure in parallel with ERP transitions, delivering reporting visibility from day one of the new system rather than months after go-live.
What This Episode Covers
Continuous Reporting Through the Transition (0:30 – 1:47)
Building a data lakehouse and reporting models on existing systems before the new ERP arrives means the business retains operational visibility throughout the transition rather than going dark during implementation. When the new system comes online, existing data models can be retrofitted to connect to it, enabling reporting from day one rather than after a second build cycle that starts from scratch.
Hedging Against ERP Delays (2:00 – 3:00)
ERP implementations almost universally run longer than projected. Organizations that plan to start data work after the ERP is complete are effectively planning around a timeline that is unlikely to hold, which means leadership goes without reliable data for a period that is both extended and impossible to predict in advance. Running data initiatives in parallel converts an open-ended wait into a manageable parallel workstream.
Efficient Data Migration (3:15 – 4:45)
Having data structured outside the ERP before migration begins makes the migration itself cleaner. Validation reports built on the existing data structure can confirm that the new system’s data is accurate and complete as records transfer over. Historical data that does not need to migrate into the new ERP can be retained affordably in the data lake rather than inflating the scope and cost of the migration, which keeps the new system lighter and the migration more focused.
Accelerated ROI (6:00 – 8:00)
Parallel data work is not duplication of effort. It is acceleration. The data foundation built against the current system shortens the time required to connect the new system to reporting, improves resource efficiency by spreading the work across a longer timeline rather than compressing it after go-live, and delivers immediate business value during a period when the organization’s attention and energy are heavily consumed by the ERP project itself.
Application to Buy-and-Build Strategies (8:30 – 9:05)
The same logic applies to companies pursuing M&A growth. Organizations that wait for full system integration before establishing reporting for acquired companies can wait years for visibility into performance metrics that leadership needs now. Building reporting infrastructure on the acquired company’s existing systems provides that visibility immediately and creates a foundation that migration can build on rather than replace.
Who It’s For
This episode is worth your time if you are a CFO, COO, or technology leader at an organization in the middle of or planning an ERP transition and evaluating whether to run data initiatives in parallel or sequence them after go-live, a data or BI team that has been told to wait for the ERP before starting analytics work and wants a framework for making the case for an earlier start, a PE-backed company navigating a buy-and-build strategy where acquired entities are on different systems and full integration is years away, or any organization that has experienced the reporting blind spot that ERP transitions create and wants to avoid repeating it.
Why It’s Worth a Listen
The wait for the ERP assumption is so common that it rarely gets challenged explicitly, which is part of why it persists. This episode challenges it directly and with enough specificity to make the alternative both credible and actionable. The parallel approach is not a workaround. It is a better strategy, and the hosts make that case in terms that are straightforward enough to bring into a planning conversation without needing to translate.
The data migration efficiency point is particularly underappreciated. The discipline of structuring data outside the ERP before migration is not just about reporting continuity. It changes how the migration itself goes, giving teams validation tools and the flexibility to keep historical data out of the new system without losing access to it. That combination reduces migration risk and migration scope simultaneously.
And the M&A application is a useful extension of the core argument for any organization where acquisition activity is part of the growth strategy. Waiting for system integration before establishing reporting is a decision to operate blind for years in businesses where performance visibility is exactly what PE sponsors and leadership teams need most. The parallel approach is the faster and more reliable path to the insight those organizations require.
