[Video] Best Practice Tips For Role Design In ERP Systems

A well-designed and well-executed role structure is the cornerstone of an efficient, sustainable security model in your ERP system. Poor role design makes security difficult to manage and can have a negative impact on application performance. This creates more work for your technical staff as they need to spend time resolving support calls on access problems and researching information in response to auditor’s queries, which can become expensive.

In this edition of the Appsian Insights video series, we will discuss some best practices for designing roles and tips for avoiding common pitfalls.

Three Crucial Points For Creating A Resilient Role Structure

There are three essential points to consider when designing a role structure that is resilient, flexible, easy to understand, and easy to maintain.

1. Always Start with a Plan

Create a strategy that sets the direction and establishes priorities for a role design project. It should define what success looks like and prioritize the activities that will make your design a reality.

2. Prioritize Proper Role Design

Well-designed roles will minimize the amount of time and effort your administration team needs to spend managing security. They will also provide you with the flexibility to adapt quickly to business changes and to scale business growth.

3. Establish Reasonable Timelines

Role design takes time, especially to test and implement. Allocate the appropriate resources, allow for testing, and account for risks associated with the rollout.

Four Common Role Design Pitfalls To Avoid

1. Not Establishing Proper Expectations

At the outset of any role design or redesign project, it is vital to identify what can be achieved within a specific time.

2. A Lack of Granularity at the Start of the Project

Proper role design should consider the granularity of the organizational structure, including job titles and roles, job duties and tasks, and consider potential segregation of duties conflicts.

3. Not Allowing Enough Time for Testing

Prepare testers with the information and resources they need to optimize the process and increase efficiency.

4. Not Enough Planning for Go Live

Approvals must be obtained once role testing is completed for the access within roles and for the new roles to be added to the users. Support personnel should understand the design and methods for troubleshooting. Processes must be in place to expedite security changes should they be needed immediately.

Appsian understands the complexity of role design for ERP systems. Please contact us and one of our experts will be happy to discuss your specific challenges.