In this episode of Not Your Grandpa’s JD Edwards, host Nate Bushfield is joined by Mo Shujaat, VP of Application & Advisory at ERP Suites, to address a critical question: why aren’t companies seeing the ROI they expected from their JD Edwards upgrades? From identifying early warning signs to breaking down post-upgrade strategies and overlooked features, this episode serves as a practical roadmap for turning technical upgrades into true business transformation.
In this episode of Not Your Grandpa’s JD Edwards, I sit down with Mo Shoushtari, VP of Application & Advisory at ERP Suites, to talk about a pain point many JDE users experience: investing in a major upgrade, only to see minimal impact on business outcomes. Mo has helped dozens of companies transform—not just upgrade—and he’s here to break down exactly where companies go wrong, and how to fix it.
Post-Upgrade Regret: Signs You Missed the Mark
If you're more than a year post-upgrade and still feel like you're using the same system—same screens, same workflows, same issues—you likely missed out on the strategic potential your upgrade could've delivered. Mo calls this the difference between a "technical upgrade" and a true business transformation.
“You might have upgraded your system, but if your users are still doing the same things, you didn’t upgrade your process.”
Mo encourages companies to ask: Are we using the features we paid for? If the answer is no, your ROI clock is ticking—and you're falling behind.
Strategic Rocks vs Quick Wins: The ROI Quadrants
Mo introduces a framework for upgrade planning:
Strategic Rocks: High-effort, high-impact projects (think: full process redesigns)
Quick Wins: Low-effort, high-value changes (think: automating a manual integration or cutting middleware costs)
The best upgrade strategies mix both. Quick wins show early ROI. Strategic rocks build long-term value.
User Adoption: Where It All Falls Apart
A huge barrier to realizing value is user adoption. And it doesn’t start with end-users—it starts with IT.
“If IT doesn’t learn and adopt the new tools, how can they help the business use them?”
Too often, companies don’t even realize they can use orchestrator, logic extensions, watchlists, or widgets—because no one showed them how. Mo shares that some clients are years into newer tools releases and still aren’t using features that could save them hours per week.
Upgrade Planning: You’re Probably Doing It Too Late
The biggest mistake companies make? Waiting too long to plan.
“Involve us early. We won’t even charge you. We just want to help make it strategic.”
Late planning means rushed decisions, budget-only thinking, and missing the chance to turn an upgrade into a business opportunity. Mo recommends scoping business value from the start, with input from cross-functional teams.
Underused Gold: Features Hiding in Plain Sight
Mo rattles off powerful, underutilized features:
Tasks: Assign work directly in JDE with contextual links
Orchestrator: Automate integrations and workflows
Watchlists & Notifications: Let the system inform users of what matters
Widgets & UDOs: Create cleaner, more focused user interfaces
“Your ERP should talk back to you. Most companies aren’t using it that way.”
Who Belongs at the Planning Table?
It’s not just about IT or leadership. Mo urges companies to expand the tent:
Business stakeholders
Superusers
Supervisory-level managers
Why? Because they live the daily pain points. One client’s customer service team was manually typing orders from files. With input from frontline users, Mo's team built an orchestration to handle it—cutting order entry time dramatically.
Go-Live Is Not the Finish Line
The most common pitfall Mo sees?
“Go-live feels like a finish line. But your value clock starts the moment you cross it.”
Teams celebrate the launch, but fail to plan what comes next. Mo recommends:
Track post-go-live needs during the upgrade
Build a roadmap before go-live, not after
Start executing immediately after stabilization
The First 60 Days: What to Do
#1 priority? Have a roadmap. If you don’t, build one. If you do, start executing.
Security, integration improvements, and automation opportunities should be front-loaded to build momentum and show value quickly.
A Real-World Example: From One Orchestration to Eleven
Mo shares a story about a former client who started with a single orchestration, and years later had 11+ in production.
“All it took was one start. You don’t need a massive plan. You need that first step.”
Final Thoughts: Modernize with Purpose
You don’t have to boil the ocean. Start with small, business-focused enhancements. But don’t stop with a technical upgrade.
ERP Suites helps clients turn JDE upgrades into actual transformation—through planning, training, workshops, and optimization audits.
If your JD Edwards upgrade isn’t paying off, it’s not too late to fix it. Visit erpsuites.com to connect with Mo’s team.
