The impact on ERP implementation by leadership and organisational culture: a case analysis

In this paper, we seek to investigate Ke and Wei’s (2008) propositions that ERP implementation success is positively related with top management leadership and organisational culture. This is accomplished by analysing the implementation of the ERP systems at a company, HealthSouth Corporation, longitudinally during two periods (1997 to 2003 and 2004 to 2007). During 1997 to 2003, leadership and culture in this organisation enabled accounting fraud to occur via the criminal misuse of a heavily-customised, unsupported ERP system. During 2004 to 2007, the leadership and culture enabled the company to avoid bankruptcy and a plain-vanilla (i.e., uncustomised) version of the ERP system was installed successfully. This paper provides valuable lessons to ERP practitioners on how ERP implementations are influenced by leadership, from the top management team, and organisational culture.