ERP Selection Consultant, Belgium

Shortlists Belgian organizations typically weigh

The shortlist depends heavily on the kind of organization. Smaller trading and service companies running on Belgian accounting packages such as WinBooks, BOB, Octopus, Yuki or Exact Online often compare staying in that world, perhaps with add-ons, against moving to a broader suite like Odoo or Zoho. Mid-sized distributors and manufacturers tend to put Odoo, Dynamics 365 Business Central and sometimes ERPNext or SAP Business One side by side. Associations, consultancies and project-based organizations look harder at project, time and billing functions than at stock.

Odoo started in Belgium, so Belgian buyers can usually find several firms able to implement it. That gives choice, but it also means the partner decision can matter as much as the product decision. Business Central has its own network of Belgian partners, and the same logic applies.

I begin with your activities, entities, languages, how your accountant works with your books and which outside systems must connect, then screen candidates in writing. Each exclusion is documented so the board can follow the reasoning. My ERP consultant page for Belgium gives wider context on platform choices there.

Demo cases that test Belgian finance and languages

A partner's standard demo will show its product at its best. A scripted session shows how it handles your situation. Each bidder works through the same Belgian cases with your sample data:

• An outgoing invoice delivered over Peppol to a business customer, and a supplier invoice received through the same network and matched to an order.
• A CODA bank statement imported and matched automatically using the structured payment reference on each invoice.
• A direct debit collection from a customer who has signed a mandate.
• Data for the VAT return and for the annual customer and intra-EU listings, reviewed by your accountant.
• An invoice, reminder and order confirmation printed in French and in Dutch from the same record, based on the customer's language.
• A project or service contract billed by time or milestone, where that applies.

Process owners score each case; whether the outputs satisfy Belgian obligations is for your accountant to confirm. I note whether Peppol runs through a built-in access point, a partner's connector or a third-party service, because that affects running cost and who you call when a message fails. The general method sits on my ERP evaluation page.

Comparing Belgian partner bids

Because several partners can often implement the same product, many Belgian selections turn into a comparison of bids as much as of software. Bids vary in shape: a fixed starter package, phases on hours, or a light bid that leaves the Peppol connection, CODA setup, migration or translated document layouts to be quoted later.

I rebuild each bid into one table: deliverables per phase, consultant profiles, described effort, what your staff must contribute, assumptions and exclusions. Partners receive clarification questions in identical wording, and their written answers become part of the selection file. Reference calls with their existing customers follow a fixed question list covering delivery against plan, change requests and whether support is available in the languages your users need.

Bids are often written in French or Dutch; your colleagues help me confirm wording wherever it changes the scope. For bids you already hold, see vendor proposal review. Organizations that must run a formal tender, for instance because of grant conditions or internal procurement rules, can follow the route under ERP RFP consulting, and the complete process is described under ERP vendor selection.

Peppol route, payroll links and hosting questions

Belgium has moved business invoicing toward structured exchange over Peppol, so the e-invoicing route belongs inside the selection rather than after it. For each option I record how invoices are sent and received, who operates the access point, what it adds to running costs, how incoming invoices are matched and what happens when one is rejected. The scope of your own obligations comes from your accountant.

Payroll in Belgium usually stays with a social secretariat. The selection question is therefore how payroll journals and cost allocations reach the ERP and in what format, not whether the ERP calculates salaries. I ask each bidder to show an imported payroll journal rather than describe one.

On data, each bidder answers a short written list: where live data and backups sit, which subprocessors are used, what the processing agreement says, how support staff get access and how the data leaves with you at contract end. GDPR applies to all of them; your privacy lead or lawyer assesses the answers. For links to other systems in more depth, see ERP integration.

Recommendation and agreement

The recommendation brings demo scores, references, the bid comparison, the Peppol route, integration findings and cost drivers together for each option: subscriptions or licenses, partner effort, access point and connector costs, migration, document translation, training and support. The weighting is fixed before the first demo, and if two options finish close I set out what should decide between them instead of declaring a winner. The report is short enough for a board meeting and detailed enough to defend later.

Before signature I list the practical points your lawyer should cover: acceptance per phase, change requests, named consultants, support hours in the languages you need, data processing terms and data return. My income does not depend on which product or partner you choose.

For the delivery stage that follows, my Belgian ERP implementation consultant page describes the client-side role. Everything is handled remotely, with live sessions during Belgian working hours, and the Belgium overview summarizes my other work there.