MYOB Acumatica Implementation for Businesses

An MYOB Acumatica (formerly MYOB Advanced) implementation positions your organisation for efficiency improvement and digital transformation for years to come. However, implementation projects can be a significant investment and carry the risk of failure. The right implementation partner is essential to guide you through this process, but it is equally important that you understand the implementation process – so everyone can work together towards a successful outcome.

What is MYOB Acumatica (formerly MYOB Advanced)?

MYOB Acumatica is a cloud-based ERP platform used by larger, more complex organisations across Australia and New Zealand to improve business efficiency. Its modular design, flexible architecture, and Application Programming Interface (API) mean that it can be customised to meet your organisation’s unique requirements – whether that be through new integrations, bespoke customisations, or the inclusion of a new module for any area of the business. MYOB Acumatica becomes a single source of truth for all your financial and non-financial information. It is the one platform from which you can manage your complex organisation, analysing data, making faster decisions, and improving efficiency.

There are no differences comparing MYOB Acumatica vs MYOB Advanced; they are the same system. MYOB changed the name in 2024 to MYOB Acumatica to highlight their strong product development partnership with the Acumatica company, who are based in Washington, USA.

Why a Structured Implementation Approach Matters

A failed ERP implementation can result in financial losses, decreased productivity, low team morale and damage to your organisation’s reputation. An ERP implementation is more likely to fail when both the organisation and implementer fail to appropriately manage the implementation risk.

Business management platforms are complex, much more so than simple “off-the-shelf” accounting systems. You must follow a structured approach to the implementation to set your organisation up for success.

Engage the services of a trusted, expert implementation partner who follows a structured, established approach. Do not worry that a structured implementation approach will lead to a “cookie-cutter” outcome. Leading implementation partners consider all aspects of your business and how you will best use the system in their design proposal. The structure of the implementation ensures that nothing is missed and that both parties are satisfied with the outcome. This is a risk-averse strategy and is more likely to result in a successful implementation.

The MYOB Advanced Implementation Process

Following a structured MYOB Advanced implementation process is critical for a successful project outcome. It is essential to plan ahead and get the implementation right the first time.

Discovery, Scoping, and Risk Assessment

The first step in the MYOB Acumatica implementation is identifying your goals for efficiency improvement and understanding how the system can achieve this. This is when you should engage an implementation partner. They can translate the system’s capabilities into your business processes, helping your team identify the areas of greatest efficiency improvement.

A risk assessment should be conducted to identify potential risks and evaluate the impact of a successful implementation. Defining the project scope is important – it is very easy to lose sight of the implementation goals when you dive into all that these systems can do. However, an implementation is not an isolated project. Investing in an ERP is a commitment to a lifetime of efficiency improvement. There will be plenty of time to build in additional customisation and complexity after implementation. An implementation project plan and timeline are important foundations for a successful project.

Solution Design and Planning

The design and planning phase is the implementer’s proposed understanding of how the system can match your business’s workflows. They will outline the customisations and integrations required to achieve the project scope. Everyone involved should understand and agree on the configuration that is to take place.

At Kilimanjaro Consulting, we have come to appreciate that it is significantly more efficient to understand what you are constructing before you start building. This principle holds true whether you are building a house or implementing a software solution. The cost of rectification far surpasses the investment in getting it right the first time.

Data Migration and System Configuration

At this stage, the implementer is able to work on the build and configuration of the system, based on the agreed solution design. However, your team must now prepare your data for migration.

Data migration is required so that you are not starting from square one in your new system. An ERP system is the data-nexus of your entire organisation. You cannot afford to wait weeks, months, quarters, or years to collect new data for historical comparisons. The new system can deliver immediate analysis when you migrate data from your old system.

Kilimanjaro Consulting has developed technology to bridge the gap between your MYOB AccountRight or MYOB Exo Business databases and MYOB Acumatica. We can import your historical data during implementation, so you can hit the ground running when you go live and take full advantage of your new reporting capabilities.  Data migration from other legacy systems is also possible.

User Training and UAT (User Acceptance Testing)

Because you have historical data and opening balances available in your new system, your team is able to test and compare using data and systems that they are already comfortable with. Testing and training are key areas of the implementation. You must be confident that:

• Your team can efficiently use the system on their own after go-live,
• The customisations are working as intended, and
• The insights and reports that are generated are correct.

You should analyse each workflow end-to-end to ensure seamless operation and alignment with your needs. Any issues identified during this phase should be promptly communicated to our team for resolution before the go-live phase. The UAT phase also provides users with the opportunity to reinforce learnings from the training, ensuring a smooth transition during Go Live.

A sandbox environment that is a clone of, but separate from, your live site is critical for proper testing. This gives your team the freedom to test and experiment at their own pace, without the consequence of making a mistake in the end version.

Go-Live and Support

Going live with a new ERP system is a significant milestone in any business’s technology journey. This is the payoff for the investment of time and resources over the previous month and represents the willingness to prioritise growth and efficiency improvement.

The implementation process is not finished when you go live. The first period after going live still poses risk for user adoption and issue resolution. It is important that your implementation partner is still available for support, further training, and guidance through your new processes.

Kilimanjaro Consulting offers ongoing support services for our clients after they go live. We forge strong lifetime partnerships and can provide additional customisations and ongoing improvements. Your decision to implement an ERP system is a challenging journey, and we will be there to provide support every step of the way.

Common Implementation Challenges and How Kilimanjaro Mitigates Them

Any software implementation comes with inherent risks:

• Software risk – will the new system do what we need it to do?
• Implementer risk – does the implementing team have the skills required to fulfil the sales team’s promise and unlock the potential of the software?
• Self-inflicted risk – can your own team devote the appropriate resources to the implementation?

Your implementation partner plays such an important role in your long-term software success. The choice of implementation partner is as important as the software itself. The right implementation partner will have strategies to mitigate common implementation challenges:

• Lack of proper planning – Kilimanjaro Consulting places significant importance on both the risk assessment and solution design phases of the implementation process.
• Data Migration challenges – Kilimanjaro Consulting has developed technology to simplify the data migration process, especially from MYOB AccountRight and MYOB Exo users migrating to MYOB Acumatica.
• Technical issues and integration problems – Kilimanjaro Consulting has the largest, most experienced, and most skilled team of MYOB Acumatica consultants across Australia and New Zealand. We understand and work with MYOB Acumatica’s open API and have the technical skills to facilitate endpoint customisation and integration.
• Vendor-related risks – Kilimanjaro Consulting has a strong relationship with MYOB, being their largest, most successful partner. MYOB and Kilimanjaro Consulting both have strong relationships with Acumatica as their largest global partner. MYOB localise the Acumatica Cloud ERP, and our team are experienced in providing local support to organisations across ANZ.
• Insufficient User Engagement and Training – Kilimanjaro Consulting includes dedicated training with your implementation consultant as part of our structured methodology. Involving your team in the entire implementation process, from risk assessment and discovery through to go-live and ongoing support, is key in progressive change management and user adoption for the new system. An online training portal is also available.
• Inadequate Project Management – Kilimanjaro Consulting follows and champions our structured methodology, which assists in keeping all parties aligned and on track with the implementation.

The wrong implementation partner, or one with limited experience, will be unprepared and ill-equipped to deal with these challenges, increasing the risk of a failed implementation.

Software Implementation Risk Guide Brochure

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Post-Implementation: What Happens Next?

Implementing MYOB Acumatica is an investment in your ongoing efficiency improvement. When you are supported by a team of trusted implementation consultants, you can continue to look for ongoing efficiency improvements:

• Adding a new MYOB Acumatica module to expand the scope of what your system can achieve,
• Introduce new best-of-breed third-party applications that can be integrated into the system to improve additional departmental workflows,
• Add new branches and companies into the same tenant as you grow,
• Upgrades to new versions of MYOB Acumatica, taking advantage of new functionality without compromising existing customisations,
• Leveraging AI functionality in MYOB Acumatica,
• Defining and creating new customisations to automate processes, support your team, and manage your changing requirements.

Why Choose Kilimanjaro Consulting for Your MYOB Acumatica (Advanced) Implementation?

Kilimanjaro Consulting is the largest and most experienced implementer of MYOB Acumatica across Australia and New Zealand. We are skilled, low-risk implementers helping businesses overcome their challenges through the clever use of, innovative and proven technology. Our dedicated team takes the time to truly understand your organisation and configure and customise MYOB Acumatica to meet your requirements. Kilimanjaro Consulting takes a low-risk approach to safely and reliably guide our clients to the top of the technology mountain. You may not have been through an ERP implementation before, but we have.

The Kilimanjaro Consulting team follows a proven, structured implementation methodology to ensure you are in the safest hands. We have the experience from years of successful implementations to navigate any obstacles and get the project right the first time.

How to choose an implementation partner eBook

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Talk to our friendly team to start your discovery of MYOB Acumatica and understand how it can improve efficiency in your organisation. Email sales@kilimanjaro-consulting.com or call 1300 857 464 (AU), 0800 436 774 (NZ).