The ABCs of ERP & Beyond
ERP systems run your business — but most of the advice out there is buried in jargon or sounds like a sales pitch. The ABCs of ERP & Beyond cuts through that. Hosted by Pete Nicholson and Nirav Shah, two ERP practitioners working in the trenches with manufacturing and distribution businesses, this podcast covers everything from go-live survival to planning, scheduling, inventory, finance, and the tech that ties it all together. No fluff. No vendor spin. Just practical insight you can actually use.
Episodes
81 episodes
Upgrade or Migrate? How to Tell Which Your ERP Really Needs
Every ERP project starts with someone saying "we need to do something about our systems". The two real options on the table are usually upgrade or migrate — and most teams treat them as if they're the same kind of project at different scales. T...
5 Conditions for a 6-Month ERP Implementation
Six-month ERP implementations get a bad name because most "six-month" projects are really twelve-month projects with a six-month deadline glued onto the front. The software is rarely the problem. The problem is everything around it — decisions,...
8 Things We Actually Like in Acumatica 2026 R1
Acumatica 2026 R1 is live — 460 pages of release notes, and we've read them so you don't have to. Pete, Nirav, and Emily walk through what actually stood out, what's genuinely useful, and why this particular release deserves your attention soon...
Why Your Inventory Numbers Don't Add Up — with Ben Hussey, Co-CEO of Katana
Most businesses have an inventory problem. The question is how big. In this episode, we're joined by Ben Hussey, Co-CEO of Katana Cloud Inventory, to talk about why so many growing businesses struggle with inventory visibility — and what they c...
5 Things to Do Before You Connect Your E-Commerce Site to an ERP
There comes a point in every e-commerce business where the patchwork of Shopify, spreadsheets, ShipStation, and QuickBooks stops working. Orders are flowing in, but nobody has a single view of what's happening — and you're managing three screen...
5 Reasons Your ERP Project Falls Apart Before Go-Live
You selected the right ERP. You signed the deal. Everyone's buzzing. So why does it start going wrong three months in?This week, Pete and Nirav welcome Emily Browning back to the show to tackle one of the most underrated topics in ERP: p...
Why Your ERP Training Isn't Working (And How to Fix It)
Why does your team forget everything they learned in ERP training?You invested serious time and money. Everyone attended. And three months after go-live, half the team is still confused, making errors, and asking the same questions.<...
Parallel Running Your ERP? Here's Why That Backfires
Parallel running sounds like a safety net. In reality, it's one of the most common and most expensive mistakes in ERP implementation.In this episode, Pete and Nirav are joined by Emily Browning — an IT leader in manufacturing — to break ...
Acumatica Summit 2026: AI, Automation & The Future of ERP
What happens when ERP stops being software… and starts becoming a digital replica of your entire business?In this episode, Peter Nicholson and Nirav Shah unpack the biggest moments from Acumatica Summit 2026 — from the buzz...
Acumatica Summit 2026: Live Updates and First Impressions
We were so impressed with the news and updates from Acumatica Summit 2026 in Seattle, we had to grab a few minutes to document our initial impressions. Apologies in advance for Pete's slurring of words, he must've been too excited about t...
Shopify + Business Central Integration: What the Native Connector Won't Tell You
Thinking about connecting Shopify to Business Central? Before you flip that switch, you need to know what you're getting into.In this episode of The ABCs of ERP & Beyond, Pete and Nirav dig into the Shopify-to-Business Central integr...
Why Your Factory Feels Chaotic and How ERP Brings Control Back
Why does manufacturing feel so chaotic for so many businesses?In the first episode of 2026, recorded in person back in November, we explore one of the most misunderstood areas of ERP: planning and scheduling — and ...
2025 ERP Year in Review: AI, Tariffs & Our Biggest Episodes
Didn't listen to ANY episodes but want to know what we spoke about? Listen to what we picked out as our top events, episodes, and life moments from 2025.
How to Migrate Work-in-Progress (WIP) Into Your New ERP System
This week on The ABCs of ERP & Beyond, we’re talking all things production orders and WIP (Work in Progress). If you’re in manufacturing, you know how critical it is to keep your BOMs, routings, and shop floor data accurate—and to ...
5 Reasons Your ERP Go-Live Will Fail (And How to Prevent It)
In this episode of The ABCs of ERP & Beyond, Pete and Nirav break down the top five reasons ERP go-lives go off the rails, and what you can do to steer your project back on track. Whether you're preparing for your first impl...
What's New in Acumatica 2025 R2: Top Features Reviewed
After an extended break where Pete was busy getting married, we're now BACK with a look at what caught our eye in Acumatica's latest major release, 2025 R2. Year, this does feature AI talk but this is a game changer in the ERP space so co...
Why You're Not Ready for ERP (And How to Get There)
Are you thinking about ERP but not sure if your business is ready? In this episode of The ABCs of ERP & Beyond, we break down the Top 5 signs you’re not ready for ERP — and more importantly, what you should do about it.👉 Topics cove...
How Manufacturers Can Get Started with AI: A Practical Guide
AI isn’t just for tech giants, it’s reshaping the manufacturing floor too. But before manufacturers jump into the hype, there’s groundwork that needs to be done. In this episode of The ABCs of ERP & Beyond, Peter Nicholson and Nirav Shah br...
Acumatica Go-Live in the UK: An Honest, Unfiltered Story
In this episode of The ABCs of ERP & Beyond, Nirav puts Pete in the hot seat to talk about his division’s UK ERP go-live on Acumatica.From the nerves of cutover weekend to the surprises that came during go-live week, ...
Your First Day in Business Central: What Nobody Tells You
Starting fresh in Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central? It’s more than just logging in, it's navigating new environments, strange terminology, and a sea of menus. In this episode of The ABCs of ERP and Beyond, Pete and Nirav ...
5 Ways ERP Transforms Shipping & Warehouse Operations
Shipping delays, missed paperwork, manual tracking... sound familiar? In this episode of The ABCs of ERP and Beyond, Pete and Nirav unpack the top 5 ways an ERP system transforms shipping departments from overwhelmed to optimize...
Why You Should NOT Customize Your ERP (And What to Do Instead)
🎯 Top 5 Reasons to Avoid Customizations!In Part Two of The ABCs of ERP & Beyond, Pete and Nirav tackle the flip side of ERP decision-making: why not customizing might just be the smartest move your business can make. From smoother upgra...
Should You Customize Your ERP? 5 Reasons For and Against
🎭 To Customize or Not to Customize? That is the ERP question! In this episode of The ABCs of ERP & Beyond, we dive into the top 5 reasons why some businesses choose to customize their ERP systems and why others stee...
Connecting Acumatica to Power BI: Live Demo & Step-by-Step Guide
Ready to bring your Acumatica data to life? In this live demo episode of The ABCs of ERP & Beyond, we walk through the full process — from creating a Generic Inquiry (GI) in Acumatica to connecting it directly into Power ...
ERP Benefits for CFOs: Financial Visibility in Manufacturing
In this episode of The ABCs of ERP & Beyond, Pete and Nirav dive into why modern CFOs should care deeply about ERP systems — and how the right system can transform financial operations in manufacturing businesses.We...
