If you’ve ever been part of a large digital transformation (like ERP) project, you already know there’s one phase that seems to drain the life force out of the otherwise motivated, capable people.
Spoiler: it’s not testing and it’s not go-live.
It’s the design phase, that endless stretch of workshops, whiteboards, and “as-is/to-be” conversations where the future supposedly takes shape but somehow everyone leaves feeling more confused than inspired.
I’ve worked on enough large implementations to say this with confidence: the most annoying, exhausting, and trust-eroding part of an ERP design phase has very little to do with technology.
It’s what happens when we forget that the people being “designed around” are humans, not process maps.
1. Death by Workshop
By week three, most subject matter experts could facilitate the workshop themselves, but still can’t answer the question, “What’s actually changing for me?”
Design sessions are often scheduled back-to-back, heavy on jargon, and light on meaning.
Employees describe it as “Groundhog Day with PowerPoint.”
The research backs this up. Gartner found that cognitive load during ERP design directly correlates with lower adoption later. People get fatigued before the system even exists.
2. The Black Box of Decisions
In theory, design workshops are collaborative. In reality, decisions often vanish into a black hole of “we’ll circle back.”
Employees give their input, consultants take notes, and then (weeks later) a process flow appears that looks nothing like what was discussed.
It’s not just annoying; it’s demoralizing. Prosci’s global studies show that lack of visible influence during design is the #1 driver of early disengagement.
People can handle change. What they can’t handle is pretending their voice matters when it doesn’t.
3. The Experts vs. Everyone Else Divide
ERP projects love their experts (think solution architects, integration leads, business analysts). But there’s a cultural cost when technical expertise outranks lived experience. The lineman who’s climbed a pole in a storm or the planner who knows why the process “bends” every Tuesday afternoon brings insight you can’t model in SAP.
Accenture calls this the “design arrogance trap.” Design decisions prioritize theoretical efficiency over operational reality.
Translation: we optimize the system while alienating the people who keep it running.
4. The Invisible Workload
Let’s talk about SMEs (Subject Matter Experts).
They’re the beating heart of the design phase, pulled into every meeting, asked to review every document, while still doing their day jobs. There’s rarely workload relief, recognition, or even a genuine thank you.
Harvard Business Review found that SMEs contribute 60-80% of critical input but receive the least formal support. We call them “change champions” (insert eyeroll here), but treat them like unpaid consultants. No wonder burnout spikes before build even begins.
5. Communication that Overpromises and Under-informs
In design, communication tends to live in the extremes. It’s either too high-level (“We’re transforming our business!”) or too granular (“We’re integrating the outbound logistics module with the middleware interface”).
Employees don’t need marketing slogans or acronyms. They need to know why this matters, how it affects them, and when they can stop pretending they understand what ‘fit-gap’ means.
McKinsey’s research shows that mixed messaging during design doubles the risk of adoption of failure.
Clarity beats charisma every time.
6. The Cognitive Dissonance Trap
ERP design asks employees to imagine a future world while still surviving the chaos of the current one.
They’re expected to “think future state” while the old system breaks daily.
That disconnect breeds cynicism.
This is what Prosci calls the “frozen middle.” It’s the layer of people expected to hold both realities at once without dropping either. It’s not resistance; it’s exhaustion masquerading as apathy.
7. Silence Mistaken for Agreement
Here’s the one that hurts the most. In many design sessions, psychological safety is nonexistent. When a director or consultant dominates the room, people stop speaking up – not because they agree, but because it’s safer to stay quiet.
Amy Edmondson’s research shows that teams with low psychological safety make 40% more errors during change. In ERP design, that translates to rework, misalignment, and resentment.
8. Rework, Rework, and More Rework
Every time a “final” decision is overturned, trust takes a hit. Employees learn that their time doesn’t matter and that “final” is just another four-letter word. Panorama Consulting found that 42% of ERP teams cite repetitive redesign as the most demoralizing part of the project (second only to go-live panic).
The Real Pain
Here’s the truth underneath all of it:
The most painful part of ERP design phase isn’t the workload or the learning curve.
It’s the psychological experience of voicelessness and uncertainty.
People can handle complexity and long hours. What breaks them is feeling like decisions are being to them instead of with them.
What Change Leaders Can Do Differently
If you’re a Change Manager, Sponsor, or Project Leader, here’s how you can ease the ache:
- Translate the jargon. Every design decision needs a human translation: “What does this mean for how I do my job?”
- Show visible influence. Let SMEs see how their input shaped the outcome, even a small win matters.
- Protect their time. Adjust workloads. Recognize their contributions publicly.
- Coach consultants. Remind them they’re not designing software, they’re designing a lived experience.
- Ask better questions. “What feels off?” is more powerful than “Do you agree?”
- Build psychological safety early. A design phase without safety is just a theater of agreement.
Final Thought
ERP design doesn’t have to feel like a hostage situation disguised as collaboration. When we treat the design phase as a human process, not just a technical one, we create systems people actually want to use, and teams that still have energy left by go-live.
Because the real design challenge isn’t in workflows.
It’s in designing an experience where people feel seen, heard, and essential to the future they’re building.
