As Indian businesses expand across distributed supply chains, rural markets, and multi-location operations, the role of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems is undergoing a major transformation. ERP platforms are now expected to deliver real-time operational visibility, faster decision-making, and seamless coordination across manufacturing, inventory, distribution, procurement, and field operations.
However, despite decades of ERP adoption across industries, a large number of implementations in India continue to underperform. Businesses often invest heavily in ERP systems only to find employees reverting to spreadsheets, WhatsApp communication, and manual processes.
According to Veerendra Jamdade, founder and CEO of Vritti Solutions, the problem lies in the mismatch between traditional ERP design philosophies and the operational realities of Indian businesses.
“Traditional ERP systems often fail in India because they are designed for standardized business environments, whereas Indian businesses operate with high variability, fragmented workflows, and evolving processes,” Jamdade says. “Many legacy ERP solutions assume that businesses will adapt to the software, but in reality, Indian enterprises need software that adapts to the business.”
Challenges in the operating system
The discussion around ERP modernization is becoming increasingly relevant for India’s printing and packaging industry as well. From commercial printers and label converters to flexible packaging manufacturers and corrugation plants, businesses across the sector are managing increasingly complex production environments, shorter turnaround timelines, fluctuating raw material costs, and distributed supply chains.
Many printing and packaging companies continue to rely on disconnected software systems, spreadsheets, manual production tracking, and fragmented communication between prepress, production, inventory, procurement, dispatch, and sales teams.
As operations scale across multiple plants and customer segments, this lack of integration often creates visibility gaps, production inefficiencies, and inventory mismatches.
Traditional ERP systems frequently struggle to address the highly dynamic nature of print and packaging workflows, where job customization, substrate variations, machine utilization, wastage control, and delivery timelines constantly shift.
The growing adoption of Industry 4.0 technologies, automated production systems, and data-driven manufacturing in the sector is therefore increasing the need for agile ERP platforms capable of delivering real-time operational visibility.
Indian businesses often operate with centralized decision-making structures, hybrid manual-digital workflows, fragmented distribution ecosystems, and varying levels of digital maturity across locations. Operational exceptions are common rather than occasional.
“ERP success in India depends less on ‘global best practices’ and more on practical adaptability and execution on the ground,” Jamdade explains.
This operational complexity becomes even more visible in manufacturing, FMCG distribution, rural business ecosystems, and packaging supply chains, where businesses struggle with delayed reporting, inventory mismatches, poor demand forecasting, production planning inefficiencies, and limited visibility into distributor performance.
In the printing and packaging sector specifically, ERP systems are increasingly expected to support job costing, production scheduling, substrate management, quality control, inventory tracking, and machine-level visibility. Without integrated systems, companies often face challenges in tracking wastage, monitoring delivery timelines, and optimizing plant efficiency.
In many cases, by the time critical operational data reaches management, the situation on the ground has already changed.
“Modern ERP systems must therefore function not just as transaction platforms, but as real-time operational intelligence systems,” Jamdade notes.
One of the biggest reasons ERP projects fail is not technology limitations, but workforce resistance.
“User adoption is often the single biggest factor determining ERP success,” says Jamdade. “Many ERP projects fail not because the technology is weak, but because the workforce does not fully embrace the system.”
In India, where workforce diversity is significant, localization plays an equally important role.
ERP as a connected operational ecosystem
The modern ERP platform is no longer just a digital ledger. According to Jamdade, today’s ERP systems are evolving into integrated operational ecosystems that combine manufacturing, procurement, inventory, sales, analytics, distributor management, and customer servicing into a unified real-time framework.
“Field teams, distributors, warehouse operators, and plant managers can now update and access operational data instantly from remote locations,” Jamdade explains. “The focus is shifting from ‘data storage’ to ‘decision enablement.”
The road ahead
As India’s manufacturing and distribution sectors continue their digital transformation journey, ERP systems are expected to become more intelligent, agile, and industry-specific.
Key trends shaping the future include AI-assisted analytics, predictive decision-making, smart factory integration, mobile-first ERP usage, and deeper integration between ERP, CRM, HRMS, and supply chain platforms.
At the same time, businesses are beginning to evaluate ERP platforms less on the basis of feature count and more on measurable operational outcomes.
“Over the next few years, businesses will increasingly evaluate ERP systems not on the number of features they offer, but on how effectively they improve operational speed, visibility, and business scalability,” says Jamdade. “The ERP platforms that succeed in India will be the ones that combine technological capability with a deep understanding of Indian operational realities.”
