Evaluating ERP Systems effectiveness in Ghanaian Higher Education: A Multiple Case Study Approach

The massive investment in Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems by Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) need to be evaluated in terms of the success of their application. With the increasing number of adoption and implementation of ERP systems in HEIs over the last decade, this paper proposes a systematic and analytic approach to evaluating ERP systems effectiveness in Ghanaian higher education. The purpose of this paper is to establish the significant factors for evaluating the effectiveness of ERP systems in Ghanaian higher education using the integration of BSC framework and ISO 25010 model. Using a mixed-method research, data for quantitative analysis were collected from three (3) case study universities (University of Ghana, University of Cape Coast and Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology) in Ghana that have implemented ERP systems for at least two (2) years. The case study universities were also interviewed for the qualitative analysis. Data were analyzed using partial least square – structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) and inductive thematic analysis. The findings of the study revealed that financial perspective, customer/stakeholder perspective, learning and growth perspective; and system quality perspective have significant or positive association with the effectiveness of ERP systems in the Ghanaian higher education. Understanding the significant factors that influence effectiveness of ERP systems in higher education will guide and direct HEIs management to evaluate the performance or effectiveness of ERP systems.