In the high-stakes world of enterprise digitalization, few systems carry as much promise—and as much risk—as Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP). These massive software platforms, designed to unify supply chains, operations, procurement, and finance, are seen by many corporations as a necessary step toward digital maturity. Yet, for all their potential, ERP systems often stumble—sometimes catastrophically, when introduced without the right leadership.
In 2020, a report by Panorama Consulting found that more than 50% of ERP projects failed to realize at least half of their expected benefits, with 21% deemed total failures. Another survey by Deloitte in 2021 revealed that cost overruns occurred in 74% of ERP projects, and schedules slipped in over 60% of them. In capital-intensive sectors like oil and gas, where downtime can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars per hour, these failures are not merely technical, they’re strategic collapses.
Enter Alexsandra Ogadimma Ihechere, a Nigerian digital transformation expert and project manager who emerged as a leading voice during this pivotal time. In a groundbreaking co-authored study published in the International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Growth Evaluation, Alexsandra offered a new lens through which to view ERP leadership—one focused not on systems alone, but on the human dynamics that make or break digital transformation.
Her research, conducted while based in Nigeria, centered on the leadership strategies necessary to implement ERP systems within the nation’s oil and gas industry, a sector notorious for operational complexity, supply chain fragmentation, and regulatory constraints. Drawing on firsthand experience, Alexsandra dissected multiple real-world case studies and revealed a consistent pattern: ERP success hinges less on technology, and more on leadership vision, stakeholder engagement, and change readiness.
This insight is supported by existing literature. As far back as 2018, research published in the Journal of Information Systems Education confirmed that the number one predictor of ERP success was sustained executive sponsorship. By 2020, McKinsey had further quantified this, reporting that ERP transformations with strong leadership involvement were six times more likely to succeed than those led solely by technical teams.
Alexsandra’s work picked up where these global studies left off—translating strategic theory into actionable project governance within the challenging operational landscape of Nigerian oil and gas. Her field-informed framework focused on four pillars: stakeholder alignment, phased deployment, embedded change management, and post-implementation sustainability.
One of the most striking contributions from her research was the concept of “empathetic execution.” She argued that resistance to ERP should not be viewed as opposition but rather as a natural expression of anxiety within teams being asked to change how they work. This reframing had major implications: it shifted the responsibility for ERP adoption from system trainers to organizational leaders, who, in her view, must invest in early communication, user involvement, and visible top-down support.
Indeed, resistance is a major barrier in ERP projects. According to a 2020 Change Management Survey by Prosci, the leading cause of ERP failure was employee resistance due to inadequate leadership and communication. Alexsandra’s leadership blueprint included detailed models for pre-rollout town halls, department-level design sprints, and end-user advocacy programs—interventions that have been linked to higher adoption rates and better morale.
Her contributions did not stop at implementation mechanics. She also tackled cost control and project phasing, two critical areas for ERP success. In Nigeria’s resource-sensitive environment, where government-owned and private-sector energy players alike operate on tight margins, bloated ERP budgets can derail both digital and operational ambitions. Drawing on her local project management experience, Alexsandra proposed phased rollouts that emphasize early ROI visibility—starting with procurement and asset management modules before expanding to financial consolidation and compliance automation.
This model aligns with industry best practices. The 2021 ERP Report by Panorama Consulting noted that organizations which used phased implementation strategies were 40% more likely to stay within budget and 25% more likely to meet their schedule targets. Alexsandra’s adaptation of this strategy for oilfield logistics, rig maintenance workflows, and regulatory compliance protocols was both innovative and contextually grounded.
Perhaps one of the most important dimensions of Alexsandra’s work was her attention to post-go-live governance. Too often, organizations declare ERP projects successful the moment the system is live. But as Alexsandra warned, “A system can be on—but that doesn’t mean it’s working for the people who use it.” She emphasized the need for continuous optimization, user feedback loops, performance dashboards, and executive debriefs well beyond the go-live milestone.
She argued for ERP to be viewed not as a technology tool, but as a strategic platform—one that evolves alongside the organization’s needs. This perspective is especially urgent in regions like sub-Saharan Africa, where companies are rapidly leapfrogging into digital infrastructures while still managing analog realities on the ground.
Her advocacy resonates with global transformation movements. Even before the pandemic, companies were under pressure to become more agile, data-driven, and interoperable. By 2021, that pressure had escalated into an existential imperative. ERP systems, if deployed well, were supposed to be the backbone of this transformation. But according to research from MIT Sloan in 2020, only 33% of firms using ERP systems reported achieving strategic agility, largely due to gaps in leadership and system alignment. Alexsandra’s work helps bridge that very gap.
Beyond her technical and managerial insight, Alexsandra represents something far deeper: the emergence of African female leadership in global systems design. While ERP conversations are often dominated by consultants in the U.S. or Europe, her research is proof that frontline expertise from Nigeria’s oilfields can yield global insights. Her leadership style—decisive, inclusive, and contextually sensitive—signals the arrival of a new generation of digital transformation professionals who don’t just adapt global models but redefine them from the inside out.
As ERP discussions continue across sectors—from manufacturing to mining, logistics to education—Alexsandra’s 2021 study remains a timely blueprint. Her arguments for leadership-led transformation, phased deployment, and stakeholder-centered design are now being revisited by project leaders managing post-pandemic digitization in multiple industries. And while her work was grounded in the constraints of Nigeria’s energy ecosystem, its relevance is unmistakably global.
In the end, what makes her contribution so powerful is that it bridges the theory-to-practice divide. Alexsandra Ogadimma Ihechere didn’t just study ERP from a distance—she lived it, led it, and wrote about it. Her voice has become one of reason, strategy, and inclusion in a field too often siloed by software manuals and vendor marketing. Her work reminds us that successful digital transformation is never just about the systems—it’s about the leaders bold enough to make the systems serve people, not the other way around.
