Why do most WMS go-lives slip?
More than half of WMS go-lives run into delays. A common cause: nobody on the team has run a project like this before. The integrator builds the system; someone still has to make it fit the operation.
What do the numbers say?
56% of WMS go-lives run into delays, and 30% of WMS projects fail (FulfillmentIQ, 2024). Those are not software problems first. They are project problems.
Why does nobody own the project?
IT says it is an operations problem. Operations says it is an IT problem. The vendor keeps sending invoices.
The integrator builds what is specified. If nobody translates what the floor needs into what the system must do, the gaps only show up during testing, or worse, after go-live.
“A system is only as good as the people driving it.”
Why can’t the warehouse lead just run it?
They know the operation inside out. But running it takes every hour they have. Too deep in the daily work to step back and see the big picture, or what a modern WMS could bring.
What helps?
Someone who has run these projects from all sides: as the operator, the project lead and the implementer. Someone who speaks both languages, catches miscommunication early and keeps IT, operations and the vendor working towards one go-live.