Services

Strategy, governance, and execution assurance for complex transformation.

Esper Strategic Partners provides senior, independent support at the moments when leadership decisions have the greatest impact on cost, risk, organizational performance, and transformation outcomes.

Service 01

Enterprise Strategy & Operating Model

Technology transformation should begin with organizational strategy—not a software demonstration. ESP helps leadership teams define the future state of the organization and determine how operating models, processes, capabilities, data, governance, and technology must evolve to support it.

Services Include

Enterprise strategy facilitation
Operating-model assessment
Current-state and future-state design
Transformation vision development
Capability assessment
Business process strategy
Organizational readiness assessment
Investment prioritization
Transformation sequencing
Multi-year roadmaps
Executive alignment workshops
Business-case development

Outcomes

—Clear strategic direction
—Aligned executive priorities
—Defined future-state capabilities
—Practical transformation roadmap
—Stronger investment decisions
—Reduced risk of technology-led strategy

Service 02

ERP & Enterprise Technology Advisory

ERP decisions influence how an organization operates for a decade or more. ESP provides vendor-neutral guidance to organizations evaluating, selecting, planning, or optimizing enterprise platforms.

Platform Experience

Workday
Oracle and PeopleSoft
Enterprise HCM
Financial management
Payroll
Student information systems
Reporting and analytics
Enterprise integrations
Cloud and SaaS ecosystems

Services Include

ERP strategy
Platform assessment
Legacy-system modernization
Software-selection strategy
Request-for-proposal development
Evaluation criteria and scoring models
Demonstration planning
Total-cost-of-ownership analysis
Implementation-partner selection
Contract and statement-of-work review
Program structure and planning
Post-production optimization
Release and regression strategy

Outcomes

—Decisions driven by organizational requirements
—Defensible vendor selection
—Improved commercial terms
—Clear implementation expectations
—Better alignment between platform capabilities and business objectives

Service 03

Independent Program Assurance

Program assurance gives executive sponsors and boards an objective view of whether a transformation is healthy, controlled, and likely to deliver its intended outcomes. ESP works independently from the implementation partner while collaborating constructively with all parties.

Areas of Review

Program governance
Scope stability
Schedule credibility
Budget and resource position
Solution design
Integration readiness
Data conversion
Testing strategy
Change management
Decision effectiveness
Risk and issue management
Partner performance
Deployment readiness
Hypercare planning
Benefit realization

Deliverables

Program health assessments
Executive dashboards
Independent risk reports
Steering committee guidance
Decision recommendations
Readiness assessments
Partner performance evaluations
Corrective-action plans
Board-level reporting

Outcomes

—Earlier identification of risk
—Better executive decisions
—Greater partner accountability
—Increased transparency
—Stronger go-live readiness
—Improved confidence in program outcomes

Service 04

Executive & Board Advisory

Boards and executives need a clear understanding of what is happening, why it matters, and which decisions require their attention. ESP translates complex transformation realities into direct, business-oriented guidance.

Services Include

Board education and briefings
Executive sponsor coaching
CIO, CFO, CHRO, and provost advisory
Steering committee design
Executive decision facilitation
Transformation risk briefings
Investment and business-case review
Partner and vendor challenge
Leadership alignment
Executive communications
Strategic issue resolution

Outcomes

—Stronger executive sponsorship
—Faster decision-making
—Clearer accountability
—Improved governance
—More effective board oversight
—Greater confidence in transformation leadership

Service 05

Project Recovery & Transformation Reset

Troubled programs rarely need more status reporting. They need an honest diagnosis, decisive intervention, and a realistic recovery plan. ESP assesses what has changed, what is no longer credible, and what leadership must do next.

Common Warning Signs

Missed milestones
Repeated re-planning
Uncontrolled scope
Rising costs
Weak business ownership
Poor partner relationships
Unresolved design decisions
Inadequate testing
Low user confidence
High team turnover
Conflicting status reports
Declining executive trust

Recovery Services

Rapid program assessment
Root-cause analysis
Scope and schedule validation
Governance redesign
Leadership and accountability reset
Partner performance assessment
Recovery roadmap
Critical-path prioritization
Executive communication strategy
Go-live decision support
Post-recovery oversight

Outcomes

—Shared understanding of reality
—Clear recovery priorities
—Restored accountability
—Credible schedule and scope
—Improved executive confidence
—Reduced risk of continued investment in an unworkable plan

Service 06

Fractional Transformation Leadership

Organizations do not always need another consulting team. Sometimes they need one experienced executive to establish direction, leadership, and control.

Potential Roles

Fractional Chief Transformation Officer
Interim ERP Program Executive
Fractional Enterprise Applications Leader
Executive Program Advisor
Transformation Governance Lead
Client-Side Program Director
Implementation Partner Advisor

Typical Responsibilities

Transformation leadership
Executive alignment
Governance and decision-making
Partner supervision
Program planning
Risk management
Organizational readiness
Team leadership
Board reporting
Implementation oversight

Service 07

AI Strategy, Readiness & Governance

Organizations are under pressure to adopt artificial intelligence, but many lack a clear operating model, governance structure, risk framework, or connection between AI initiatives and measurable business value. ESP helps leadership teams move from experimentation to disciplined enterprise adoption.

Services Include

AI opportunity assessment
Enterprise AI strategy
Use-case prioritization
AI readiness evaluation
Governance design
Risk and control frameworks
Human oversight models
Vendor and platform evaluation
AI integration with enterprise systems
Benefits and ROI measurement
Organizational adoption planning
Board and executive education

Outcomes

—Clear AI priorities
—Reduced governance and compliance risk
—Better alignment with business strategy
—Stronger investment discipline
—Practical path from pilots to enterprise value

Not sure which engagement fits? Start with a confidential conversation.

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