Security

ERP security and access controls for SMB organisations

Design role-based access, segregation of duties, and approval controls suitable for lean teams.

Security design should follow business process roles, not job titles alone.

Prioritise segregation around payments, vendor master maintenance, and credit overrides.

Run periodic access reviews with finance and operations leaders, not just IT.

Why this guide matters

• Security design should follow business process roles, not job titles alone.
• Prioritise segregation around payments, vendor master maintenance, and credit overrides.
• Run periodic access reviews with finance and operations leaders, not just IT.

What a good approach looks like

• Map roles to process responsibilities and enforce least-privilege access from day one.
• Focus segregation controls on payment approvals, supplier banking changes, credit overrides, and master data administration.
• Run quarterly access reviews with business owners and require documented remediation of exceptions.
• Include security regression checks in every release cycle to prevent control drift.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Selecting software before agreeing the future operating model and decision criteria.
• Allowing one department to dominate the design while finance, operations, and IT assumptions remain untested.
• Using generic demos and partner promises instead of evidence from real scenarios, real data, and real reporting needs.

Practical next steps

• Document success metrics, owner accountabilities, and a realistic sequencing plan across finance, operations, and technology teams before committing budget.
• Use a weekly risk review with named owners, due dates, and mitigation actions so scope discussions do not restart every fortnight.
• Treat the guide as a working playbook and use it in steering meetings, partner workshops, and stage-gate reviews rather than leaving it as background reading.