Fellow ebizQ commentator Phil Wainewright points to an acronym orginally posted by Sigurd Rinde that makes infinite sense:  ERP, not for “Enterprise Resource Planning,” but as “Easily Repeatable Process.“

ERP (Easily Repeatable Processes) includes “processes that handles resources, from human (hiring, firing,
payroll and more) to parts and products through supply chains,
distribution and production….  known to be rigid, but handles events and transactions with
precision and in volume. Systems delivers value through extensive
reports and full control over resources…. a mature market segment….”

ERP has a wild, unruly sibling that hasn’t quite settled down yet, called BRP, or “Barely Repeatable Process.” BRP includes processes that involve “people in
non-rigid flows through education, health, support, government,
consulting or the daily unplanned issues that happens in every
organization. The activities that employees spend most of their time on
every day. Processes that often starts with an e-mail or a call…These are mostly handled and organised – frameworked – by systems
like paper based rules and policies, e-mail, meetings, calls and now in
more modern organisations by wikis and other collaboration systems and
methods.”

ERP is a known quantity and area over-served by vendors, Rinde says.

However, few have successfully addressed BRP, even though this is where most business activity resides.