Today's manufacturing enterprise is challenged by rising material costs, increasing competition, and ever-changing customer requirements. If a manufacturer's Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solution is not up to par, these companies are faced with dizzying levels of complexity, duplication of effort, and in the worse cases, poor quality and customer service. This paper describes the warning signs that an ERP system is killing a business, and suggests how companies can thrive with a new approach to business systems.