ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) packages provide generic off-the-shelf business and software solutions to customers. However,
these are implemented in companies with different corporate and national cultures, and there is growing evidence that failure
to adapt ERP packages to fit these cultures leads to projects which are expensive and overdue. This paper describes research
which synthesises social science theories of culture to be able to model and predict the impact of culture on ERP package
implementation. It describes a knowledge meta-schema for modelling the surface and the deeper manifestations of culture, and
for integrating these models with more common business concepts such as processes, events and information flows. It reports
data from an analysis of a recent ERP implementation in a higher education institution to validate the knowledge meta-schema.
It concludes with an outline of a method for ERP implementation to ensure a fit with the customer’s corporate and national
culture.