Engineering-Resilient Post-Deployment Lifecycle Dynamics: A Technical Analysis of IT Support Architectures for System Continuity and Software Evolution in Distributed Cloud/On-Premise Computing ERP Ecosystems

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems have become a widely adopted management technology, even among small enterprises, driven by the expansion of cloud-based solutions that reduce infrastructure barriers. However, many implementations fail to sustain their long-term benefits, particularly in small enterprises, where the post-deployment stage is often faced with limited technical resources and poorly formalized IT support architectures. Although the literature has extensively examined critical success factors during implementation, the role of IT support as a permanent function sustaining system continuance and software evolution has received less attention. This study analyzes the role of IT support architecture in the operational continuity of ERP systems across distributed cloud and on-premises computing environments in small enterprises via a literature review following PRISMA and a PICOC approach, using Scopus as the main database. After applying inclusion and exclusion criteria, 45 studies published between 2020 and 2025 were selected and classified into five thematic categories: post-implementation critical success factors (38%), operational continuity and organizational performance (25%), incident management and technical support (13%), cloud ERP adoption (13%), and user training and change management (11%). Results show that IT support is a cross-cutting factor determining post-deployment lifecycle resilience, ERP stability, and availability, whose effectiveness depends on top management backing and organizational structure. Beyond synthesizing existing critical success factors, this study proposes an IT support maturity model, comprising Reactive, Formalized, and Preventive/Analytical levels, that offers small enterprises a diagnostic instrument to assess their current support architecture and identify concrete pathways toward more resilient ERP post-deployment lifecycle dynamics.