What will the big 2014 business software news be? UNIT4 predicts 2014's major ERP developments and where they will take us.

1. The World in 2014
Commercial ERP Predictions From UNIT4

2. 1. Mobile and wireless culture
Demand for enterprise-wide access to
finance and business data on any device
will increase and unlock knowledge, foster
innovation and ultimately help with the
bottom line

3. 2. The Internet of Things
We believe that 2014 will see greater
investment in the technologies that enable
organisations to link data from multiple devices
into a single system thereby ensuring that they
have access to comprehensive data from all
areas of their operations.

4. 3. Pure and simple cloud
It is our belief that as they look to drive
efficiency and cost savings through their choice
of deployment, organisations in the
commercial sectors will adopt a pure cloud
approach when it comes to ERP and
finance/business system deployment.

5. 4. Private sector shared services
Successful private sector shared services will be
those that maximise cost and efficiency benefits
while adding services or products which
differentiate their business and meet specific
customer demands to protect their competitive
position and open up new business.

6. 5. Intelligence and analytics
Business intelligence and analytics solutions
that integrate seamlessly with ERP or bestin-class systems to deliver comprehensive
enterprise wide reporting and analysis
capabilities to all internal and external
stakeholders will be in demand.

7. 6. The changing face of ERP
ERP will become more usable and more aligned to the
applications people are used to using every day.
Solutions tailored to defined user roles and user
groups will attract more attention as companies look
to do more with less.

8. 7.
Rise of MOOCs and digital learning
The private sector could gain from using MOOCs or
digital learning methods to bridge IT the skills gaps.
We believe this is especially relevant in growth areas
such as analytics solutions, mobile development, big
data and consumerisation of technology.

9. 8. Emphasis on risk management
Software suppliers who are focused on satisfying customer
needs and whose solutions work in today’s fast changing,
uncertain world will be to the fore. Firms will seek to
engage with more senior/executive personnel from the
vendor or partner organisations as they progress through
the selection, buying and implementation phases.

10. 9. Social time
Organisations are recognising that they need
to create collaborative, engaged communities
that connect staff, customers, suppliers and
partners and we believe that 2014 will see this
trend expand. Investment will be in integration
with business and financial solution.

11. If you’d like to learn more about
each of our predictions for ERP in
2014, check out our blog and
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