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Chapter 10
Future Directions
in ERP
Sonali C.
UDIT -T.Y.B.Sc
(IT) 2008-090
New Market
 As larger enterprise becomes saturated with new-
generation client server ERP system, vendors are
forced to find new markets.
 Vendors target small business client.
 How do they attract new customers?
 Supplementing their direct sales force with reseller
channel
 Lowering the entry price
 Stratifying their software with reduced functionality
 Improving the implementation methodologies
 Porting the products to platforms such as Microsoft
Windows NT.
New Channels
 Vendors are building reseller channels-idea is to
reach smaller business that cannot afford the
complete package.
“Complete one-stop-shopping”
 Making it financially attractive at entry level.
 Oracle is very aggressive in this respect.
 JD Edwards ventured in by introducing
“OneWorld” by lower-cost line.
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Faster Implementations
 Perception of vendors:
 ERP is difficult and costly to implement
 ERP takes lots of time (years) to implement
 Delay in the implementation is going to effect my day-
to-day business.
 Vendors are thinking of making implementation
easy.
 SAP introduced : Accelerated SAP (ASAP)
(reducing implementation time to six months)
 Oracle introduced Fast Forward.
 The main reason of delay: Dearth of fully trained
and skilled consultants
Business Models and BAPIs
 Need of a tool for the implementation team can
review its progress from time to time.
 Reference Models can help the implementation.
 Third party application to interact directly with
ERP package (say SAP R/3) directly.
 Baan offers OrgWare which is tightly integrated
business modeling tool combined with business
specific templates that help automation.
Convergence on Windows NT
 Growing popularity of Windows based O/S: NT,
Windows 2003, Windows SP, forces the ERP
vendors to make their software compatible for the
latest O/S being used by the customers.
 SAP: over 200 R/3 installations on Windows NT
 Baan: “Designed for Microsoft Back office”
certification
 Oracle: Touts its support for its own NT based
clustering technology
 Peoplesoft: Shows recent switch to Backoffice
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Application Platforms
 The idea is to extend the reach of its
software far and wide.
 To make like an application platform rather
than just a suit of modules.
New Business Segment
 provide service to vertical markets:
 Governments, Healthcare, Financial, Services, Retail
environment
 Also into SCM, sales automation, market
 The world is competitive
 Not only for the user (of ERP)
 But also for vendors (of ERP)
 So to survive one should be on a constant look
out of New Business Segments
More Features
 Vendors focuses on improving decision power.
 What is DSS? Decision Support System
 What is OLAP? On line Analytical Processing.
 What is ROLAP? Relational On-line Analytical
Processing
 What is OLTP? On line Transaction Processing
 What is SFA? Sales Force Automation
 What is DW? Data warehousing
 What is D’Mart? Data Mart
 What is DM? Data Mining
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Web Enabling
 vendors moves from: (architecture)
 Client/server->Brower/server->web enable
 Deliver: Self service and e-commerce
 Platform independence:
 ERP vendors are using Java, rather than Microsoft’s Active-X
 Move away Proprietary technologies to open tech.
 ERP vendor now embrace:
 more universally acceptable tools
 Platform independent
 Web functionality
Market Snapshots
 SAP: The market Leader.
 People Soft and Baan join to make the top three
 Oracle has lately focused more attention on its
applications business
 JD Edwards depends more on IBM’s AS/400
 Everyone seek to fight to maintain their growth
momentum
 No one want “just ERP” – need much more advance- eg
:- SFA
Cont…
Market Snapshots
 The Future is clear:
 The ERP vendor which embraces the latest
management tools, and incorporates them in
their product would survive.
 Since ERP teaches Integration to their clients,
should themselves integrate these
Management packets in their software.
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