One of the great challenges facing traditional ERP vendors is getting customers to keep up with the latest version. Cloud ERP systems are supposed to solve this problem, by making the vendor responsible for upgrades and keeping all customers on a single version. However, sometimes, even SaaS providers need to make changes that are so significant and potentially disruptive that customers resist the change. This post describes how one such cloud ERP provider is meeting this challenge.
Just as social networking and smartphones took hold first in the consumer world and then moved into business, we can also expect artificial intelligence to begin to move into business applications in a natural way. Nearly every large, and many of the smaller, business software providers are moving in this direction. This post provides three examples of enterprise software providers embedding artificial intelligence in their products, giving organizations a way to benefit without having to invest large sums to develop their own AI systems
Human Capital Management (HCM) is turning out to be fertile ground for providers to develop use cases for data science. The recent HR Technology conference provided an excellent opportunity for us to learn about the offerings of six HCM providers that are embedding data science in their products and services. We conclude with ideas for future use cases that go beyond managing employee attrition and other early applications.
Big data analytics can be a highly technical subject, but as consumers we come face to face with it every day. Based on our experience as consumers, it is evident that the “big guys” know how to use big data. But what about small to midsize companies? The good news is that business analytics and even big data are becoming more readily available to smaller businesses. This is the result of three big enablers.
Traditional providers of ERP systems typically sought to expand their functional footprint to include complementary applications outside of core ERP. Now cloud ERP vendors are adopting a similar strategy, bringing significant benefits to buyers.
Infor is doing interesting work in its CloudSuite initiative to offer industry-specific solutions deployed on the cloud. But it faces two challenges. First, it must convince a greater share of its 70,000 customers to upgrade to its latest versions. Then, if it does convince them, Infor will need to have the implementation resources trained and available to support those customer migrations. This post sums up the status of these initiatives with recommendations for Infor customers.
Infor has evolved from an ERP provider that relied on acquisitions to one that has become an innovator. At the same time, many of its customers are stuck on older versions of its acquired products. If Infor is to be successful, its most crucial initiative should be to upgrade those older customers. This post outlines how Infor is attempting to accomplish this along with recommendations for Infor customers.
Like the Oklahoma land rush of 1889, cloud vendors today are rushing into new territory to stake their claims. One provider that has joined the land rush is FinancialForce.com, which recently announced new branding to signal its claim in cloud ERP. This post provides an overview of the cloud ERP landscape and the latest vendor to stake a claim.
Microsoft Business Solutions (MBS) has many necessary elements in place with its Dynamics product line to continue its move into large enterprises, but it still needs to fill functional gaps in its product offerings. In this post we discuss Microsoft’s progress – and its limitations – in the large enterprise market.