Tool

Info-Tech conducted its own market evaluation of thirteen ERP solutions. Use this tool to narrow the vendors down to a shortlist of solutions that best satisfy the company's requirements.

Note

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), as a whole, has stayed static in the mid-market. However, due to the many vendors in this segment, organizations are faced with the significant challenge of narrowing down vendor options.

Solution Set

This Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) research outlines the vendor landscape for the mid-market, discusses relative strengths and weaknesses of ERP platforms, and provides advice for organizations, enabling the selection of an ERP solution...

Vendor Research

This report will help vendors, solution providers, and consultants understand the current dynamics in the market for Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software. It will emphasize the challenges firms face and what this means to IT providers.

Video

SaaS ERP belongs on the shortlist for small enterprises and mid-sized divisions of larger enterprises. Make the business case on versatility, not on total cost.

Note

IT leaders must prepare and build out an appropriate plan to survive to the end of an ERP selection and implementation project. To be successful, they must address five key challenges.

Solution Set

Different enterprises need to put focus on different aspects of the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) selection process, depending on industry, business case, and the selected solution provider.

Template/Policy

Shifting from ERP implementation to ERP operation is a major challenge. This checklist provides guidance on the 14-step process to overcome these problems.

Template/Policy

Effectively operating an ERP system requires documentation of the supporting technical infrastructure. An ERP runbook must be created before the transition to operation.

Job Description

The ERP Project Sponsor is a current enterprise employee that owns ERP for the project duration. They are expected to make the ERP project account for at least 50% of their time.

Template/Policy

Info-Tech's 21-step process for ERP selection and implementation projects helps IT leaders to prepare project plans, and get ready for future challenges.

Tool

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) projects involve a variety of different steps. Info-this tool enables users to assign resources and track the completion status of a variety of different, mission critical tasks.

Template/Policy

The selection process for Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) is very involved. It requires constant communication with different vendors. Info-Tech's standard letters provide a starting point for soliciting vendor RFPs and setting up a scripted demo.

Template/Policy

The Info-Tech Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Annual Audit Template will help IT managers develop a strategy for the ongoing care, feeding, and replacement of the existing system.

Tool

The Info-Tech ERP Rough Cut TCO Calculator enables IT leaders to estimate the costs of an implementation based on industry and number of users. Create a rough cut TCO estimate to ensure that ERP replacement is a remotely feasible option.

Note

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) exists in every enterprise. It is often a low priority for IT managers until changes to the business make a very real, and very expensive, project. The real cost of a failed ERP initiative is IT careers.

A single Enterprise resource Planning (ERP) system can pose management challenges. Multiple ERP instances magnify these challenges exponentially, particularly with consolidated operations, such as establishing a trial balance.

Solution Set

IT leaders and senior executives often have tremendous fear of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP). There's a good reason; ERP is a complicated technology with many moving parts.

(By Info-Tech Analyst Gareth Doherty - Printed with permission from Processor magazine www.processor.com). Gut instincts have fallen on hard times. Evidence of systematic errors in human decision making and the success of analytical...

Video

Development costs are one of the primary culprits for the high cost of maintaining an ERP system. Control these costs by using virtualization as a key enabling technology.

Virtualizing the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) environment drives cost savings through server consolidation and improved development efficiencies. Increasing the ease and speed with which environments are recovered is a key enabler. Pursue...

This note arms IT leaders with the knowledge necessary for an effective payroll software selection and implementation process. Make an informed decision on payroll models and delivery methods, and find the solution that fits with HR's needs,...

Microsoft Dynamics NAV offers good functional capabilities but is experiencing challenges in the market due to its cost to operate and its transitional architecture. The impending release of Dynamics NAV 2009 promises to address these issues.

Microsoft Dynamics SL fills an important role in the Microsoft family. It offers solutions specifically for project-driven enterprises and gains from its integration with Microsoft Project and SharePoint. It suffers from stiff competition in...

Lawson S3 offers public sector and services-based enterprises a robust ERP platform. It is particularly attractive to enterprises that have already committed to IBM's infrastructure stack.

Microsoft Dynamics GP offers good financial management features for small enterprises. However, its perception as a replacement technology rather than as a technological enabler of business change ultimately frustrates many projects.

Sage MAS 500 offers considerable value for enterprises with less than $100-million in revenue. It is particularly attractive to manufacturers that rely on Microsoft technology. However, its two-tier architecture ultimately limits its scalability.

SAP Business One is a very strong ERP offering for the small and mid-sized enterprise market. Its breadth of functionality and ease of setup are attractive to many enterprises. It does, however, sacrifice functional depth for breadth, and...

Epicor Vantage is a robust ERP offering for mid-sized manufacturers. Its strengths in manufacturing are offset by weaknesses in human resource management; however, Epicor's greatest threat comes from its current financial position.

IFS Applications is an attractive product for enterprises in asset-intensive industries. The complications of its operating stack can drive high implementation and operation costs.