Tool

The tactics provided in this tool are a starting point for organizations considering investment in marketing process automation. Use the tool in conjunction with the Vendor Landscape research: Email Marketing Services, or Lead Management Automation.

Solution Set

Organizations are expected to meet increasingly complex customer demands, and this, along with increasing interaction volumes (due in large part to social media), means that customer relationships can no longer be managed by simple tools. In...

Template/Policy

Use this demonstration script to provide vendors with a consistent set of instructions, ensuring an objective comparison of product features for a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Suite.

Tool

This tool will assist you in determining the value of a standalone Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Suite to your organization, as well as the best available point solutions for marketing, sales and customer service.

Tool

Once RFP responses have been received, organizations selecting a CRM Suite need a way to compare vendors across similar criteria. Use this RFP scoring tool to objectively evaluate vendor responses.

Template/Policy

Use this customizable template to create a Request for Proposal (RFP) that includes the Customer Relationship Management (CRM) features that your organization requires.

Note

The environment in which organizations manage relationships with their customers is always changing, and new technologies are making it imperative that organizations deploy the correct customer management strategies and tools. Deciding which CRM...

Tool

Use this tool to generate a customized shortlist of vendors based on the capabilities your organization requires in a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Suite.

Solution Set

Field service automation (FSA) software is a mature market. While FSA has been around for two decades, the market is changing due to mobile technologies that are altering core capabilities of field services personnel.

Note

Field service software has been around for a long time, but mobile enhancements around wireless connectivity, offline capabilities and social collaboration, have changed the core capabilities of field services personnel and the field service...

Tool

Use this tool to generate a customized shortlist of vendors based on the capabilities your organization requires in a field service automation solution.

Template/Policy

Use this demonstration script to provide vendors with a consistent set of instructions, ensuring an objective comparison of product features.

Tool

After responses to an RFP have been received, enterprises considering field service automation software need a way to compare potential solutions. Use this RFP scoring tool to record and evaluate features across vendors.

Template/Policy

Use this request for proposal (RFP) template to formally invite field service automation vendors to submit a proposal meeting your field service requirements.

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

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.

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.

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...

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...

Infor has drastically increased the viability of ERP LN. The product retains the core Baan strengths and has an improved development roadmap. However, ERP LN still faces challenges with ease of use.

Infor ERP LX remains an appropriate choice for process-based manufacturers, particularly for the enterprise committed to IBM's System i platform. To compete, Infor must overcome the existing fragmentation in the ERP LX support channel.