Search Results for: erp

  • Software Category Analysis - Production Planning and Scheduling

    ByPrimary Researcher

    Introduction
    Production planning and scheduling software have many more software vendors listed for it in some sources that we think qualify for the title. This is because many ERP vendors say that they can perform production scheduling when in truth most ERP systems provide functionality which is just good enough to impress executives during the sales process, but not good enough to use. In fact, of all of the ERP systems that we cover, only Process Pro and Rootstock meet our standard in terms of having basic functionality in this area.
    Most of the ERP applications work off of simple …

  • Software Category Analysis - Supply Planning

    ByPrimary Researcher

    Introduction
    Supply planning uses the methods of MRP, DRP, heuristics, allocation, and optimization (both cost and inventory) to make the recommendations of what, when and how much to bring material into the supply network. And also the what, when, and how much to move material between the locations of the supply network, and in some applications what, when, and how much create the production recommendations. Supply planning was performed exclusively in ERP systems using the twin methods of MRP and DRP up until the mid-1990s when companies began investing in advanced planning systems. These advanced planning systems used more …

  • Software Category Analysis - CRM

    ByPrimary Researcher

    Introduction
    CRM is the fastest growing software categories in enterprise software. CRM has been forecasted by Forbes to surpass ERP in revenues by the year 2017. If that occurs, that will be a fantastic accomplishment as this is the first time that any other category of enterprise software has even come close to ERP sales since ERP was introduced back in the 1980s.
    This is good news and bad news regarding CRM. First, the good news is that CRM has been the test case for SaaS delivery of enterprise software. If it had not been for CRM and specifically for …

  • The Brightwork Research & Analysis Software Category Analysis BI Light

    ByPrimary Researcher

    … proved more attainable by most companies).  
    Companies need to decide what they are buying, and should not merely be based upon conventional wisdom, or the investment one has in one or the other approach. Not all companies need BI Heavy applications. And how one evaluates a BI Heavy versus BI light application is quite different. For instance, IT holds most of the decision-making power when it comes to which BI Heavy application to choose, however, the business users should have most of the decision making power when it comes to BI Light applications. As with ERP, the tendency …

  • The Brightwork Research & Analysis Software Category of BI Heavy

    ByPrimary Researcher

    … BI Heavy versus BI light application is quite different. For instance, IT holds most of the decision-making power when it comes to which BI Heavy application to choose, however, the business users should have most of the decision making power when it comes to BI Light applications. As with ERP, the tendency in buyers has been to try to consolidate requirements into one software vendor; however, this is a failed strategy for BI software selection.
    Most of the suites from the prominent BI vendors are just a jumble of applications from acquisitions. A perfect example of this is Business …

  • Gartner and Magic Quadrant Continued

    ByPrimary Researcher

    Gartner and the Magic Quadrant: A Guide for Buyers, Vendors and Investors
    This book chronicles possibly the most interesting story of the past several decades in the enterprise software space: the lack of evidence for the benefits of ERP systems. Yes, the most popular and widely purchased application in enterprise software had a series of logics or central arguments for why it should be purchased. In the early stages of the ERP “revolution” there was no evidence, proposals regarding ERP Software were made without evidence. Three decades into the history of ERP systems, the evidence is in, and it looks …

  • How to Understand Single Versus Multiple Software Instances

    ByPrimary Researcher

    Executive Summary

    The flaw in the single instance concept generally.
    Making decisions based on narrow IT objectives.

    The Flaw in the Single Instance Concept Generally
    In fact, “a single instance” is not only frequently fool’s gold in ERP but other enterprise software categories as well. For instance, in supply chain planning, one of the worst things a consultant can do is get staffed on a global “single instance” project. This is because it leads to seemingly endless debates with the other region as to how the system will be configured, and each region believes that the configuration settings that …

  • Brightwork Estimation Explained For Software Vendors

    ByPrimary Researcher

    … to provide quantitative tools. We have three types of calculators currently, but plan to add more when we have the time.
    Brightwork Estimation the result of several analytical threads that have been partially documented in books from Brightwork Research & Analysis Press.
    These books include the following:

    The Real Story Behind ERP: Separating Fact from Fiction
    Enterprise Software TCO: Calculating and Using Total Cost of Ownership for Decision Making
    Rethinking Enterprise Software Risk: Controlling the Main Risk Factors on IT Projects
    Replacing ERP: Breaking the Big ERP Habit with Flexible Applications at a Fraction of the Cost

    The first two of …

  • How to Understand Enterprise Software Support Ratios

    ByPrimary Researcher

    … Unfortunately, ratios are often quoted, which provide the absolute minimum of support necessary — however, every company that we go into has some shortcomings that could be addressed with more support. This extends from understanding the applications better to maintain data.
    Support Ratio Variance
    At Brightwork Research & Analysis, we estimate support ratios for all applications that we create a total cost of ownership analysis for. Our ratios vary by the following criterion.

    The Specific Application
    The Application Category (so ERP, BI, CRM, Supply Chain Planning)
    The Complexity of the Configuration
    Whether there is Customization
    Whether the Solution is Delivered as SaaS

  • Why Airbus Runs a Superplant Manufacturing Operation

    ByPrimary Researcher

    … problem. Superplant is characterized by an expansive and integrated view of planned locations, the ability to react to changes in capacities nimbly, and redirect to other supply sources. Superplant is not a management technique. It is a particular set of software capabilities that must be configured, tested, and accounted for in various areas, from user training to integration to ERP systems.
    Background on Airbus
    Airbus began as a consortium of aerospace manufacturers made up of companies from four countries (France, Germany, the UK, and Spain) with manufacturing operations in these four countries and China. Airbus is primarily a commercial aircraft