Special technology report ERP
unified communication),and Wiki technology to name but a few will start to find themselves out in the cold.”
Push to the extremes of the business
Orme sees a continued and further push of the ERP business system to the extremes of the business. “Over the past ten years ERP has moved from the office-based staff to the shop-floor, and more recently out to the sales offices and remote engineers,” he said. “We are now seeing even more elements of the business coming under the umbrella of the ERP system – the call centre, the administration activities (Document Management/Workflow), the travelling salesmen. As we move forward over the next few years this will extend even further to the entire supply-chain (customer and supplier web-portals, web self-service).”
Full potential Orme also believes there will be an increase in the pace of the move away from PC-based users towards a much more varied and specialised array of hardware. “Tablet PCs, laptops, smartphones etc. will increasingly supplement the traditional office-based PC user,” he said. “Only software that can work seamlessly on a wide range of devices will be able to meet this change in user profile and enable ERP system users to realise the full potential of their system.” Additionally, Orme sees a positive future for mobile computing and the ability to undertake business processes while out of the office. “Specific tasks have been around for some time,” he said, “however over the coming years more and more managerial and operation processes will become available on mobile devices.” Like Orme, Fleming expects to see further growth of mobile computing in applications around ERP, together with more growth in On Demand deployment. “We anticipate further emphasis by businesses to compete on business effectiveness,” he said, “thus more emphasis on ERP partnership with vendors and the need to help customers achieve their goals.” Additionally, Fleming points out that QAD expects the ability to rapidly and simply
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MANUFACTURING &LOGISTICS
IT March 2011
reconfigure business models using Business Process Management and configurable workflow will become prevalent. “These are all areas where QAD is currently focusing,” he explained.
From Bull’s perspective, the ability to get at the right information easily and to present it in an effective way is key to user productivity. “Over the next few years we will see new reporting tools being delivered that are increasingly visual, increasingly interactive, delivered through web browsers and having a user experience that is not dissimilar to using touch technology,” he said. “Today's workforce has many powerful computing tools at their fingertips; smart phones, tablet devices in addition to the now traditional 3G- connected laptop computer. The plethora of new format devices on the market place will drive the development of ERP system extensions to take advantage of these tools. Smart phones will support the delivery of
“
Hyperion Financial Planning solution. Turner explains that Hyperion can help users to: manage and optimise their enterprise-wide performance; achieve management
excellence by being smarter, more agile and more aligned across the
organisation; and leverage the value of operational investments.
Additionally, Turner draws our attention to SNO (Strategic Network Optimisation), a product originally developed by Numetrix, then acquired by Oracle through the acquisition of PeopleSoft/JDE. Turner commented: “It is a desktop product with a very attractive graphical interface that can be used to inform and
… in truth, full-blown ERP SaaS offerings are only just reaching a point where customers are prepared to entrust their businesses to them.” – James Norwood, Epicor.
visual business information and will support replication of business data. Tablet devices will have uses in shop floor, quality management, retail and warehouse environments.”
With regard to databases and integration enablement, Turner points to Oracle’s Exadata and Exalogic Elastic Cloud as having a rosy future. He also believes the Integrated Business Planning (IBP) concept – comprising sales & revenue planning, demand planning, supply planning and profit-based supply/demand balancing – will gain further market traction. Particularly, he cites Oracle’s Demantra Demand Management tool; a component of Oracle’s Value Chain Planning solution set. “It is a best-in-class provider of demand management, sales & operations planning and trade promotions management solutions,” said Turner, adding: “Demantra’s familiar spreadsheet-style worksheets mean users rapidly become familiar with using the solution to add real value to their decision-making.” Turner also foresees greater take-up of Oracle’s
support any strategic supply chain decision, such as: evaluating alternative sources of supply; comparing inbound logistics options (eg. ocean vs airfreight); modelling manufacturing capacity; minimising distribution costs through an existing distribution chain; and evaluating alternative distribution networks. Many businesses face at least one of these challenges in coming up with their three- to five- year business plans, so there is a roll for SNO in long term IBP.” Turner also points to Agile, Oracle's PLM (Product Lifecycle Management) solution. “The Oliver Wight view of IBP is that product development is an integral part of business planning,” he said. “Therefore a PLM tool is needed to funnel product ideas and ensure that the right products come to market at the right time to support the company's long term plan. Agile can support the product development lifecycle, and is very good at supporting regulatory, packaging and other legal requirements.”
In the world of ERP packages and their implementation, Dinesh is convinced that the
www.logisticsit.com
James Norwood, senior vice president of product marketing
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