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Evolving Enterprise Applications 2009 - Increasing the Business Value of Investments in ERP and CRM

Published by: Butler Group

Published: Jul. 15, 2009 - 172 Pages


Table of Contents


Section 1: Management Summary
1.1 Management Summary
Section 2: Business Perspectives
2.1 Report Objectives and Structure
2.2 Business Drivers
2.3 Technology Change Points
2.4 Reducing Costs, Maximising ROI
2.5 Extending Application Boundaries
2.6 Enterprise Application Evolution
2.7 Application Portfolio Management
Section 3: Architectural Considerations
3.1 The Impact of Service Oriented Architecture
3.2 Application Consolidation
3.3 BPM in the Application Environment
3.4 Common Data Models and MDM
Section 4: Application Delivery
4.1 The Software-as-a-Service Model
4.2 SaaS Architecture
4.3 SaaS Integration
4.4 Distributed Services - Risk and Management Considerations
Section 5: Application Upgrades
5.1 Application Upgrade Considerations
5.2 Critical Points in the Application Upgrade Programme
5.3 The Case for Application Modernisation
Section 6: Application Maintenance
6.1 Identifying Maintenance Value
6.2 New Maintenance Models
6.3 Strategies for Reducing Maintenance Costs
Section 7: Vendor Strategies
7.1 Vendor Strategies
BT CRM Services
CODA
Consona
Epicor
Exact Software
IFS
Infor
Lawson Software
Microsoft Corporation
NetSuite
Oracle Corporation
QAD
RightNow Technologies
Sage
Salesforce.com
SAP
SugarCRM
Unit 4 Agresso
Workday
7.2 Case Studies
Section 8: Glossary

Abstract

Enterprise applications like ERP and CRM systems provide the DNA for successful organisations but their scope and impact is so extensive, and the cost and risk of change can be so high, that they are often viewed as static transactional engines that are altered only when absolutely necessary. Although understandable, this approach has negative repercussions for the business and prevents the full value of these expensive, strategic and under-utilised assets from being realised. At a time when budgets are frozen or shrinking it pays to have a range of strategies and programmes that can be put in place to maximise the business value of existing investments.

These should cover optimisation of the existing implementation, and evolving and improving it via intelligent additions. We should also bear in mind that the current tough times will come to an end, at which point systems will have to be fit and healthy in order to cope with the upswing, so paying attention to the basics now will pay extra dividends later.

KEY FINDINGS
  • Enterprise applications are an easy target for cost-cutting initiatives but inappropriate cost cutting of the core applications that run the business undermines value and increases risk.
  • Breaking down organisational silos, particularly between IT and business units, is fundamental to exploiting the innate value of enterprise systems but requires a collaborative culture and enterprise architecture approach.
  • Applications are in a state of change - restructuring around a series of platforms and tasked with delivering process standardisation.
  • Application extension is not just about adding new functionality but providing tools for insight, analysis, and collaboration.
  • The Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) model brings its disruptive influence to bear on the integration, ERP, and application development areas.
  • Under-utilisation of existing systems is a significant issue - 50% of standard functionality regularly goes unused.
  • Standardisation is a major contributor to unlocking value and reducing costs.
  • Strategic maintenance management can improve operational costs and release resources for value-generating initiatives.
  • The next round of upgrades will be more challenging than normal technical or functional upgrades but is necessary in order to support the quest for business agility.
  • Stability and flexibility appear to be mutually exclusive, but architectural change is starting to provide a solution, thereby providing a business case for additional investment.
  • Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) and Business Process Management (BPM) are edging systems towards the much sought after alignment between applications and business objectives and application agility.
This Report reveals:
  • How to make the most of existing financial and intellectual property investments in enterprise applications.
  • What steps organisations can take to control the cost of maintenance and assess its real value to the business.
  • The impact of Software-as-a-Service on delivery and payment models, and key technology and integration considerations.
  • Where to direct investment in application extensions in order to secure the most effective returns.
  • How technology change around SOA and BPM is impacting the way applications are constructed, accessed, and managed.
  • The role of portfolio management and application consolidation in managing for business value and cost effectiveness.
  • Why increased utilisation of standard components reduces cost and risk to the business.
  • Why enterprise application upgrades are still so challenging and what can be done to ease the pain.


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