Page 58 - MetalForming April 2015

A 20/20 EView of the
RP Industry—
NineTrends to Watch
Among the things you should look for: integration of mobile computing and ERP software, and an emphasis on organizational change management to streamline implementations, and help remove some of the pain.
BY ERIC KIMBERLING
Each year we make predictions for the ERP software industry. Sometimes we get it right, and sometimes we’re off base. It’s clearly not easy to predict the future in any industry, especially one as dynamic as the enterprise software industry.
Over the years we have implemented and studied thou- sands of ERP implementations to crack the code on what it takes to achieve ERP success. We have found distinct differ-
Eric Kimberling is managing partner, Panorama Consulting Solutions, Denver, CO: 720/515-1377; www.panorama-con- sulting.com.
ences between implementations that succeed and those that fail. Through our experience and research, we have identified trends and best practices that will help increase the success rate of ERP implementations.
1) Increased consumerization of ERP systems. As new generations of employees enter the workforce, we likely will see more consumerization of ERP systems to accommo- date these new workers. Suppliers will be under increased pressure to develop systems with user-friendly and intu- itive software solutions that more closely resemble con- sumer technologies.
2) Mobility will become even more mainstream. Many industry analysts like to talk about SaaS and the cloud, both of which will likely continue to see increased adoption in coming years. But, mobility will be the primary techno- logical reality by the year 2020. Management, back-office employees, shop-floor workers, warehouse clerks and oth- ers within most enterprises will use mobile devices to access enterprise data. A contributor to this trend will be the increased use of mobile devices in our personal lives. The other reason reflects where the workforce is headed: more part-time, mobile and contract employees will further necessitate the need for mobile ERP software.
3) Increased focus on business intelligence (BI), data and analytics. This trend already is gaining momentum, but the BI movement will continue to accelerate in coming
56 MetalForming/April 2015
www.metalformingmagazine.com