Picking the Right Enterprise Software for Your Project

The enterprise software market is a booming business. According to Gartner Research, enterprise software revenues accounted for $296.6 billion in 2013. That was an annual growth rate of 6.4 percent over 2012, when spending was pegged at $278.8 billion. In fact, enterprise software spending accounts for almost 8 percent of all IT spending annually.
The question is, are you picking the right enterprise software for your project management operations? There is a lot of competition out there for your software dollars. How do you find what is right for your company?
As Charles McLellan writes for ZDNet, the term “enterprise software” refers to the applications used by organizations (usually midsized or large organizations) in areas like accounting, communication and collaboration, and human resources, among others. Typically, enterprise software is the bailiwick of the software big boys like Oracle, SAP, and Microsoft. As McLellan points out, “[e]nterprise software also encompasses vertical, industry-specific solutions, which are commonly developed as custom in-house apps that IT departments then need to integrate with commodity enterprise applications or suites.”
There’s a real perception out there that enterprise software is not user-friendly. McLellan notes that most of it is “designed by engineers” and “takes little account of the workflows carried out by ordinary employees.” In actuality, enterprise software has spurred the development of more user-friendly mobile apps.
According to Panorama Consulting, the wrong enterprise software strategy harms a business more than it helps it. The article states that “CIOs and CFOs are often lured into making large software purchases without having a clear direction or reason for doing so.”
What are some of the factors that could impact your strategy? It could be as simple as buying based on your wallet instead of research. Too often, end-of-quarter incentives offered by eager sales representatives can be a deciding factor.
Panorama sums it up best with this statement: “An enterprise software strategy without a focus on people and processes isn’t an effective strategy.” In effect, an organization needs to plan on what changes it hopes to effect and how to manage them. It also needs to take into consideration how the processes of the business will be reengineered. Strategies and tactics need to be clear-cut for success. Otherwise, Panorama notes, “you will be setting yourself up to heavily invest in new technologies without the benefits and ROI of actual improved business results.”
Something else to consider, with respect to Panorama’s post: the enterprise software strategy that you finally embrace should define how you plan to tackle opportunities for business process improvements as well as which key organizational change tactics you will leverage. The idea is to best define how to enable the system and process enhancements you seek from your actions. “It may seem more intuitive to myopically focus on the technical aspects of your strategy, but the people and process aspects of your strategy [are] where the rubber meets the road,” the post suggests.
Let those last words sink in a bit. All the technology in the world is a great thing, but it’s ultimately meaningless if it doesn’t work for your employees and impedes rather than advances the business processes you have in place.
So, what is coming in terms of enterprise software? There is an obvious shift to the cloud, whether it be public, private, or hybrid. Research by The Everest Group, quoted by McLellan, showed that buyers of enterprise software favored private cloud deployments, especially with regards to ERP/finance and accounting.
“The main drivers towards cloud adoption for enterprise buyers in the survey are familiar enough: TCO reduction, flexible infrastructure capacity[,] and reduced provisioning time. So are the most significant barriers: security concerns[,] and integration challenges,’ McLellan explains.
One other trend worth following in your strategy for the best enterprise software is going to be speed. Sure, being first doesn’t always mean being right, but it’s a factor to consider. Improved processing times are going to mean less downtime for employees.
Sensing any delays when running a software trial? Then you’re not going to want to use that software after the trial ends. Rarely does speed improve in software — even with upgrades and patches — like developers would have you think.