11 Hot ERP Topics for 2011: Analysis and Predictions

The year that's fast coming to close has been an exciting, dramatic and wild ride for the typically staid world of ERP software: 2010 saw unprecedented lawsuits, impressive growth in new software-delivery models, TMZ-worthy executive shake-ups and many critical acquisitions that, combined, should have lasting effects on the enterprise software market.

Even though past performance does not guarantee future results, I believe that in 2011 we will bear witness to just as much dramatic change-spectacular customer successes and failures, some ERP vendors crushing the competition and others crashing and burning, and pent-up customer frustration with the status quo in traditional ERP deployments.

Overall, precisely when things should be getting easier for ERP licensing deals, software implementations and next-gen upgrades, the opposite is occurring: Talking to CIOs, industry analysts and ERP watchers, one finds there is much too much complexity and confusion as we enter the new year.

The year that's fast coming to close has been an exciting, dramatic and wild ride for the typically staid world of ERP software: 2010 saw unprecedented lawsuits, impressive growth in new software-delivery models, TMZ-worthy executive shake-ups and many critical acquisitions that, combined, should have lasting effects on the enterprise software market.

Even though past performance does not guarantee future results, I believe that in 2011 we will bear witness to just as much dramatic change-spectacular customer successes and failures, some ERP vendors crushing the competition and others crashing and burning, and pent-up customer frustration with the status quo in traditional ERP deployments.

Overall, precisely when things should be getting easier for ERP licensing deals, software implementations and next-gen upgrades, the opposite is occurring: Talking to CIOs, industry analysts and ERP watchers, one finds there is much too much complexity and confusion as we enter the new year.

To continue reading, register here and become an Insider. You'll get free access to premium content from CIO, Computerworld, CSO, InfoWorld, and Network World. See more Insider content or sign in.