Many enterprise customers are moving away from a ‘one-size fits all approach’, instead they are looking to open source.
Using open source software means that they are able to build more customised business solutions. Open source provides a relatively lower total cost of ownership and its rapid development is creating greater demand in enterprises.
According to research from Kable, the improved technical capabilities created by customised open source applications, is making the applications better suited to their business.
SME’s are investing in this area as they look to tide over the economic downturn by adopting solutions that have a low financial impact.
This is resulting in increased competition and established software vendors are planning to reduce their license costs in order to compete.
SME’s aren’t the only ones being enthusiastic towards open source software, with larger enterprises also showing interest.
This is partly to avoid vendor lock-in, but also to ensure faster and easier deployment of their enterprise applications.
Kable says that the use of open source software can also mitigate security risks; this is because the open source community enables easy detection of newer vulnerabilities. That means that enterprises can gain early visibility into potential issues.
The challenge for enterprises to reduce costs, manage interoperability and to increase agility is leading to an increased enthusiasm to take on newer enterprise software.
Upgrading or replacing systems in the areas of Customer Relationship Management (CRM), Supply Chain Management (SCM) and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), is getting a lot more attention.
This is due to the need to improve business outcomes, align IT services with business needs and to consolidate operations across various business units and processes.
As enterprises upgrade application systems, there are moves from enterprise application vendors to incorporate new disruptive technologies, such as mobility, Big Data, analytics and social media.
Vendors such as SAP, NetSuite and Salesforce.com are making continuous upgrades to their existing applications with various technologies. The goal of this is to gain a competitive advantage over other enterprise application vendors.
SAP made enhancements to its enterprise solution portfolio with mobile and user interfaces, while Sage launched a newer mobile financial app.
This is based on a strategic focus report from Kable.
The full report can be accessed here.
