ERP Software Packages Popular ERP packages and budget costs by tier

There are hundreds of ERP packages.  Listed below are some of the more popular packages.  Larger companies tend to require more complex financial structures, multi-currency and departmental organisation whilst smaller companies may be able to implement a package straight "out of the box".  For this reason ERP software is often divided into tiers as a convenient starting point for software selection.  If you use software designed for a different size of company from your own you could either be spending too much on "feature rich" (i.e. complicated) software or you could end up with software that does not have sufficient functionality or flexibility for your business.  There is no absolute agreement on which software fits into which tier.  Many software providers attempt to provide cut down or 'lite' versions to open up sales in lower tiers of the market.  The costs in the following table should be used as a guide only and for the initial budget costing.

There are no prizes for pioneering work in using software packages.  Unless the package you choose is well supported locally, the chances of a successful implementation are seriously reduced; hence the reason for the "Popular in the UK" column.  It is also worth saying that there is little correlation between the software and successful implementation.  More important for a successful implementation than the choice of software is the method of implementation.  You will find some sound practical implementation advice in the ERP Class "A" Implementation Toolkit.

Note1: The name in brackets after the software is the current owner of the package.  As you can see Oracle also currently owns PeopleSoft and JD Edwards, Infor owns a large stable of ERP packages.

Note 2: The "Popular in UK" figures are based on class "C" or better returns from the ABCD checklist over the last 5 years or other equivalent direct contact and are in the order of popularity.

Note 3: Cost per concurrent user includes both software and database licence where relevant but not implementation costs.  Some software companies (e.g. SAP) charge per named user which can cost up to 3 times as much as concurrent users.

Note 4: Most Tier 4 and even some Tier 3 packages are not ERP packages but are financial packages with some basic material planning calculators for ordering raw material such as re-order points.

Note 5: Very few tier 1 implementations result in a positive return on investment whilst 95% of lower tier implementations generate very definable positive returns.  See the example cost and benefit analysis for help with this calculation

Note6: The biggest difference between Tier I and Tier II is not the functionality but the ability to be configured to meet the needs of different kinds of business divisions in one company purely by being configured (a questionable benefit in my opinion given the complexity that
it drives and the difficulty of supporting such complexity).

Note 7: You can find a list of the UK's most popular top 20 ERP software packages from 1995 to 2003 at www.bpic.co.uk/systems.htm.