Understanding End-user Adoption of Enterprise Applications (Customer Focus)

Introduction

The brief covering enterprises' technology priorities (BFTC1452) identified enterprise applications as the most dynamic technology area. This brief aims to explore end-user adoption of enterprise applications further, through an investigation of current penetration, areas of investment activity, decision-making, preferred methods of deployment and vendor perceptions.

Scope

• Gauges the market penetration of seven key enterprise applications and highlights those with the highest investment potential.
• Evaluates enterprises' preferences in procurement, delivery method and outsourcing across eight geographies and ten vertical markets.
• Identifies the most influential decision-makers for enterprise applications investment in five enterprise size bands.
• Explores variations in vendor perception in five enterprise sizeband categories and ten industry sectors.

Highlights

Enterprise applications are an extension of core business processes and enterprises will continue to invest in this area in the medium term. Those enterprise applications covering ubiquitous business functions will attract more investments in the medium-term, while specialised applications are to continue growing incrementally.

Enterprise application investment decisions are usually made by non-technical officers, primarily CEOs. CIOs gain more importance in some industry sectors and enterprises of a certain size. Outsourcing and delivery as a hosted service are on the increase, but more markedly so in less mature markets.

Enterprise applications are perceived as too complex and important to allow for a high degree of market fragmentation. Mindshare is dominated by a trio of prominent vendors. The relative success of these vendors in the SME space varies despite marketing campaigns targeting this sector.

Reasons to Purchase

• Assess the potential market growth of different enterprise applications.
• Improve your go-to market approach through insight into customers' decision-making structure.
• Learn how enterprises approach the delivery and outsourcing of enterprise applications.

• Catalyst
• Summary
• Methodology
  • AnaLYSIS
  • The volume of investment will increase in all enterprise applications
  • Market penetration of enterprise applications varies significantly
  • Medium-term investment growth is strongest in CRM and ERP
  • The expansion of product line management applications is circumscribed by low demand
  • Larger enterprises are more likely to have invested in enterprise applications
  • CEOs dominate enterprise applications investment decision-making
  • CEOs wield more influence than CIOs on enterprise application investment choices
  • The influence of CEOs wanes with the enterprise size
  • Enterprises prefer to obtain enterprise applications directly from suppliers and deploy them on-site
  • German enterprises are leading the field in hosted delivery adoption
  • Outsourcing will increase, particularly in less mature markets
  • Enterprises in less mature markets, like Spain and Italy, are outsourcing more
  • Retail banking is outsourcing the most, but outsourcing in healthcare will expand rapidly
  • The enterprise applications market is highly consolidated
  • Three large vendors dominate mindshare in the enterprise applications market
  • Microsoft holds the lead in each of the vertical markets
  • Oracle and SAP's market reputation increases with enterprise size
  • Summary: Enterprise applications are well established yet growing further
• Appendix
• Further reading
  • Ask the analyst
• List of Tables
  • Table 1: Which of the following enterprise application technologies do you currently have or use, and which would you prioritise for investment in the next 6 months? 2 years?
  • Table 2: Which of the following enterprise applications do you currently have or use, and which would you prioritise for investment in the next 6 months? 2 years?
  • Table 3: Please rank the two most influential positions in your organization when making investment decisions regarding enterprise applications
  • Table 4: Please rank the two most influential positions in your organization when making investment decisions regarding enterprise applications
  • Table 5: What is your preferred approach to buying enterprise applications?
  • Table 6: What is your preferred approach to buying enterprise applications?
  • Table 7: Which of the following technology areas do you outsource now, or are you considering outsourcing in the next 6 months? 2 years?
  • Table 8: Which of the following technology areas do you outsource now, or are you considering outsourcing in the next 6 months? 2 years?
  • Table 9: Please pick two firms which you believe to be 'leaders' in the enterprise applications field
  • Table 10: Please pick two firms which you believe to be 'leaders' in the enterprise applications field
  • Table 11: Please pick two firms which you believe to be 'leaders' in the enterprise applications field
• List of Figures
  • Figure 1: CRM technology will attract the most investment in the medium term
  • Figure 2: Penetration levels of enterprise applications rise with enterprise size
  • Figure 3: Non-technical officers have the decisive influence on enterprise applications investment strategy
  • Figure 4: CIO/IT director influence on investment decisions increases with enterprise size
  • Figure 5: Solutions obtained directly from a supplier and deployed onsite are the most popular
  • Figure 6: German enterprises are pioneering the adoption of the hosted service deployment
  • Figure 7: More than one half of enterprises in Spain and Italy will outsource enterprise applications
  • Figure 8: Healthcare is set for an expansion of enterprise application outsourcing in the next 24 months
  • Figure 9: Microsoft, Oracle and SAP dominate mindshare in the enterprise applications market
  • Figure 10: Microsoft enjoys the most mindshare in each of the vertical markets surveyed
  • Figure 11: Oracle and SAP's reputation increases with size