In the enterprise open source space, a notable change came to light today affecting Compiere users and partners. Consona announced its acquisition of Compiere.

Compiere started back in 1999. One of its founders explained to me that the company’s business (circa 2004) largely came from support, migration, and priority requests from clients. An integral component of the delivery model was Compiere’s partners. So Compiere focused on providing second-level support to their network of local partners. These areas are where I’m most curious about Compiere’s move to the Consona fold. Read the rest of this entry »

I’m happy to announce the beta launch of our new tool to help people start their research and evaluations of enterprise software systems. Think of it as the doorway to our TEC Advisor online evaluation and comparison application (accessible from our evaluation centers). In the following, I’ll explain what it is and how it works.

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I love end of year predictions. Whether they’re right or wrong is one thing, but it’s valuable to imagine various scenarios of what might happen. Taking the time to consider and connect what has happened with what might happen, opens new insights.

Having said that, I’m not going to make a 2010 prediction about Free and Open Source Software (FOSS). I do, however, want to share some stats about demand trends for enterprise FOSS platforms between 2008 and 2009. I want to see how those jibe with predictions from some other analysts. And maybe, if you squint real hard at the changes between the ‘08 and ‘09 stats, you’ll get some ideas about what will happen in 2010. Read the rest of this entry »

This insightful case study from SageCircle talks about how a vendor almost missed out on a $35M deal because it was left off an RFP shortlist. Although the case study is geared toward software vendors—focusing on the importance of an active analyst relations team—it also illustrates important points applying to software selection projects. The case study is in some ways a cautionary tale for organizations engaging an analyst firm’s guidance in a software selection. Read the rest of this entry »

We’re seeking an additional HR software-focused research analyst to join our team at our Montreal headquarters. Please contact us if the following job description interests you. Read the rest of this entry »

TEC analyst, Kurt Chen, recently completed work on a new research segment covering product lifecycle management (PLM) selection criteria for the fashion industry.

Soon we’ll announce the launch of fashion and retail industry-specific models in our online PLM Evaluation Center. However, I’d like to point out that as of today you can purchase a template of the functional criteria companies in textile and fashion industries frequently need in order to develop an RFP for a PLM system. Read the rest of this entry »

In a call yesterday with xTuple’s Ned Lilly, we had a chance to catch up on the open source ERP vendor’s current business. I wanted to say a word about the company’s recently launched xChange online store, which I think is a smart way for an open source enterprise software vendor to provide clients convenient access to community and partner innovations. It may also be a cost-effective means for acquiring specific ERP-related functionality and services as needed.  Read the rest of this entry »

We’ve begun publishing a new type of report (free download) called a Product Certification Report. These have been in the works for a while so I’m very happy to announce the first two are now available. I’ll post the links below and then explain what these reports are.

• Meridian Global LMS (an enterprise learning management system [LMS] as certified by Sherry Fox)
• Pronto Software’s Pronto Xi (an ERP system available for a variety of industries as certified by Aleksey Osintsev)

We actually develop two reports for every software system we certify. One report (examples published at the links above) is written for potential buyers of the product, it’s relevant to someone researching or comparing various software systems for their own selection projects. It should be a useful, independent and unbiased addition to an in-depth evaluation process. Vendors also receive their own copies of the report, with insights that pertain to their product development and competitive landscape.  Read the rest of this entry »

A friendly colleague reminded me today that it’s been a while since I’ve posted news about our ongoing product rating updates. So here goes, continue reading if you’re evaluating software for any of the following types of systems.

• CRM
• ERP (manufacturing for discrete or process industries, ETO, distribution, and services industries)
• Financial systems
• PLM

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It’s mid-November and time to tell you about some of the new product ratings and certifications that we’re covering in our research. TEC analysts recently completed certifying products from BatchMaster and Targit. Read the rest of this entry »

Making the blog rounds today: points about enterprise software purchasing in response to poor economic conditions. I’m thinking about the relationship to free and open source (FOSS) enterprise systems as well as the pricing and priorities companies are facing in terms of their means for purchasing and implementing things like ERP systems.

Curt Monash’s NetworkWorld.com article predicted a rocky September for IT vendors. He didn’t pursue a level of granularity that distinguished types of enterprise software but if you look at some of the recent news from both proprietary and open source vendors you get the impression that organizations buying these systems are acting as Monash suggests.

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Step away from the decision–let’s look at the meta-selection. The SageCircle blog features some recent posts on selecting analyst services. So here we are, TEC, guiding all sorts of people in their selection processes for software, recommending best practices, developing custom research, etc., and the interesting thing (if I read the SageCircle blog correctly) is that our recommended software selection best practices can be applied for clients seeking analyst services, of the sort we offer, hence a meta-selection.

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We’re seeking a couple research analysts to join our team in Montreal (our headquarters).

Essentially we’d like additional research analysts for enterprise software subjects such as BI, asset management, ERP, etc. Candidates must be able to apply critical thinking skills to all aspects of their research.

If the following job description interests you, please contact us.

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The Hague Declaration, recently published by The Digital Standards organization, proposes that all governments adhere to free and open standards for IT activities. Something that strikes me about Digistan’s declaration is its basis in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and not a technical document. The three things The Hague Declaration calls on all governments to do, are as follows. Read the rest of this entry »

Consulting firm, 180 Systems, posted a little note regarding an article we recently published on some parts of the evaluation and selection process that we promote. I’d recommend checking out the 180 site for additional information. In fact they have a brief list of steps that tend to be very similar to commonly recognized selection best-practices, and are in many ways, close to what we at TEC recommend (more on that later as we’re preparing to publish our internal guide). 180 Systems has a few perspectives to contribute on the subject and that’s why I’m surprised they didn’t say something more critically astute in their post, which I cited above. Read the rest of this entry »