For Business Process & Applications Professionals (Length: 13 pages)

Executive Summary (This is a document excerpt)

A battle is brewing for the growing small and medium-size ERP business application market. Historically, midsized ERP vendors, such as Geac, IFS, Infor, Intentia, Lawson, and SSA Global Technologies, have dominated the midsize market, but small and medium-size businesses (SMBs) are increasingly considering offerings from SAP, Oracle, and Microsoft. To protect their turf against the heavyweights, traditional midsize ERP vendors have focused on expanding their functionality and market reach. Some seek to grow organically; others scoop up distressed companies, leaving their product and customer base intact; while a third group focuses on integrating its acquisitions to extend its product footprint. While all three strategies are keeping SAP, Oracle, and Microsoft at bay for now, Forrester believes that midsize ERP vendors that focus on acquiring and integrating other ISVs will have the best long-term chances for success. They will be able to offer their customers a viable alternative that is rich in functionality yet matches the large ISVs claims for low total cost of solution ownership.