For Business Process & Applications Professionals

To Invest Wisely, Know The Business Value Of Diverse CRM Solutions

by William Band, September 30, 2009

To help customer relationship management (CRM) professionals make smart decisions and navigate the complex CRM technology landscape, Forrester surveyed 286 companies. The goal was to determine the business value-add adjusted for uncertainty of 19 types . . .

For CIOs

Retail CIOs: Prepare For Retail 2020

Well-Conceived Options For Game-Changing Technologies Will Catapult Your Perceived Value

by George Lawrie, August 10, 2009

Retail in Europe and North America is in the eye of a storm. Battered first by the fragmentation of traditional mass markets, then by the challenge of cross-channel interaction, and finally by a global recession and transfer of economic power to Asia, . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Enterprises Should Push Supplier Networks To Deliver Interoperability

The Plethora Of Discrete Networks Detracts From ePurchasing's Value

by Duncan Jones, July 30, 2009

Enterprises use supplier networks to trade electronically with their suppliers, but they find that insufficient cooperation between rivals limits potential progress. Chief purchasing officers (CPOs) and their ePurchasing program managers struggle to get . . .

For CIOs

Retail Technology Self-Assessment Workbook  (150 KB XLS)

by George Lawrie, July 22, 2009

The Retail Technology Self-Assessment workbook can be used to evaluate retailers' strengths and weaknesses across a set of retail-centric technologies, processes, and capabilities. Retail IT executives should use this workbook to identify how well technology . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

TechRadar™ For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals: ePurchasing, Q3 2009

Services Procurement And EIPP Are Hottest, Supplier Performance And Automated Spend Analysis Show Promise, But Supplier Portals Start To Decline

by Patrick M. Connaughton, Duncan Jones, July 22, 2009

Forrester has used its TechRadar™ on the various subcategories of ePurchasing software to identify which offer the most reliable and fastest-growing sources of business value. We found that eProcurement and eSourcing give the best ROI, with electronic . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

Supplier Performance And Risk Are Top Of Mind — Can Software Solutions Help?

by Patrick M. Connaughton, July 14, 2009

In the current economic conditions, it's no surprise that supplier performance management (SPM) is the fastest-growing category of ePurchasing software. Companies desperately need a way to pinpoint their underperforming and risky suppliers and take appropriate . . .

For Business Process & Applications Professionals

TechRadar™ For BP&A Professionals: The Extended CRM Application Ecosystem, Q3 2009

Social Applications Stimulate Innovation But Sales, Order Management, And Service Hold The Keys To Your Revenue Engine

by William Band, July 9, 2009

Locking in customer loyalty through deeper engagement and differentiated experiences will continue to be critical priorities for organizations in all sectors in the decade ahead, but navigating the complex customer relationship management (CRM) technology . . .

For Vendor Strategy Professionals

Market Momentum: Business Application Software, H2 2008

Software Supermajors Set The Trend For Integrated Solutions

by Holger Kisker, Ph.D., July 7, 2009

Various prominent mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in early 2008 significantly changed the face of the business application software market, leading to the rise of the software supermajors. In the second half of 2008, vendor activities focused on product . . .

For CIOs

CIOs: Suggest Pricing And Promotions Technology To Drive Value

by George Lawrie, May 21, 2009

Firms — like banks or retailers — that provide services or merchandise in different locations are struggling to respond to consumers that are now much more price-conscious thanks to the economy. Smart CIOs will see this as an opportunity to showcase their . . .

For Security & Risk Professionals

Topic Overview: Governance, Risk, And Compliance

by Chris McClean, April 29, 2009

Successful businesses universally strive to achieve better corporate governance, more effective measurement and management of risk, and greater assurance that compliance requirements are met. Whether or not these efforts bear the governance, risk, and . . .

For Business Process & Applications Professionals

Filling The Store Labor Productivity Gap

How Can Retailers Deploy Technologies That Boost Store Labor Productivity?

by George Lawrie, April 23, 2009

Labor costs run at between 10% and 13.5% of retailers' revenues, but store labor workload is soaring to accommodate more product introductions and promotions. At the same time, store associates must cope with much better informed consumers, shorter product . . .

For CIOs

Retail Technology Investment Priorities

Which Technologies Should CIOs Drive To Generate Quick Returns For Shareholders?

by George Lawrie, April 1, 2009

With the global economy amid financial meltdown, retail CIOs face complex IT choices. Should they continue process improvement initiatives, upgrade their best-of-breed portfolio, or implement a standardized suite? All of these involve significant demands . . .

For Vendor Strategy Professionals

Predictions 2009: ePurchasing Market

Growth Slows Both Overall And For eProcurement But Is Strong In Other Areas

by Andrew Bartels, March 26, 2009

The ePurchasing market — software solutions for eProcurement, eSourcing, contract life-cycle management (CLM), automated spend analysis, accounts payable electronic invoice presentment and payment (AP-EIPP), services procurement, supplier performance . . .

For Business Process & Applications Professionals

SAP Harmonizes Portfolio With Business Suite 7

But The Value Proposition Will Not Resonate Until The Global Economy Is Back In Tune

by Paul D. Hamerman, R "Ray" Wang, March 17, 2009

From its New York City-based global marketing HQ, SAP publicly launched Business Suite 7 on February 4, 2009. Key elements of the product launch include a synchronized release strategy, value scenarios, lower entry-point pricing, deeper Business Objects . . .

For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals

TechRadar™ For Sourcing & Vendor Management Professionals: Software-As-A-Service

CRM And Collaboration Are Growing, And Many New Categories Are On The Horizon, Q1 2009

by Liz Herbert, March 12, 2009

As software-as-a-service (SaaS) becomes increasingly important to firms' application strategies, sourcing and vendor management professionals are taking ownership of the research, purchasing, negotiations, and ongoing vendor relationships for these solutions. . . .

For Security & Risk Professionals

The GRC Technology Puzzle: Getting All The Pieces To Fit

Breaking Down The Complex GRC Technology Landscape

by Chris McClean, February 3, 2009

At a time when the global business community struggles to enhance internal controls and maintain long-term viability, improvements in governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) programs can be well worth the investment. Technology plays an integral role in . . .

For Business Process & Applications Professionals

Planning Your Merchandising Makeover

Merchandising Planning Initiatives Put Consumer Service At The Center Of Retail Planning Processes

by George Lawrie, February 3, 2009

Retailers face an uncertain future with merchandising processes, the key factor in their differentiation, in some disarray. Over the next three years, a minority already plans a massive overhaul — but in a cruelly competitive market, many more should . . .

For Business Process & Applications Professionals

Use Master Scheduling To Drive Service Levels

How Consumer Goods Value Chains Can Retain Customers Through A Recession

by George Lawrie, January 28, 2009

Empty shelves are a significant threat to brands and retailers as the economy sinks into a recession, and consumers may be tempted to buy cheaper merchandise or shop elsewhere. Yet, service levels on retailers' shelves have obstinately remained at the . . .

For Business Process & Applications Professionals

Case Study: C&S Wholesale Adopts Collaborative Demand Forecasting

by George Lawrie, January 21, 2009

C&S Wholesale Grocers, the second-largest food wholesaler in North America, faced serious problems in servicing supermarket demand in more than 2 million item location combinations. Drowning in a rising tide of promotions and new product introductions, . . .

For Technology Product Management & Marketing Professionals

Emerging Energy Technologies Open Opportunities For The Technology Industry

And No, We're Not Talking Just About Green IT

by Tom Grant, Ph.D., January 20, 2009

The global drive to research and deploy new energy technologies creates major opportunities for technology companies. Information technology — from collaboration tools to custom-built research applications, from asset management tools to customer relationship . . .

For Business Process & Applications Professionals

The Franchise Network Apps Portfolio

Which Apps Should Be Standardized In A Retail Franchise?

by George Lawrie, December 17, 2008

Retailers that face recession in home markets and lack cash to expand look to franchising as a source of growth. To ensure brand consistency, they need to provide some apps support to franchisees, without assuming unreasonable apps support costs and without . . .

For Application Development & Program Management Professionals

App Dev's Role In Bridging The Embedded Software Development Gap

by Roy C. Wildeman, December 16, 2008

As the world market for products with embedded software expands, a persistent gap between software development and other systems engineering disciplines is leading to myriad quality problems, costs, and recalls. Increasingly, application development professionals . . .

For Business Process & Applications Professionals

The Forrester Wave™: Order Management Hubs, Q4 2008

Sterling Commerce, Oracle, SAP, and Epicor Emerge As Leading Solutions That Support The Delivery Of A Perfect Order

by R "Ray" Wang, November 14, 2008

In the second update to the industry's only process-focused order management assessment of its kind, Forrester evaluated eight leading order management solutions in a 152-criteria evaluation. We found that Sterling Commerce and Oracle E-Business Suite . . .

For Business Process & Applications Professionals

Modern Global Trade In Tough Economic Times Requires Next-Generation Software Solutions

by Patrick M. Connaughton, November 6, 2008

In tough economic times, global procurement leaders and trade compliance managers are once again under the spotlight to reduce supply chain costs. The challenge? Most companies are already running an ultra-lean business as a result of years of automation . . .

For Business Process & Applications Professionals

The Consumer Centricity IT Road Map

Plan For Process Overhaul And Data Management Redesign

by George Lawrie, October 31, 2008

Consumer-facing firms like retailers and banks agree that they must offer merchandise and services that are much more in tune with their customers' needs. To do this, they must pay rigorous attention to the quantity and quality of location, product, and . . .