Ekambaram Manikandan
Head - Channels and Alliances, Ramco Systems
Once considered an expensive proposition, ERP is witnessing adoption among the SMEs.
In India, companies are increasingly focusing on their core, organizing their business network for higher efficiency and lower risk for sustainable growth through strategic investments in IT.
With the changing economic scenario, SMEs are focusing on generating maximum operational excellence at the least TCO (total cost of ownership). With immense pressure of taking business to the next level, SMEs currently need a technology solution partner that can address to their requirements thereby helping them to achieve sustainable benefits.
The ERP market in India is very lucrative and is growing everyday by leaps and bounds. According to research firm Frost & Sullivan, the ERP market in India is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 19.2% to reach somewhere near $ 184.7 million by 2013. Organisations of all sizes-Big, Small and Medium are investing in ERP software in order to turn around their mission critical business processes and prepare themselves for the next level of growth.
ERP Solutions Right for SMEs
Gone are the days when most SMBs had only a limited budget for capital IT purchases. Today, the market potential is unbelievably high.
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| Vivek S. Rawat Director - Ecosystem and Channel, SAP India | Vineet Fogat Country Manager – India, Epicor | Hari Goud Delivery Head IT Solution |
Mid-sized companies in India are growing very fast. They need to have solutions that can not only handle their present business requirements but can also keep up with their growth. In addition, they do not have the luxury of time - so the implementation period needs to be shortened so that the benefits of using the software can start showing quickly. "SAP's dominance in the SME space itself the biggest proof of the shifts in perceptions about ERP in the country and its faster adoption at all levels. Within the last year, SAP has expanded its market share in the Core Enterprise Application market from 11.2% to 12.3% and is clearly the leading player in that market,"says Vivek S. Rawat, Director - Ecosystem and Channel, SAP India.
Thiru Vengadam, MD, IFS Solutions Pvt. Ltd, says, "In the last few years, adoption of ERP has been on the rise with the realization in the medium sized companies as well that they need an integrated information system to be competitive in their respective line of business. Also the larger companies - most of whom already implemented ERP are rolling out to cover additional divisions, locations, associate companies, suppliers, customers, etc".
ERP: A must-have for Organisaion?
Enterprise Resource Planning System is an integrated business system which adheres to all the basic fundamentals and requirements of any business unit. It can provide integrated view of key departments such as: Supply Chain Management, Finance, Inventory, Accounting, and Customer Relation Management. "The importance of ERP can be judged by the fact that it streamlines, organizes, and integrates operation processes. The information which flows in turn ensures optimum use of all the key resources making ERP, undoubtedly one of the key elements of success for any organization,' says Hari Goud, Delivery Head, IT Solutions, Prithvi Information Solutions.
new generation of ERP applications support organisations as they attempt to build greater flexibility, efficiency and responsiveness into their business processes. The trend to greater flexibility, efficiency and responsiveness will continue with the customer sitting firmly in the driving seat. Vineet Fogat, Country Manager-India, Epicor, says, "Organisations should make sure that the information infrastructure they use not only meets current demanding requirements but that it can accommodate new developments in a timely manner."
Safe Bet for Channel
Vivek of SAP says,"Our partners are very vital component of our strategy. We will accelerate our channel expansion strategy by opening up previously direct-only solutions or markets segments (e.g. large enterprise, line of business solutions, HANA, Mobile) to the channel and by recruiting and encouraging specialized partners to develop and deliver new Rapid Deployment Solutions for mid- and large enterprises." He adds, "Our customers are spread across the length and breadth of the country. To reach customers across locations we have an extensive partner ecosystem network that brings together over 200 partners with SAP. We are able to offer our latest innovations to all customers, often tai lored to a specific industry or use case by the ecosystem. Our partners are able to offer added value by building their own solutions based on their unique expertise in all 5 market categories (cloud, mobile, in-memory, analytics and applications)"
Manikandan of Ramco says,"We have a very lucrative revenue model for our partners. Up to 30% of the sales revenue is shared on new order wins while up to 70% of implementation cost is also shared with partners". Ramco ERP on Cloud is a very potent weapon which can be a win-win for partners given the market opportunity. In case of a SaaS offering, partners enter into long-term engagement with customers and have the option of selling additional offerings in future. This opens up a multitude of opportunities for partners for cross selling/ up selling to a customer.
Vengadam of IFS says, "There is a great opportunity for channel organizations to be involved with the ERP distribution and support. India is largely a mid-market economy and the OEMs and the large systems integrators do not have the reach to the mid market which is almost evenly spread across the country. Only the channel organizations have the reach and the connections with the customers all over India and for IFS engaging Channels is a key strategy in the years to come."
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| Souma Das MD & VP Sales Infor India | Thiru Vengadam MD ,IFS Solutions Pvt.Ltd |
Epicor ERP is sold both directly and through its channel which is made up of VARs (Value Added Resellers) and Referral Partners. By establishing a comprehensive and effective network of channel partners across India, Epicor has achieved greater reach and increased market share while providing a solid business foundation for channel partners who are committed to excellence and customer satisfaction.
As Infor has different ERP solutions designed to cater to specific vertical and micro verticals like discrete manufacturing, food & beverage, fashion etc, this allows segment and domain specific channel partners to service the right customer with the right ERP suite for their needs. "This not only helps customers to achieve a faster ROI - as there is little need for customization to the software- but also enables partners to focus on new markets with a context rich ERP suite rather than trying to fit one solution to all," says Souma of Infor India . He adds, "Unlike most other companies today, Infor certification is free, encouraging channel partners to get enabled and have the first mover advantage in the market."
Finally...
With the growing demand and need for advanced technology, ERP has evolved to meet the requirements. Manufacturing oriented industries such as automobiles, steel, consumer durables, engineering and textiles were the primary targets previously. "We at Prithvi observe that the service industry sectors such as banking, hospitality, medical, telecom, financial services, etc are increasingly adapting and implementing ERP, " says Hari Goud.
Vineet of Epicor says, "Our vision is in line with recent analyst research about the future of the ERP market. The research states that the key technological changes of 2012 will include data virtualization, social networks, cloud, integrated infrastructure and application mobility."
However, the growing importance of mobile solutions, and increasing number of users, including companies who require remote working capabilities, does not equal a global eradication of desktop software. Best business practice says that the ideal solution is to split the focus between these two models, depending on the business requirements, work style or industry.
Vengadam says,"In the current scenario, ERP holds lot of promises both in terms of supply & demand." Most of the companies are constantly working towards enabling themselves with modern business processes resulting in high ROI. A large number of the organisations in India have largely benefitted with the use of ERP solutions that includes resource planning, management control, and operational control which in turn has brought a new revolution in the organizations thinking process, rules and procedures.
The ERP Industry promises a strong future with its vast scope for development and great prospect in software and non-software sectors.
