Can anyone tell me your view on the benefit of going with a tier-two ERP vendor rather than the usual tier-one suspects? -CTO, insurance company A: Any ERP package you choose is going to do accounts payable, accounts receivable and all of the other basic business processes. I am at a midsize company that considered going with a tier one, but in the end we went with a tier two for a variety of reasons. First, on implementation and maintenance, our tier two is a fraction of the cost of the tier ones we considered. Second, while the tier ones are customizable for specific industries, that customization is expensive. With ERP, you always have to do some business-processes reengineering software modification, and out of the box, our tier-two package fit reasonably well with our business. Finally, we got the feeling that the tier ones didn’t value our midmarket business to the same degree as the tier twos. We like the support we get from them. The big question with a tier two, of course, is how long they can compete with the tier ones. You need them to stick around. But in the end, it doesn’t matter which ERP package you go with if you don’t let the business lead the reengineering effort. The success or failure of ERP rides on the implementation, not on the software. -Steve Holt, CIO, Accuride Related content feature Key IT initiatives reshape the CIO agenda While cloud, cybersecurity, and analytics remain top of mind for IT leaders, a shift toward delivering business value is altering how CIOs approach key priorities, pushing transformative projects to the next phase. By Mary Pratt May 30, 2023 10 mins IT Strategy IT Leadership opinion Managing IT right starts with rightsizing IT for value While there are few universals when it comes to saying unambiguously what ‘managing IT right’ looks like, knowing how to navigate the limitless possibilities of IT is surely one. By Thornton May May 30, 2023 6 mins Digital Transformation IT Strategy IT Leadership brandpost Designing the campus of the future starts with high-quality 10Gbps connectivity By Huawei May 30, 2023 4 mins Network Architect Networking Devices Networking feature Red Hat embraces hybrid cloud for internal IT The maker of OpenShift has leveraged its own open container offering to migrate business-critical apps to AWS as part of a strategy to move beyond facilitating hybrid cloud for others and capitalize on the model for itself. By Paula Rooney May 29, 2023 5 mins CIO 100 Technology Industry Hybrid Cloud Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe