Microsoft-hosted ERP coming, Ballmer says at Convergence

Microsoft-hosted enterprise resource planning (ERP) is in the company's plans, CEO Steve Ballmer said during this morning's Convergence 2008 keynote address.

Microsoft will release Dynamics CRM Live, its vendor-hosted customer relationship management (CRM) software, by the end of June. It will be the first of several Microsoft-hosted Dynamics enterprise applications products, Ballmer said.

"You should expect to see more from us in ERP and other areas as we move into the future," he said.

Ballmer's statements contradicted those of corporate vice president Michael Park, who denied any Microsoft-hosted ERP plans last week. Park told TechTarget that "the architecture we're making the [hosting] bet on is CRM. With ERP, we've got a good number of partners who are hosting it for us."

Dynamics CRM Live has some Microsoft partners worried about competition with their own hosted CRM services. The prospect of Microsoft-hosted ERP isn't causing the same concern -- at least not yet -- according to Scott Millwood, CEO of Customer Effective, a Microsoft partner.

"There's not as much demand for hosted ERP as there is on the CRM side," he said.

Microsoft execs have said in the past that public numbers of hosted ERP vendors like NetSuite indicate a lot of "churn" as customers come on board, but exit just as quickly.

Microsoft-hosted ERP has been rumoured for more than a year now, so Ballmer's comments did not come as a total surprise to Microsoft partners at Convergence.

"Microsoft probably, deep in their think tank, does have a Software as a Service strategy that goes beyond their current hosting strategy," said Jon Buchan, a vice president at Blue Fox, another partner.

Meanwhile, Microsoft today announced Dynamic AX 2009, the latest version of its ERP software that partners can host or deploy on premise. The new release will allow for integration among multiple customer locations. Microsoft partners said that will be a big selling point to help Microsoft compete against the ERP market leaders.

"It's not there, but it's getting there," said Eric Wagner, a partner with Agility Business Solutions, yet another Microsoft partner. "We'll be able to enhance it, and we'll be able to offer it to multiple customer sets."

Buchan agreed.

"They really made multi-company very strong, and that was probably the one area where we didn't match up well with SAP," he said.

Ballmer this morning also stressed Microsoft's commitment to enterprise applications. He said more people ask him about Microsoft's devotion to that market than any other topic.

"We have a long-term view for every one of these products," he said.

Wagner said Microsoft needs to sell more into the ERP space, and he's confident the company will do so -- eventually.

"They've got the commitment, but they don't have the experience or the people yet," he said. "It doesn't happen overnight."

Source : www.searchcio.com.au

SAP Business All-in-One at Solar Module Manufacturer SOLON: New ERP for Renewable Energy

The sun shines all over the world. This naturally opens up international opportunities for production and sales for SOLON AG, the largest manufacturer of solar modules in Europe. However, this requires an integrated ERP software that supports international processes and accounting standards.

"The Pioneers of Power" is the motto of SOLON AG, an enterprise specializing in solar technology with headquarters in Berlin. Formed in 1997, and floated on the stock exchange in 1998 as the first solar enterprise in Germany, the group is one of the pioneers and innovators in the area of solar technology. The enterprise has enjoyed rapid growth since its formation, and is now one of the largest European solar module manufacturers, with subsidiaries and production locations in Germany, Austria, Italy, Switzerland, and the United States, which are all part of a holding company. Total sales in 2006 – with more than 650 employees across the whole group – amounted to about 346 million euros, an increase of more than 70 percent on the previous year.

Expansion with IT support

"Because of the strong expansion, we need IT support that provides a transparent overview of all business processes and cash flows across the whole group," says Dieter Neberg, IT manager at SOLON AG. This was not possible with the old heterogeneous IT landscape, which consisted of ERP software from Sage and a stand-alone solution for production.

This situation was unsatisfactory, and the changeover to an integrated, sustainable, and international ERP solution that would support the enterprise's rapid development effectively was absolutely essential. The management of SOLON AG therefore decided to bring together all business areas and locations on a standardized ERP platform.

After careful consideration of the options available on the market, the enterprise chose the SAP Business All-in-One solution SPEED ME from IT total system supplier ai informatics. SPEED ME offers numerous preconfigured processes typically used in the industry, which enables rapid implementation. SOLON AG was also won over by the attractive fixed price, the industry expertise of the ai informatics consulting team, and the international product support offered by the IT service provider.

Together with the consultants, the enterprise was able to implement the industry solution in just seven months. In January 2007, the system went into productive operation for the 120 users at the Berlin and Greifswald locations successively, just two weeks apart. After the international rollout of SPEED ME at the SOLON locations in the United States and Italy, productive operation will start there in early 2008. In the final expansion phase, about 300 to 400 users will be working with the solution worldwide.

Overview of warehouse stocks a mouse click away

In Berlin and Greifswald, the benefits of the business processes integrated with the help of the SAP-based industry solution quickly became obvious. Supported by SPEED ME, the solar enterprise now maps its core processes in a standardized group structure and on the basis of consolidated master data.

All information, from sales and purchase order processing right through to billing, is entered, managed, and distributed centrally. Employees in the purchasing and production departments can access an overview of all warehouse stocks across the group with just a few mouse clicks and can compare these with the material requirements from the orders. As a result, scheduling and material planning, as well as procurement, production, and warehousing processes, can be controlled economically and on a demand-driven basis.

The old manual, paper-based intercompany processes are now carried out largely automatically, which accelerates procedures in internal ordering and settlement and ensures high process reliability.

Rapid consolidated financial statements

Another advantage of the industry solution is that data on costs and sales from the connected group areas and companies is immediately available in Financial Accounting and can be analyzed there at any time.

At the same time, the solar module manufacturer can create uniform standards across the group for internal and external reporting. As a result, it will be possible in future to create both the quarterly and annual statements for the group promptly in accordance with IFRS and the individual statements of the subsidiaries in accordance with local legal requirements. "As a result, we have a more accurate overview of the group's development and will in future be able to implement our growth strategy in an even more targeted way," states Dieter Neberg.

SOLON AG has outsourced operation of SPEED ME to the ai informatics computer center in Pforzheim – and is reaping multiple benefits. The IT operating costs can be clearly calculated, because a user-based settlement model ensures maximum transparency. In addition, the solar module manufacturer does not need to concern itself with administration and maintenance work such as updates or release upgrades. Dieter Neberg: "We can fully concentrate on our core competencies – and those are the development, production, and sale of innovative and high-quality solar modules."

Source: SAP INFO

Northern California Public Broadcasting Leverages SAP Solutions for Enterprise Performance Management

SAP Empowers CFOs with Innovative Solutions to Drive Performance and Manage Growth; Rapid Deployment of SAP Solutions Drives Increased Operational Efficiency and Reporting Accuracy for the Financial Planning Process

SAP AG today announced that Northern California Public Broadcasting, Inc. (NCPB), one of the nation’s leading public radio and television broadcasters, has successfully implemented the SAP® Business Planning and Consolidation application, a key component of the growing portfolio of SAP solutions for enterprise performance management. As NCPB undergoes significant business transformation, the broadcaster is using SAP solutions for enterprise performance management to better manage the company’s business plan, acquisition road map and growth strategy. Since deploying SAP solutions, NCPB has seen a significant increase in operational and financial reporting accuracy and efficiency, allowing more time for analysis and strategic planning. The NCPB deployment demonstrates continued momentum for SAP’s global strategy to transform and enhance corporate performance by putting innovative and user-friendly business and financial management solutions in the hands of CFOs.

NCPB owns and operates public radio and television stations across Northern California, making it one of the largest, most-watched public television and most-listened-to public radio broadcasters in the United States. In 2006, NCPB was in the process of merging with two regional broadcast stations and needed a robust performance management platform that could scale to support the company’s growth while addressing several core financial and operational functions in a highly customized and cost-effective manner.

NCPB required a solution that would decrease time spent reconciling data aggregated manually in Excel spreadsheets, re-engineer the arduous annual financial planning process by creating monthly forecasts, and increase the integrity and transparency of numbers across the business. After a competitive search, CFO Jeffery Nemy selected SAP solutions to improve financial performance and operational efficiencies across all station holdings and departments throughout the company, including finance, communications and human resources.

The initial implementation process for NCPB’s deployment took approximately 90 days to complete, with the first forecast presented to the Board’s Finance Committee less than five months after the project began.

“We were in the middle of a critical corporate transition and needed a holistic solution that could consolidate budgets of disparate departments and projects instantaneously, eliminate time-consuming reconciliations of interdepartmental charges, and automate and standardize documentation of assumptions and justifications for spending requests as well as provide account-level reporting across departmental and project boundaries,” said Nemy. “SAP solutions proved to be the best fit and since the initial implementation, we have successfully achieved several measurable benchmarks including elimination of the manual consolidation process, which has reduced our cycle time by up to six weeks. The entire NCPB leadership team is now equipped with direct online access to more timely and accurate information and a better way to view, measure and plan the strategic direction of the company — literally transforming the way we do business.”

Prior to the implementation of SAP solutions for enterprise performance management, the annual planning and consolidation process at NCPB took months to complete, which monopolized thousands of man hours and did not provide the level of visibility needed to support the company’s growth. After deploying the SAP solutions, NCPB completely replaced its annual financial planning processes with a rolling monthly forecast that projects not only the balance of the current fiscal year, but also the following 36 months. At the end of each month, actuals are uploaded into the system, thus overriding the previous forecast for that month. Variance reports are then prepared comparing actual results against both budget and previous forecasts. Automating the planning and consolidation process has resulted in a significant increase in efficiency for the overall financial planning process.

“SAP has been diligent in its commitment to deliver a world-class suite of software solutions that address the specific needs and business objectives of CFOs today,” said Sanjay Poonen, senior vice president and general manager of Enterprise Performance Management, Business Objects, an SAP company. “The success of customers like Northern California Public Broadcasting further validates our strategy to empower CFOs through delivery of the most comprehensive and innovative technology solutions. In addition, SAP was positioned in the leaders quadrant in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for CPM Suites, 20071.”

Source : SAP