ERP Trends in 2018 – Oracle Report

The End of Technology Obsolescence, Oracle’s Top ERP Trends Report in 2018

Read time: 2.5 min.

The ability to keep up with the unprecedented pace of business change—implementing the most up-to-date best practices and innovations on a regular basis—is something fairly new. Earlier this year, Oracle surveyed more than 400 finance and technology leaders to gather an ERP trends report for 2018. If you haven’t yet read the findings, read on for a summary of the key trends below. Or, download the full erp trends report 2018.

 

ERP in the Cloud is the New Standard for Finance

Cloud ERP has become the new standard for the office of finance. More than 76% respondents said they have plans to run ERP in the cloud. The vast majority find that the benefits of such a move outweigh the potential drawbacks.

76% of survey respondents intend to run ERP in the cloud.”

Economics and Innovation are the Primary Drivers

What’s behind the push toward ERP cloud? Economic considerations are the key motivators, including avoiding infrastructure investments (45%) and lowering the total cost of ownership (38%). And with the average age of an on-premises ERP system approaching 20 years, organizations are looking to avoid the cost and complexity of an upgrade; one-third of respondents cited this as a motivating factor.

Top Five Reasons for Moving ERP to the Cloud:

  • Want to avoid infrastructure investment
  • Lower total cost of ownership
  • Want to avoid on-premises upgrades
  • Rapid access to new ERP products
  • Want one source of data and a global view

 

erp trends report 2018

The Biggest Benefit of ERP Cloud: Always Being Up to Date

Finance leaders cited the ability to “stay current on technology” as the top benefit of ERP cloud, at 81%. This was the most startling surprise from the survey results: organizations thought they were moving to cloud for the economic benefits. But once they got there, they found that the competitive advantage offered by always-new technology outweighed everything else.

 

erp trends report 2018

Emerging Technologies Are Set to Transform Finance

The cloud is the primary delivery system for new and emerging technologies: blockchain, artificial intelligence, machine learning, cognitive computing, intelligent process automation, and the Internet of Things (IoT). Finance professionals are exhibiting a keen interest in these technologies. Roughly 4 out of 10 are already exploring these areas—in keeping with their desire for innovation and new capabilities.

Top Emerging Technologies:

  • Adaptive (Artificial) Intelligence (AI)
  • Machine Learning (ML)
  • Internet of Things (IoT)
  • Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
  • Blockchain
  • Chatbot (aka Talkbot)
  • Augmented Reality (AR)

Summary

With the pace of business change accelerating, finance leaders recognize that they can no longer rely on the tools of the past to keep up with competitors. The right ERP cloud not only provides new capabilities, it is a vehicle to routinely deliver new and innovative technologies. This next generation of ERP will equip finance leaders to be more strategic, providing meaningful insight and guidance to the business. Discover more ERP trends this year in the full report.