ERP and CRM are companies' investment priorities until 2011

A survey conducted by Pierre Audoin Consultants (PAC) in Germany Austria and Switzerland has shown that nearly 50 per cent of companies interviewed plan to increase their spend on CRM and ERP software.

"PAC Software User Survey 2010'' for the DACH region (Germany, Austria, Switzerland) -- is part of "PAC Software Research Programme'', and involved questioning of around 240 IT decision makers in Germany, Austria and Switzerland on their investment plans regarding software. For different company sizes and industries, the survey shows what kind of business software companies are going to invest in over the next two years. These companies were from varied sectors such as the manufacturing, banking/insurance, retail & wholesale, public/healthcare, telecommunications & utilities, transport/logistics and services & media sectors.

Software usage and investment behavior

According to the survey, applications for financial accounting, enterprise resource planning (ERP), human capital management (HCM) and customer relationship management (CRM) are among the most frequently used business solutions. Companies are planning to mainly invest in ERP, CRM and business intelligence (BI) solutions in the period until 2011 (see figure below). While smaller firms concentrate on introducing one application at a time, larger enterprises mostly intend to invest in several applications.

Strongest demand for CRM solutions

Companies with 500 to 1,000 employees are particularly interested in CRM solutions. More than half of them are planning to invest in this area by 2011 either by purchasing a new CRM software, or by expanding an existing application. Another finding from the survey is that CRM applications are very common among banks and insurers. Nevertheless, more than 50 percent of these organizations are planning to spend more money on CRM this or next year.

Figure: Planned investment by types of software (in %), PAC 2010

Supplier selection criteria

The criteria for selecting a supplier also vary depending on company size and industry. According to the PAC survey, a software provider's industry know-how is the most important criterion. This emphasis is strongest among companies from the telecommunications and utilities sectors. Moreover, firms with up to 500 employees attach great importance to the fact that their suppliers are able to offer an end-to-end solution.

The "PAC Software User Survey 2010'' is available to customers of the "PAC Software Research Programme''. You can also purchase the report (approx. 90 pages) individually at EUR 2,250.