The Enterprise Software “Threatdown”

Here is a countdown of the most significant competitive threats to the enterprise software establishment.

By Bruce Richardson, AMR Research

You can’t swing a stick these days without hitting a new threat to the traditional way of life for today’s enterprise vendors. The trade press and the blogosphere – and even a few analysts – regularly rattle off a list of new technologies, models, companies and buyer behaviors that are conspiring to take down the enterprise software “establishment.”

I decided to take a look at the competitive threats facing the software industry today, analyze their potential impact over the next two to three years, and, make a list of which items pose a genuine near-term threat to the major vendors.

Two Weeks to Software 2007!
Hundreds of companies will attend! (see full list)

The industry’s most exciting software business event will take place in just two short weeks: Software 2007. On May 8 and 9, an estimated 2,000 software CEOs, VPs, investors and professionals will gather in Santa Clara, Calif. to receive the latest strategic business insight from an all-star lineup of speakers and panels.

The key to Software 2007’s success is its in-depth coverage of critical software business issues. Best practices will be shared at the more than 50 breakout sessions on key topics. The Innovation Showcase will put the industry’s top 25 innovators on stage to share their solutions. The 2.0 Pavilion will demonstrate the latest in Web 2.0, Enterprise 2.0 and Office 2.0 offerings. And the most innovative software and services providers from all around the world will be on display in the International Pavilion.

"We Donít Need No Stinkiní Upgrades"

Dell’s decision to begin selling PCs equipped with Microsoft Windows XP again serves to underscore the ever-increasing challenge vendors will face when trying to force upgrades on customers. Erik Keller of Wapiti LLC says software companies would actually be ahead to say their products won’t need a next-generation upgrade for quite a while. Read Erik’s analysis in this week’s post to his SandHill.com Blog, The Software Critic.

Make IT in China, Integrate IT by India

Sales of "Made in China" software exceeded $30 billion last year, thereby showing China's ability to develop software, both for enterprise and embedded applications. In the latest post to his SandHill.com Blog, "Letter from China," David Scott Lewis provides insider insights into the IT outsourcing landscape of the "Golden Triangle."

Optimize Your Development Organization

Bug fixing is critical to software companies but such efforts can drain a development organization of significant firepower. Eldad Maniv of BMC Software says that vendors who want to strike a balance between development and support should explore application problem resolution technology. Read how these products can accelerate resolution time by up to 70 percent in this week’s post to the new SandHill.com Blog, “Best Practices: R&D.”

Publish Your Perspective!

The SandHill.com Blog wants your opinions. Send your thoughts on the enterprise software industry to editor@sandhill.com and we’ll publish them in our blog.

The Straight Talk on Software Innovation

The Innovation Panel on the first morning of Software 2007 will detail key strategies and challenges from two of the industry’s most recognized innovators: Ingres and WebEx. Forbes’ Victoria Barret will moderate a candid discussion with Roger Burkhardt, president of Ingres, and David Knight, VP of WebEx, about their experiences in innovation.

News Update: Google-y Eyed

Google’s bursting over its billion-dollar profit, DoubleClick win and big product news at the Web 2.0 Expo; plus SAP shows growth, Microsoft shows Silverlight and Cordys is shown the money. Read these stories and more software news of the week in the latest SandHill.com Software News Summary.

Poll: Biggest Enterprise Software Threat?

What is the biggest threat to the livelihood of the enterprise software establishment? Give us your two cents.
Take our Pulse Poll >>

Last week, readers gave their opinions as to how best to punish corporate fraud.
Give us your opinion and see the results >>

DON’T MISS: How to Foster Innovation

Few technology companies are as savvy about innovation as Intuit. Read this interview with CEO Bill Campbell and learn how he has managed innovation for his company and others in this article from The McKinsey Quarterly.

New Podcast: Meet Software’s Top 25 Innovators

The Innovation Showcase at Software 2007 will display the industry’s most compelling and innovative vendors. Sand Hill Group’s M.R. Rangaswami introduces and discusses the industry’s top 25 innovators with Bruce Fram, the producer of the program in this new podcast from SandHill.com. Click here to listen.