May 2025Issue 23

COVER STORY

Vertex: Connections That Win By Mark Vigoroso and Grant Suneson

Vertex, Inc., a leading global indirect tax technology company, experienced transformative growth in 2024 with a 16% revenue increase to $667 million and nearly doubled stock prices, driven by advanced capabilities and a commitment to long-term thinking, while emphasizing trust and collaboration with customers to navigate the evolving tax compliance landscape amid rapid changes in technology and regulation.

FEATURES

Oracle Unveils AI Agent Studio for Fusion Cloud Applications

Analytics and AI

Bridging AI Strategies: IBM and Oracle’s unified approach to Enterprise AI By Suparna Chawla Bhasin

IBM and Oracle are collaborating to integrate artificial intelligence into enterprise technology, enhancing efficiency, decision-making, and operational performance, while providing secure and scalable solutions that drive business transformation and innovation.

Cloud Platform and Technology

SYSPRO’s Next Chapter: Fueled by Investment, Focused on Manufacturing’s Future By Mark Vigoroso and Radhika Ojha

A look at how SYSPRO is rapidly advancing its growth, innovation, and transformation efforts.

ERP Strategy and Planning

Enterprise Views: Global Pharmaceutical Distributor Advances Digital Transformation with SAP S/4HANA By Mark Vigoroso

An international pharmaceutical wholesaler is implementing SAP S/4HANA to modernize its enterprise systems, enhance operational efficiency, and leverage AI-driven insights across its multi-country operations, with a structured three-phase transformation roadmap set between 2025 and 2028.

Quality and Testing

Protecting and Maximizing ERP Investment through Testing By Grant Suneson

As organizations upgrade to modern ERP systems like SAP S/4HANA, the CEO of Original Software, Colin Armitage, highlights the importance of streamlined, low-code testing solutions to ensure software quality amidst increasing update frequencies and complex application ecosystems, while suggesting that businesses should evaluate their pain points and focus on automating critical processes.

Analytics and AI

The Rise of Intelligent Business By Radhika Ojha

AI is rewriting the rules for ERP users in the manufacturing and supply chain industries.

Financial Management

Meeting the Financial Needs of the Modern CFO with Trintech’s Michael Ross By Grant Suneson

CFOs are facing increasing challenges amid stagnant budgets and complex regulations, necessitating partnerships with specialized providers like Trintech to enhance ERP functionalities, leverage AI for automation, and adopt tailored solutions for diverse organizational needs, particularly in financial services and retail.

ERP Strategy and Planning

Technical Debt is the Silent Killer of ERP Transformation By Mark Vigoroso

ERP systems, often burdened by hidden technical debt from outdated customizations, are crucial for enterprise success but require a shift towards clean, agile practices and a mindset of ongoing modernization to avoid costly transformation failures.

Analytics and AI

AI, Data and Automation: Cutting through the Noise and Navigating the New Frontier of Enterprise Value By Mark Vigoroso

In the era of digital transformation, artificial intelligence (AI), data analytics, and automation are not merely buzzwords—they are strategic imperatives. The convergence of these technologies is reshaping industries, redefining competitive advantage, and demanding a recalibration of executive decision-making. For C-level...

Cloud Platform and Technology

Charting a New Course: Van Oord Builds its Future on IFS Cloud By Radhika Ojha

Van Oord, a leader in marine contracting, is transforming its operations by implementing IFS Cloud to unify its complex project management processes, enhance data-driven decision-making, and retain knowledge amid workforce changes, as part of its Founding the Future initiative.

Financial Management

How CFOs can Navigate Challenges to Deliver Real-time Results By Grant Suneson

The evolving role of CFOs requires them to be strategically involved across organizations, leveraging real-time data and advanced tools to drive performance, optimize operations, and support agile decision-making amid changing economic landscapes.

Cloud Platform and Technology

Navigating The Cloud: An SMB’s Perspective By Radhika Ojha

Acumatica ERP users share their real-world experience of implementing and using a cloud-ERP system.

Modernizing Mission Driven Retail with Epicor

Business Process Management and Automation

Modernizing Mission-Driven Retail By Jennifer Lawinski

Goodwill Industries of Northwest Ohio transformed its retail operations by implementing the cloud-native Epicor Propello POS system, which enhanced efficiency, increased customer engagement and donations, and improved employee satisfaction, ultimately driving greater social impact.

How RFK Racing leverages SYSPRO ERP on and off the race track.

ERP Strategy and Planning

Behind the Pit Wall: How RFK Racing leverages SYSPRO ERP By Radhika Ojha

RFK Racing leverages SYSPRO's advanced ERP technology to enhance operational efficiency, ensure compliance with NASCAR regulations, and master the complexities of inventory management, all of which contribute to their competitive edge in the high-stakes world of professional motorsports.

Analytics and AI

Leveling Up with Automation: How Lifetime Products Empowered its Workforce with Microsoft Dynamics 365 By Jennifer Lawinski

Lifetime Products successfully modernized its ERP system by adopting Microsoft Dynamics 365, enabling enhanced operational efficiency and employee development through automation and a collaborative workforce strategy that reallocates resources towards higher-value tasks.

ERP Strategy and Planning

The Hidden ROI of Testing and Monitoring in ERP Systems By Jennifer Lawinski

Effective management of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems is crucial for modern businesses, as these dynamic platforms require ongoing testing, quality assurance, and real-time monitoring to mitigate risks and enhance performance, thereby transforming potential pitfalls into opportunities for growth.

Analytics and AI

Your Next ERP Will Think for Itself: Microsoft’s Bold Vision for Autonomous ERP By Mark Vigoroso

Microsoft is transforming ERP systems from traditional user-initiated processes to intelligent, autonomous platforms that execute tasks independently, emphasizing continuous business value and adapting to user needs rather than the other way around.

Expert Opinions

Cloud Platform and Technology

Navigating ERP and Digital Modernization By Robert Holland

Strategic Insights for Technology Leaders

Security

Securing the Digital Core By Robert Holland

Securing ERP systems has become a business imperative due to their critical role in enterprises and increased vulnerability to cyberattacks, necessitating a shift from traditional security measures to a more integrated approach that combines IRP and cybersecurity across evolving cloud environments.

Automation

A Transformative Leap: The Emerging Role of Automation and Hyperautomation in Elevating Finance Processes By Grant Suneson

The article discusses the limitations of manual finance processes, highlighting the need for automation and hyperautomation to improve efficiency, accuracy, and strategic focus in finance departments by leveraging advanced technologies like AI and machine learning.

Data and Data Management

Adeptia’s Innovation Engine: Deepak Singh on Simplifying Data Integration for the Modern Enterprise By Mark Vigoroso

Adeptia, an enterprise-class data integration platform led by Deepak Singh, distinguishes itself with a no-code, drag-and-drop interface that empowers non-technical users to automate data connections without heavy IT reliance, offering flexible deployment options and AI-driven automation to enhance operational efficiency and customer experience.