Manufacturing and distribution organizations are navigating a paradox: ERP systems have grown more powerful and complex, yet the internal teams available to manage them are shrinking. As labor shortages persist across the manufacturing sector and IT budgets face scrutiny, a growing number of product companies are turning to managed services to maintain operational stability while freeing internal resources to focus on strategic initiatives rather than routine system administration.
Rootstock Software’s launch of its Managed Services offering signals a broader industry shift toward operational outsourcing models that extend beyond traditional break-fix support. For manufacturers and distributors evaluating ERP vendors, the availability of comprehensive managed services is increasingly becoming a decision criterion as important as core functionality. The question technology executives now face is not whether to outsource ERP operations, but when and how to structure that partnership for maximum strategic impact.
Caroline Marty, SVP of Global Professional Services & Enablement at Rootstock, explains their methodology process as one that blends best practices with a phased implementation: “By defining standard processes, data models, and configuration templates up front, we reduce variability and accelerate time to value, but we also build in gates for governance, testing and compliance before each go-live,” she says.
When Managed Services Makes Sense
The decision between maintaining an internal ERP administration team and adopting a managed services model hinges on three primary factors: Team capacity, long-term resource planning and the complexity of ongoing system needs.
“For organizations with sufficient internal IT resources and predictable demand, an internal admin team may be sufficient,” Marty says. “But for many manufacturers and distributors—especially those facing labor shortages or fluctuating workloads—Rootstock Managed Services provides flexibility, predictable costs, and access to our experienced ERP practitioners.”
The strategic calculus extends beyond cost containment. When managed services teams handle core ERP administration functions, internal technical and business stakeholders can redirect their attention toward higher-value initiatives.
“When Managed Services takes on the core ERP administration functions, internal teams can focus on core business objectives as well as high-value technology initiatives—such as accelerating AI programs, expanding analytics capabilities, and driving broader digital transformation efforts,” Marty says. “Instead of being tied up with day-to-day system upkeep, technical and business stakeholders can devote their energy to innovation and growth.”
Maintaining Governance and Stability for a Brighter Future
This operating model also addresses a challenge that has long plagued mid-market manufacturers: How to maintain ERP governance and continuous improvement without the overhead of a dedicated center of excellence. Rootstock’s approach layers data integrity management, regression testing, and performance monitoring into its managed services construct, ensuring that ERP environments remain stable even as business requirements evolve.
“Post-go-live, especially for customers adopting a Managed Services model, our ERP administration team maintains ongoing data integrity—monitoring quality, performing reconciliations, and governing future imports or structural changes to ensure long-term reliability,” Marty says.
As ERPs and their customers evolve, resiliency will be a key aspect for the future, Marty says. A managed services model can provide consistency, which is the bedrock for optimization.
The key is designing processes, roles and service level agreements (SLAs) up front,” Marty says, “so that, whether managed internally or via a service partner, the ERP environment remains stable, secure, and able to evolve with the business.”
What This Means for ERP Insiders
Managed services represent a structural shift in ERP delivery. Vendors are moving from transactional support models toward operational partnerships that generate recurring revenue and deepen customer stickiness. ERP architects should anticipate rising customer expectations for proactive monitoring, continuous optimization, and seamless upgrade management as standard components of cloud ERP platforms.
Domain expertise is becoming the differentiator in managed services. Generalized IT outsourcing is giving way to industry-tuned stewardship, where manufacturing-specific proficiency, disciplined release governance, and operational rigor separate credible providers from commodity support shops. System integrators and partners will face competitive pressure to demonstrate vertical specialization and platform-native expertise.
Operational co-ownership reshapes ERP vendor-customer relationships. The traditional model of vendor-supplied software and customer-owned operations is evolving toward collaborative stewardship, where ERP vendors assume ongoing responsibility for system performance, configuration management, and continuous improvement. This shift requires clear governance models, integration ownership frameworks, and performance baselines to define accountability and measure value realization.
