Research firm Gartner releases its series of Magic Quadrant annual reports ranking companies related to specific technology industries. The methodology scores vendor positions in four quadrants: leaders, challengers, visionaries and niche players. Organizations are rated on completeness of vision and ability to execute, resources to sustain continued growth, innovative product delivery and/or narrow focus on specific market segments. Needless to say, the providers that are listed in the report are true examples of where the market is headed and what is required to be successful.
Oracle was named a leader in Gartner’s 2017 “Magic Quadrant for Cloud Core Financial Management Suites for Midsize, Large and Global Enterprises” report. Oracle ERP Cloud, in particular, was positioned highest for completeness of vision and ability to execute out of 11 evaluated products. Let’s take a closer look at what this means for the organization and how it will continue to evolve.
Driving transformation and innovation
Modern organizations are looking for more out of their systems than ever before, along with the support necessary to ensure that issues are addressed right away. Rondy Ng, senior vice president of applications development at Oracle, noted that Oracle ERP Cloud is the only enterprise-grade solution that currently offers the features and innovations necessary to meet demanding business needs. This includes capabilities like real-time insights, lower costs, increased productivity, scalability and improved security. Oracle’s solutions are enabling businesses to react and grow in hyper-competitive environments, making it a true leader in its space as well as a solid partner that commits to its customers’ success.
Oracle has been making strategic moves over the past few years to improve the familiarity and simplicity of use in its systems, making their products more accessible to a wider audience. At the same time, the organization has been pushing to enable transformation and innovation by providing a comprehensive solution that enables better resource planning. Organizations should keep Oracle in their radar as the business continues to advance and evolve its products.
Oracle was named a leader in Gartner’s Magic Quadrant.
Work to integrate acquisitions and provide quality service
Gartner’s ranking is certainly a major achievement under Oracle’s belt, but that doesn’t mean that the work is over. Businesses are compelled to continue innovating by evolving products and acquiring other entities to complement their offerings while better serving customer needs. In November 2016, Oracle acquired cloud application developer NetSuite, aiming to expand the opportunities for both organizations. However, these Cloud ERP products had previously competed in overlapping markets causing confusion on which product may be best for a specific client.
While Oracle is creating policies to address this challenge, it can still be difficult for customers to know what solution is right for them. CRN contributor Joseph F. Kovar noted that there’s little overlap between the two companies’ product sets and that the solutions have different targets. Guidelines and attributes are being put into place to determine the best product to fit client needs and ensure continuous support.
As adoption of Oracle ERP Cloud continues to escalate, implementation skills and resources might be limited in some areas. As a result, these capabilities will attract premium pricing as the volume of integrations increase. Oracle is investing heavily in partner training to ensure that its resellers and associates provide the necessary support. The number of capable consultants is also steadily increasing to accommodate this demand.
Oracle has established itself as a leader in its field, but its ranking as a leader in Gartner’s Magic Quadrant goes to show that its efforts are making a big impact. As Oracle continues to advance its offerings and integrate acquired partner capabilities, it will be important for organizations to keep up with these developments and leverage them effectively.
