Answer to Question 1
Should an organization choose to purchase software rather than develop it in house, it has to determine what types of applications are needed and how they should be purchased. Historically, software packages were purchased independently from different vendors and the organization's information technology staff was tasked with making the various tools work together if possible. Today, buyers have another option. Due to mergers and acquisitions in the software industry and ERP vendors moving into the supply chain applications market space, it is possible to purchase supply chain software suites that combine planning, execution, event management, and related capabilities.
The polar options are to work with a single vendor's software or to purchase individual applications from leading providers in each software category, commonly called best-of-breed solutions. Each strategy has its merits. Single vendor supply chain suites should take less time to implement than a variety of tools from different vendors since there are fewer compatibility and connectivity issues to overcome. Also, there is only one vendor to work with rather than multiple companies which reduces administrative and coordination effort. Single vendor suites also require less training time and have lower implementation costs as there is only one set of integration requirements to master. Although the best-of-breed tools are more complex and typically take longer to integrate into the SCIS, they are working to streamline the process. Also, they offer more powerful applications for specific functions that provide greater flexibility and can be better tailored to an individual company's supply chain issues. Some suites, especially those from ERP vendors, do not yet contain the advanced functionality or industry-specific capabilities found in specific best-of-breed applications, though they are working to close the gap. The challenge for the supply chain executives choosing between these options is to understand the implementation issues; their organization's need for tailored, advanced capabilities; and the changing vendor landscape.
Answer to Question 2
True
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