ERP 2023
An Update on Cloud Vendors’ Performance

Satisfaction with Workday’s Supply Chain Functionality Increases; Customers Highlight Recent Enhancements and Compelling Road Map

Workday and Oracle respondents are the most satisfied with their respective supply chain functionality, with module adoption at roughly 60% for Workday respondents and 75% for Oracle’s. While Workday customers have generally been satisfied with the vendor’s HCM and financials modules, the supply chain management module has historically been perceived as a weak spot. However, recent product enhancements and a compelling road map have bolstered satisfaction and generated excitement among users. Some would like better functionality for inventory, turnover rates, supplier lead time, and reporting. Respondents appreciate that Workday is transparent about the solution’s gaps and has plans to address them in their road map. Regarding Oracle (limited data), customer respondents generally see the supply chain module as one of Cloud ERP’s strengths, saying it is straightforward and sophisticated for viewing and editing historical pricing information. Some feel the usability and functionality could be improved in areas such as contract management, bidding, price-capturing tools, and par level management.

Across Vendors, Variability in Go-Live Experience Hinders Usability; Oracle and Infor Customers Report Most Challenges

Even as more healthcare organizations move to updated cloud technology from their ERP vendor, challenges remain. Across all vendors in this report, respondents’ experience with both the implementation (i.e., vendor involvement, guidance, training) and the initial product greatly influences their ability to drive outcomes. Oracle respondents would like more involvement and critical guidance from the vendor during implementations, especially because Oracle has historically used third-party service firms to manage implementations. Newly live respondents report the most challenges, while those who have more years of experience with the system are the most satisfied with its ability to drive outcomes. Infor respondents say rocky implementations combined with a clunky interface make it difficult to achieve promised outcomes. For some, processes have become more inefficient and there is a need for more FTEs. Additionally, several of Oracle’s and Infor’s least satisfied respondents often struggle with the support and training, noting that they pay for a lower tier of support and don’t receive the help they need. While interviewed Workday customers—particularly those who have gone live in the past two years—say implementations can be bumpy because some of Workday’s implementation partners lack expertise, the vendor is highlighted for proactively addressing needs and having strong communication. Further, customers report high satisfaction with Workday’s modern, user-friendly interface.

Infor customer respondents report the vendor has recently made positive changes; the executives are often seen as true listeners who are beginning to improve both the solution and support, and many respondents feel Infor is becoming a better partner. This has resulted in an increased performance score over the last three years (15-point increase on a 100-point scale). Some mention the system is difficult to implement, configure, and use due to its complex and nonintuitive interface, and they want the vendor to help optimize the solution for healthcare with more training and support. Of the three ERP pillars, HCM is most mentioned as a frustration, particularly regarding talent management and payroll. The supply chain and financials modules also cause frustration: poor usability—which hurts speed and operational precision—and insufficient integration are both mentioned as concerns. The majority of respondents are optimistic about Infor’s future due to their engagement and responsiveness, saying Infor genuinely strives to make improvements that address customer concerns.

“We are very optimistic about the future with Infor. We have a really good relationship with the vendor right now; Infor is trying hard. We have had significant involvement with the vendor’s executive team. Infor is very interested in supporting us, and we have had great discussions about building the system, and those discussions put the vendor in the upper right quadrant of ERP systems.” —Senior manager

“Our HR people probably wouldn’t choose CloudSuite again, but anyone else in our organization would. Our executives like CloudSuite because it helps us consolidate applications. There are a lot of niche vendors in the HR area, and Infor’s product doesn’t hold up to those. Our HR department purchases niche vendor’s solutions, and we tie those solutions in with our global HR system. We wish that Infor were stronger with their talent acquisition, incident management, occupational health, job description storage, and workforce management functionalities.” —Director

Due to Oracle’s acquisition of Cerner, interviewed Oracle customers feel the vendor is focusing on improving their solutions for healthcare customers. Respondents mention Oracle offers a high-quality product that handles basic ERP functions well, though some complain about the complex customizations required to achieve advanced functionality and reporting. Customers who speak positively of Oracle say the financials module is one of the system’s strongest areas, and they appreciate Oracle’s dedication to enhancing the overall product with new technology. Oracle’s HCM and supply chain management modules are noted as needing improvement, particularly around ease of use. Respondents who have been live for a long time report high satisfaction, strong ease of use, and the ability to drive outcomes for their organization.

“Oracle has regularly scheduled updates, and those are super helpful. Those updates add new functionality and keep people moving forward. Oracle seeks feedback from their clients. We have a very good strategic partnership with the vendor.” —VP

“My expectation with Oracle is that if there is a performance issue percolating, Oracle should be telling us, not us telling them. I like the idea of more proactive monitoring of a customer’s instance in the cloud and all the things that have to be green in order for the user experience to be a good one. Oracle needs to do a better job understanding that and monitoring things without being asked to.” —VP

Representing a mix of on-premises and cloud-based customers, the limited number of SAP respondents share that the solution helps drive desired outcomes, like improved visibility and accuracy. The solution is not specific to healthcare and is said to require many resources and be difficult to use sometimes. Also, feedback around integration is mixed. While respondents say the supply chain management and financials modules are reliable and work as expected, the HCM module falls short of expectations. Some respondents who are using the on-premises solution are excited to move to the cloud-based solution, which they believe has better functionality. Others would like to move away from SAP altogether, mentioning that there are better options in the market. Because SAP is in the process of migrating all ERP customers to their cloud-based solution, SAP S/4HANA, it remains to be seen whether the solution will compete with other cloud-based ERP solutions.

“We are now able to track what materials we have in the system. There is transparency about how the materials are being used. We never really had that before. Users are impressed by the fact that they now can actually see their total inventory with SAP ERP. They can actually know what the dollars sitting on their balance sheet represent because they are being recorded accurately in SAP ERP. The great thing is that the inventory module is fully integrated with the procurement system. From that standpoint, we are able to automate the replenishment of the inventory. The system creates an automatic requisition that the materials management team actually approves. Once it is approved, it goes straight out and is sent to the materials vendor. There is no more calling a buyer to ask for more things.” —VP

“If I were buying an ERP system again, I might choose SAP ERP, but the decision would not be a slam dunk; I don’t know whether the product would win or not. SAP ERP has a generalized supply chain model that we have had to make work for us. I don’t rate the product super low because it works, but it is not optimized, and there is no healthcare-specific functionality. I wonder whether we would be more comfortable if we had another vendor’s product.” —VP

Workday is highlighted for their proactive guidance and strong communication, both around meeting customer needs and sharing future plans. Across all three ERP pillars, respondents report strong overall product functionality and usability. Customer adoption of the supply chain management module is lower compared to adoption among other vendors’ customer bases. Over the last few years, newer customers have reported greater dissatisfaction with the implementation and training experience. Specifically, these respondents say a few of Workday’s approved implementation partners lack expertise and an understanding of best practices. Regardless, Workday customers consistently report they are highly likely to recommend the system to others, especially compared to other vendors’ customers.

“Generally, the Workday employees I have dealt with over the years have been high-caliber, service-oriented people. I have yet to meet a jerk who is a Workday employee. That speaks a lot to the vendor’s culture. Their customer service responsiveness over production issues is very timely and very proactive, and that is really helpful and great. The Workday employees generally follow through and circle back with communications, so they are very professional. Workday is a well-run organization with good people who strive to understand what the customer needs and wants rather than just trying to sell something and shove it down our throat. They are really good about that.” —VP

“Workday showed up strong during the RFP presentations, so we went with their product. However, Workday required us to have an implementation partner. Workday did not have a lot of guidance or oversight for their implementation partners. The vendor didn’t actually make sure that those people were qualified. The people that were guiding us, especially with making decisions, did not have an understanding of what would be considered best practices. We ended up with a system that is really challenging for us.”  —CIO