Oracle vs. SAP: Who Has the Better ERP Apps Strategy?

Forrester Research last stacked up the application strategies of ERP heavyweights SAP and Oracle in 2006. Back then, Forrester analysts noted that both business apps vendors had just launched new architectures for a new generation of service-oriented and flexible enterprise applications.

SAP's star, in their opinion, was shining much brighter than Oracle's at the time. "SAP was riding high, having kicked into high gear its transition to applications based on the NetWeaver platform," according to Forrester, "while Oracle was still digesting PeopleSoft and figuring out exactly what its Oracle Fusion Applications were to become." (See Oracle Fusion Applications: Is 2010 Delivery Too Little, Too Late, or Smart Strategy? for an in-depth look at Fusion in 2008.)

The clear victor of the "battle of the architectures," as Forrester termed it, was SAP: It had a larger market presence in applications than Oracle did, plus faster growth. SAP had been able to capitalize on Oracle uncertainty, and it was able to articulate a clearer vision for enterprise applications, the Forrester analysts wrote.

Much has changed since then. Now, as 2008 comes to a close, Forrester analysts John Rymer, Paul Hamerman and Ray Wang have done another comprehensive analysis of the fierce competitors' application strategies. The report, "Which Has The Better Apps Strategy: Oracle Or SAP?", compares the merits of Oracle's next-generation applications play-Fusion Applications-with SAP's inclusive strategy that seeks to minimize disruptions to large organizations.

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