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The Transformation of JD Edwards Applications
August 2008

David Andrews, President
Lee Kroon, Senior Industry Analyst




                                                                                    Introduction
Introduction .................................................................. 1
Executive Summary ..................................................... 2
Oracle’s Commitment to JD Edwards Applications ... 3                                After enduring years of uncertainty about their
                                                                                    future, JD Edwards applications are here to stay!
The Evolution of JD Edwards Applications................ 5
                                                                                    While they were never truly gone, there were times
Why Companies Should Consider JD Edwards
                                                                                    when users of Oracle JD Edwards EnterpriseOne
  Applications Today ................................................ 8
                                                                                    and World were concerned that their applications
Andrews Consulting Group ....................................... 11                 would eventually be phased out in favor of Oracle’s
                                                                                    next-generation Fusion Applications. In both its
                                                                                    statements and actions, however, Oracle made it clear
                                                                                    that it will support and enhance both EnterpriseOne
                                                                                    and World indefinitely. Both product lines will
                                                                                    coexist with Fusion Applications and remain strate-
                                                                                    gic to Oracle for years to come. This paper examines
                                                                                    Oracle’s strategy and explains why JD Edwards
                                                                                    applications remain viable and strategic solutions for
                                                                                    companies that are considering their software options.
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© Copyright Andrews Consulting Group, Inc. 2008

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August 2008
The Transformation of JD Edwards Applications




Executive Summary

When Oracle acquired PeopleSoft and its JD Edwards         • JD Edwards applications will remain an important
applications in late 2004, most industry observers           force in the enterprise application market for years
predicted that the applications would play short-            to come
lived, minimal roles in Oracle’s product portfolio.
Since then, exactly the opposite has happened—JD           There are many reasons why companies should once
Edwards applications are enjoying a renaissance. In        again consider long-term investments in JD Edwards
a series of surprising moves, Oracle has:                  applications. The solutions have the following attri-
• Retained virtually all of the original JD Edwards        butes that make them excellent fits for the require-
   development and support staff                           ments of many organizations:
• Delivered major upgrades to both the EnterpriseOne       • While the applications are robust, their functions
   and World product lines                                   are integrated in ways that make them easier to
• Committed itself to enhancing the solutions for            use than other packages
   many years to come                                      • They meet the unique requirements of companies
• Launched a campaign to stimulate new sales                 in many vertical industries
                                                           • Both products are easy to deploy and manage
Oracle’s unequivocal support for JD Edwards applica-         compared to competitive offerings, so they require
tions was confirmed in April 2006 when the company            fewer IT resources over time
announced Applications Unlimited, its pledge to sup-       • Because of their integration and ease of use, JD
port and enhance its major application product lines         Edwards applications have some of the lowest
long after the arrival of its new Fusion Applications.       costs of ownership of any solutions in their class
As part of this strategy, Oracle will give EnterpriseOne   • Both applications will support SOAs with consider-
and World many of the same capabilities as its Fusion        ably less risk than the next-generation products
Applications, including technologies to support service-     that many software vendors are developing
oriented architectures (SOAs). By supporting SOAs,         • Should EnterpriseOne and World customers wish
JD Edwards products will remain competitive with             to do so, they can exchange their existing applica-
next-generation applications that feature service            tions for Oracle Fusion Applications on a “like for
orientation as a central benefit.                             like” basis at no extra charge as long as their soft-
                                                             ware remains on maintenance
Taken together, Oracle’s actions have enormous
implications for both existing and prospective JD          When one considers the strengths of JD Edwards
Edwards customers. These actions confirm that:              applications along with Oracle’s ambitious plans
• Oracle has elevated JD Edwards applications to           for the products, the conclusion becomes clear.
  strategic positions in its product portfolio             EnterpriseOne and World have experienced a power-
• Fusion Applications will not replace EnterpriseOne       ful, positive transformation. As a result, Andrews
  or World, but will only be offered as an optional        Consulting Group recommends that prospective
  upgrade path                                             customers put the applications on their short lists
• Oracle will not require JD Edwards users to switch       for serious consideration. We also recommend that
  to its middleware or database products                   existing users consider deploying upgrades and add-
• Upgrading to the latest EnterpriseOne and World          ing new modules. The cloud of uncertainty that once
  releases once again makes sense                          loomed over JD Edwards applications is now gone.




2                                                                             © Andrews Consulting Group 2008
August 2008
The Transformation of JD Edwards Applications




Oracle’s Commitment to JD Edwards Applications

Ever since Oracle acquired JD Edwards in 2005,                         many of the advanced technologies being developed
its commitment to the product line has steadily                        by the Fusion Applications team. As such, JD Edwards
increased. In its first meetings with customers,                       applications are just as much a part of Oracle’s future
Oracle assured them that it would support their                        product portfolio as its Fusion Applications.
applications through at least 2013. At the time,
though, it left open the possibility that it would cease               Oracle’s increased commitment to JD Edwards
to enhance EnterpriseOne and World once it shipped                     applications stunned many industry observers who
its next-generation Fusion Applications. Oracle also                   had predicted that the vendor would merge its mul-
indicated that it would strongly encourage JD Edwards                  tiple product lines into Fusion Applications. Despite
users to move to Fusion Applications by 2013. This                     their miscalculation, Oracle’s strategy is not an
led many customers to conclude that the software                       abrupt change in direction, nor is it a policy that the
vendor would eventually reduce its investment in                       company will reverse. That is because Oracle’s com-
their applications.                                                    mitment to JD Edwards is grounded in its assessment
                                                                       of what it must do to be a leader in the enterprise
In 2006, however, Oracle surprised its customers                       applications market.
and the IT industry by announcing its Applications
Unlimited strategy. As part of Applications Unlimited,                 Oracle has decided that if it is to compete effectively
Oracle declared JD Edwards EnterpriseOne and                           with SAP and Microsoft—its biggest rivals—it must
World to be strategic solutions that it will enhance                   retain nearly all of the customers it gains through its
and market indefinitely. As a result, no plans exist                    numerous acquisitions and craft an appealing strat-
to freeze product development or pressure users into                   egy for prospective users. This has led it to develop
switching over to Fusion Applications. New releases                    a “retention and recruitment” strategy that includes
will continue to arrive that will increasingly include                 the following principles:


    Oracle’s Applications Unlimited Strategy
    Oracle’s plans for JD Edwards products are part of a broader      Applications, but also by its current products. If it achieves its
    strategy known as Applications Unlimited. Under the strategy,     objective, Oracle’s multiple product lines will be able to invoke
    Oracle will support and enhance its JD Edwards, E-Business        a common body of web services—which will include robust
    Suite, PeopleSoft, and Siebel product lines indefinitely. The      vertical industry functionality—via a common set of open
    vendor will develop new releases of these products and            standards. This could significantly expand their capabilities
    continue to certify them on the latest releases of third-party    while enabling tighter integration between product lines.
    products that support them. For instance, Oracle will continue
                                                                      Surprisingly, industry observers and customers have not
    to certify EnterpriseOne and World on new releases of IBM’s
                                                                      understood this aspect of Oracle’s strategy. Applications
    DB2 database and WebSphere middleware.
                                                                      Unlimited is not just about removing limits to Oracle’s sup-
    As part of Applications Unlimited, Oracle will incorporate        port for its existing product lines. It is also about removing
    technologies from its Fusion Applications—including sup-          the architectural and functional limits on those applications
    port for service-oriented architectures—into all of its current   so that they can support the expanding requirements of
                                                                      their users. 
    applications. The vendor’s long-term goal is to create a
    body of web services that can be used not only by Fusion




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August 2008
The Transformation of JD Edwards Applications



• Assemble a critical mass of enterprise applications    sudden change of direction for the vendor. Instead,
  that meet the requirements of the industries that      it was an extension of the logic that led it to seek a
  Oracle is targeting                                    leadership position in the enterprise applications
• Continue to support and enhance the acquired           market and purchase dozens of software vendors.
  applications to retain their user bases                Key elements of the Oracle line of thinking include:
• Gradually incorporate support within all applica-
  tions for a common body of open industry standards,    • EnterpriseOne and World occupy a special place
  middleware, and development tools that enable the        in the market that no other applications can eas-
  products to support the service-oriented architec-       ily fill. Their combination of robust functionality,
  ture (SOA) computing paradigm                            affordability, and ease of use particularly suit them
• At the same time, create a next-generation prod-         for medium-sized companies that would otherwise
  uct—Fusion Applications—that is designed from            take less interest in Oracle’s applications.
  the ground up with the same body of standards,
  middleware, and tools                                  • The vast majority of JD Edwards customers are
• Use the same technologies to build a growing body        happy with their applications and not inclined to
  of packaged integrations between its existing appli-     make an immediate move to Fusion Applications
  cations that expand the functional capabilities of       or any competitive software.
  each product
• Offer upgrade paths from current products to Fusion    • Fusion Applications will not become replacements
  Applications, but never force users to take them         for EnterpriseOne and World. Instead, they will
• Target industry-optimized versions of its current        be offered to JD Edwards users as optional alter-
  applications at new customers in selected industries     natives to upgrading to newer versions of their
• Forge alliances with other vendors around the            existing applications.
  open standards and technologies it is incorporating
  into both its existing and next-generation products    • Oracle will enhance JD Edwards applications with
                                                           many of the technologies found in its Fusion Appli-
This strategy is transforming Oracle into one of           cations. This will make it easier for JD Edwards
the most accommodating of the major application            users to make the transition to Fusion Applica-
vendors. It provides a rationale for the company to        tions if they so choose. Ironically, such moderniza-
protect the investments of its thousands of acquired       tion will make it less likely that they will do so,
customers for years to come. It gives those customers      as users will gain many of the benefits of Fusion
considerable flexibility and choice when deciding           Applications without having to deploy them.
whether to upgrade existing software or deploy new
products. The strategy also allows Oracle to target      In April 2008, the authors of this paper personally
different configurations of its multiple product lines    asked Oracle President Charles Phillips to confirm
at specific industries. Indeed, Oracle has decided that   the company’s stance on JD Edwards and Fusion
its JD Edwards applications will play strategic roles    Applications. His answer was clear and unequivocal.
among companies in a number of vertical industries.      It does not matter to Oracle whether its customers
                                                         stick with their current software or migrate at some
What Oracle’s Actions Mean for                           future point to Fusion Applications because the net
JD Edwards Customers                                     effect will be the same. Customers that use Applica-
As the paragraphs above demonstrate, Oracle’s
                                                         tions Unlimited products such as JD Edwards will be
expanded commitment to JD Edwards was not a
                                                         able either to take advantage of Fusion technologies




4                                                                           © Andrews Consulting Group 2008
August 2008
The Transformation of JD Edwards Applications



within new releases of their existing applications or   has a history of actively supporting and enhancing
deploy those technologies via Fusion Applications.      the products that it acquires. To this day, for instance,
Phillips also indicated that Oracle will be satisfied    Oracle continues to support the Rdb database that it
even if sales of Fusion Applications to existing cus-   acquired from Digital Equipment Corporation in 1994.
tomers turn out to be very limited. The real test of
success will be the degree to which the innovations     Taken together, Oracle’s actions add up to one simple
coming out of Fusion projects work their way into the   conclusion: JD Edwards applications have experi-
application portfolios of customers.                    enced a transformation. They now occupy strategic
                                                        positions in Oracle’s product portfolio. Both existing
Oracle’s highly accommodating strategy represents       and prospective customers can expect a steady
the only practical way for the company to maintain      stream of enhancements to the applications for years
the loyalty of JD Edwards users and convince them       to come. This makes it safe for existing users to
to stay on support contracts. Besides, Oracle has the   deploy upgrades and add new modules. It also makes
financial strength and scale needed to support and       it safe for prospective new customers to put JD
enhance JD Edwards applications. The company also       Edwards on their short lists for evaluation.




The Evolution of JD Edwards Applications

Oracle has introduced significant enhancements to        Tools 8.97, a release that brought native web services
both EnterpriseOne and World since it acquired JD       capabilities to EnterpriseOne. The release also deliv-
Edwards, and ongoing enhancements are in plan.          ered a new administrative interface that streamlined
The vendor shipped EnterpriseOne 8.12 in April          the management of EnterpriseOne servers.
2006, a release that includes extensive enhance-
ments to the applications that manage supply chains,    In addition, Oracle has introduced consoles that provide
customer relationships, and human capital. The          EnterpriseOne users with real-time information
supply chain applications, for instance, include new    about the status of their operations. For instance,
modules for the operational sourcing of commodities     the Plant Manager’s Dashboard provides users with
and the management of growers that supply food and      real-time metrics on manufacturing performance,
beverage manufacturers.                                 customer shipments, supplier performance, inven-
                                                        tory, and other operational data. The Financial Man-
At the same time that EnterpriseOne 8.12 shipped,       agement and Compliance Console provides access to
Oracle also released EnterpriseOne Tools 8.96. The      metrics such as cash flow, liquidity ratios, actual vs.
new release significantly expanded the ability of        plan, profitability ratios, and accounts payable/receiv-
EnterpriseOne to work with Oracle Fusion Middleware.    able. These consoles are supported on EnterpriseOne
It also improved the usability and performance of       8.11 and 8.12. Additional consoles will continue to be
EnterpriseOne’s browser-based user interfaces. In       added over time.
November 2007, Oracle announced EnterpriseOne




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August 2008
The Transformation of JD Edwards Applications



Oracle has also committed to integrate additional                    on improving the user experience while reducing
web services and other Internet technologies into                    the cost of deploying and managing the applications.
EnterpriseOne. The company has certified that                         According to the company’s statement of direction,
EnterpriseOne web services can interoperate with                     EnterpriseOne 9.0 will include more extensive use of
services from its E-Business Suite and Peoplesoft                    web services. These services will improve integration
products. This allows organizations to take functions                levels not only with current versions of Oracle’s
from all three of these application suites and inte-                 E-Business Suite and Peoplesoft applications, but
grate them with each other in the support of business                also with other applications that Oracle has acquired
processes. Users can orchestrate how web services                    over the last several years such as Demantra, G-Log,
from all three products work together using Oracle’s                 and Siebel. In addition, EnterpriseOne 9.0 will likely
BPEL (Business Process Execution Language) Process                   be able to integrate with the first generation of Fusion
Manager and IBM’s WebSphere Process Server.                          Applications. This will enable EnterpriseOne 9.0 and
                                                                     subsequent releases to act as platforms for service-
As for the future, Oracle intends to ship a new ver-                 oriented architectures.
sion of the product, EnterpriseOne 9.0, by the end
of 2008. At the same time, Oracle intends to ship                    Besides investing in EnterpriseOne, Oracle is also
EnterpriseOne Tools 8.98, a release that will focus                  committed to enhancing JD Edwards World for the




     What is a Service-Oriented Architecture?
    Service-oriented architecture (SOA) is a widely used name        including the Internet. For this reason, they are often called
    for an innovative set of ideas about how software should be      web services.
    designed and deployed. For decades, nearly all software
                                                                     As companies replace their existing applications with ones
    has been constructed as modules made up of thousands or
                                                                     based on SOA concepts, many of the challenges they
    even millions of lines of code. Most software products were
                                                                     face with their existing applications will likely become less
    designed to communicate with other products via interfaces
                                                                     troublesome. When they need to upgrade an application,
    that were proprietary to each software vendor. Because of
                                                                     they may only have to replace a handful of the services it
    their enormous size and monolithic design, most enterprise
                                                                     uses instead of replacing the entire code base. Integration
    applications are difficult to modify and expensive to upgrade.
                                                                     between applications will become a simpler and more error-
    Moreover, their proprietary interfaces make it hard for compa-
                                                                     free process. Adding new functions may be as simple as
    nies to integrate their IT systems or get them to communicate
                                                                     subscribing to new services that are offered by dozens of
    with those of their business partners.
                                                                     vendors via the Internet.
    The proponents of SOA seek to overcome these and
                                                                     In short, applications based on SOA designs could make
    other problems by gradually transforming large, monolithic
                                                                     enterprise applications less expensive to maintain. They
    applications into collections of smaller and more manageable
                                                                     could increase the flexibility of IT systems and thereby make
    services. Each service performs a discrete function—such as
                                                                     the businesses they support more agile and responsive. That
    providing a credit rating when given a customer’s name—in
                                                                     said, switching from today’s monolithic applications to SOA-
    a way that is predictable and understandable to the other
                                                                     enabled ones will be a long and challenging process for most
    services. In addition, each service communicates with all
                                                                     enterprises. That is one reason why Oracle plans to incor-
    other services via open, industry-standard interfaces. This
                                                                     porate SOA into JD Edwards applications in an incremental
    makes it easy for services created by different vendors
                                                                     manner that makes the transition easier for users. 
    to communicate with each other. Moreover, the services
    can communicate with each other across any network,




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August 2008
The Transformation of JD Edwards Applications



long term. In 2007, the company shipped World A9.1,       At present, Oracle is building AIA compliance into
a new version of the product that combines the code       both EnterpriseOne 8.12 and World A9.1 by certifying
bases and advantages of World A7.3 and A8.1. In           the applications on its Fusion Middleware products
addition, World A9.1 utilizes an architecture that        and development tools. This could make it much
lets it participate in SOAs. The new World version        easier for JD Edwards users to add new functionality
is “front ended” with Java-based interfaces through       to their current applications. For instance, an Enter-
which it can interoperate with web services from          priseOne 8.12 customer might be able to use a service
other software, including Fusion Applications.            for maximizing the space in shipping containers that
                                                          originally came from a G-Log application, or a service
Besides incorporating SOA capabilities, World A9.1        for calculating optimal prices for retail products that
includes enhancements in areas such as service and        came from a Retek offering. These services could
warranty management, payroll, and integration with        be invoked by and integrated with the JD Edwards
spreadsheet applications such as Microsoft Excel.         applications using industry-standard middleware
The new release also includes enhanced support for        from Oracle, IBM, or possibly other vendors.
managing compliance programs, a new web-based
documentation system, and tools that make it easier       In short, JD Edwards applications have a promis-
for users to upgrade to World A9.1.                       ing future ahead of them. Oracle plans not only to
                                                          enhance them through new releases, but also to give
In a further sign of its commitment to JD Edwards,        them access to a large body of web services. Because
Oracle has told users that it will continue to ship       their applications will be SOA-enabled, JD Edwards
new releases of both EnterpriseOne and World.             users may not have to go through as many time-
Moreover, the company plans to release additional         consuming upgrades to new releases to get the
enhancements between releases. In some cases, these       added functions they need. Instead, they could
enhancements will be delivered via service packs; in      enhance their applications in a more incremental
other cases, they will be web services that users can     and selective manner at a lower overall cost.
integrate into their existing applications.
                                                          Of course, the extent to which this will be possible
Over the next several years, Oracle plans to turn         will largely depend on how Oracle decides to package,
much of the “best practices” business logic in its siz-   price, and support its web services portfolio. If Oracle
able applications portfolio into a large body of web      does not get these key factors right, it will reduce
services. These services will be made available not       the benefits that users can realize. Based on what
only to Oracle’s Fusion Applications, but also to its     Oracle’s product managers are telling us, however,
existing product lines. To enable its applications to     we believe that the company realizes the potential
consume these services, Oracle is working to make all     benefits of its SOA strategy and wants to leverage
of its products comply with its Application Integra-      those benefits in the software market. If it does, it
tion Architecture (AIA). This body of technologies and    could significantly expand the flexibility and poten-
industry standards dictates how business processes        tial value of both EnterpriseOne and World.
are packaged as web services and made available to
Oracle applications.




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August 2008
The Transformation of JD Edwards Applications




Why Companies Should Consider JD Edwards Applications Today

                                                           to streamline the deployment process. In the case
While Oracle has made it clear that its JD Edwards
                                                           of EnterpriseOne, for instance, the company offers
applications will remain strategic solutions, indi-
                                                           Oracle Accelerate packages that simplify deploy-
vidual companies still must determine if the offerings
                                                           ments by providing preconfigured applications,
are good fits for their needs. After helping dozens
                                                           recommended hardware configurations, integrated
of companies to select and deploy ERP applica-
                                                           middleware, and installation and user training
tions, Andrews Consulting Group has found that
                                                           aids. A similar offering known as World Express
EnterpriseOne and World have unique attributes
                                                           is available for World users. Oracle also provides
that make them good fits for a number of companies.
                                                           its partners with tools that let them create their
Organizations that value the following attributes
                                                           own Accelerate configurations to meet the needs of
often find that JD Edwards applications are the best
                                                           specific industries and countries.
solutions for them.

• Integration and breadth of capability. The
                                                         Figure 1: Vertical industries supported by
  modules within EnterpriseOne and World are                       JD Edwards applications
  tightly integrated in ways that make them easier
  to understand and use than other comparable               Industries                        EnterpriseOne   World
  packages. This combination of deep functionality
                                                                                                   
                                                            Aerospace & Defense
  and simplicity may be the most important reason
                                                                                                   
  for their long-term success.                              Automotive
                                                                                                              
                                                            Chemicals & Lubricants
• Industry focus. The most successful enterprise                                                   
                                                            Communications
  software has always majored in meeting the
                                                                                                             
                                                            Engineering & Construction
  unique needs of specific industries. As Figure 1
                                                                                                             
                                                            Consumer Products
  shows, JD Edwards applications have the strongest
  vertical industry functionality in the manufactur-                                               
                                                            Financial Services
  ing, distribution, and asset-intensive sectors as                                                
                                                            High Technology
  well as in the construction and property manage-                                                           
                                                            Industrial Manufacturing
  ment fields. Companies in these industries often
                                                                                                             
                                                            Life Sciences
  find that JD Edwards applications provide superior
                                                                                                   
                                                            Media & Entertainment
  support for their unique business processes.
                                                                                                             
                                                            Natural Resources
• Ease of deployment. While JD Edwards applica-                                                              
                                                            Oil & Gas
  tions provide robust support for industry business
                                                                                                   
                                                            Professional Services
  processes, they do so in ways that make them eas-
                                                                                                             
                                                            Public Sector
  ier to deploy than many comparable applications.
                                                                                                             
  In the industries that JD Edwards applications            Retail & Wholesale Distribution
  serve, many companies find that the applications                                                  
                                                            Travel & Transportation
  can be deployed “as is” with limited need for cus-                                               
                                                            Utilities
  tomization. In addition, Oracle has done much




8                                                                                © Andrews Consulting Group 2008
August 2008
The Transformation of JD Edwards Applications



• Ease of management. Once JD Edwards applica-              eastern United States—deployed EnterpriseOne
  tions are deployed, they frequently cost less to          shortly before a European firm acquired it. Since
  manage than competitive alternatives. In par-             the parent company used SAP R/3, our client
  ticular, World applications are renowned for their        had to deploy it as well. Though the two applica-
  low cost of operations. This is because World was         tions were functionally equivalent, it took our
  designed as a tightly integrated set of applications      client twice as long to implement R/3 as it took to
  that run entirely on the IBM i operating system.          deploy EnterpriseOne.

    By contrast, EnterpriseOne can be deployed on         • Supports SOAs with less risk. Over the next
    multiple servers, operating systems, and middle-        several years, applications that are based on
    ware platforms. It can also be accessed by a wider      service-oriented architectures have the potential
    variety of client devices than World. While it          to help companies become more responsive and
    usually requires more management resources              flexible while reducing the cost of their IT sys-
    than World, EnterpriseOne costs less to support         tems. As this report has already discussed, current
    than most of its competitors. One advantage of          releases of EnterpriseOne already have many SOA
    EnterpriseOne is an architecture that allows users      capabilities. Moreover, Oracle is incorporating
    to access all applications via web browsers instead     SOA technologies from its Fusion Applications into
    of Windows clients. Unlike traditional Windows          EnterpriseOne and World. However, Oracle is not
    clients, browsers do not need to be updated when        rearchitecting JD Edwards applications to support
    the applications that they access are changed.          SOAs; instead, it is modifying them “at the mar-
    Compared to Windows clients, browsers are also          gins” in a gradual and incremental fashion. This
    much easier for most employees to use with mini-        could be an advantage for their users, as deploying
    mal assistance. This allows browser-based clients       SOAs on established applications will likely be less
    to reduce costs for PC administration, help desk        risky than doing so on the next-generation applica-
    support, and user training.                             tions that many vendors are developing.

• Low overall cost of ownership. Because of their         • Supported by both Oracle and IBM. The two
  ease of deployment and use, JD Edwards appli-             vendors have agreed that the JD Edwards com-
  cations often enable companies to support their           munity is critical to sales of their respective prod-
  business processes at a lower cost than competi-          ucts. As such, they are working together not only
  tive products. We base this conclusion on our own         to support JD Edwards applications, but also to
  experience with clients as well as on formal stud-        enhance them indefinitely. This puts two of the
  ies. For instance, a study by International Technol-      world’s largest software vendors squarely behind
  ogy Group estimates that the cost to deploy and           EnterpriseOne and World.
  manage World applications on IBM i over three
  years is 32 to 44 percent less than the cost for        As the above paragraphs make clear, JD Edwards
  similar Windows-based applications.                     applications not only have a proven track record,
                                                          but also have a promising future ahead of them.
    As for EnterpriseOne, our experience with clients     For companies in the industries that they serve,
    indicates that the product has a markedly lower       they combine robust functionality with low costs of
    cost of ownership than alternatives such as those     ownership and the assurance that they will be sup-
    from SAP. In many cases, SAP applications take        ported and enhanced for many years to come. This
    considerably longer to install and require more       is why we recommend EnterpriseOne and World to
    staff to deploy than EnterpriseOne does. One          our clients as sound investments that they should
    of our clients—a chemical manufacturer in the         carefully consider. 




9                                                                             © Andrews Consulting Group 2008
Andrews Consulting Group
Andrews Consulting Group (ACG) has been helping organizations make effective use of information technology since 1984.
Few IT service businesses have achieved as high a level of client satisfaction over an extended period of time as ACG. This
success is the result of ACG’s commitment to their clients’ success coupled with an experienced staff of consultants who pos-
sess real-world experience as well as multidisciplinary technical skills.

JD Edwards software has been an important area of focus for ACG for over ten years. More than one hundred organizations
have used ACG over the years to get additional value out of their JD Edwards systems. ACG is a past multiple winner of JD
Edwards Partner of the Year.

One of the most effective ways in which ACG has helped its clients, especially those who are JD Edwards customers, is in
the creation of business intelligence solutions. Numerous JD Edwards customers have business intelligence solutions de-
signed and installed by ACG. This experience allows ACG to implement sophisticated, but cost-effective BI solutions for new
customers in as few as five days, far faster than is possible using any other approach.

The ACG Technology Services practice provides experienced architects, designers, developers, and technical support person-
nel to offer a complete IT solution to our clients. ACG has successfully provided numerous Web-based solutions that inte-
grate with JD Edwards EnterpriseOne and World.

Andrews Consulting Group has been publishing white papers since 1987 when we were the first ones to accurately describe
IBM’s plans for introduction of the AS/400 (known by the code name Silverlake at the time). Since then, ACG has published
over 50 industry reports with a total circulation of over a million copies.


 David Andrews founded Andrews Consulting Group in 1984 after 17 years managing the implementation of advanced
 IT systems. He is the author of the book Revolutionizing IT (John Wiley and Sons, September 2002) and has participated
 in the creation of more than 40 white papers. He has made presentations to audiences in 17 countries about the effective
 use of IT within mid-sized organizations and has been widely quoted in trade journals and the business press. He can be
 contacted at dandrews@andrewscg.com.

 Lee Kroon has been a Senior Industry Analyst for Andrews Consulting Group since joining the firm in 1998. He has over
 30 years of experience in the IT industry and has been studying mid-sized companies, IBM, and the ERP market since
 1986. Lee’s name will be familiar to many in the JD Edwards user community as the author of more than 1,000 articles
 for professional journals and industry publications. His regular columns for MC Press Online are very popular among
 those interested in the IBM System i and the software packages, such as JD Edwards, that run on it. He welcomes your
 comments at lkroon@andrewscg.com.

 Additional information can be obtained by visiting the company’s websites, www.andrewscg.com and
 www.rapiddecision.net or calling 800.775.4261.




The preceding document is intended to outline Oracle Corporation’s general product direction. It is intended for information
purposes only and may not be incorporated into any contract. It is not a commitment to deliver any material, code, or other
functionality, and should not be relied upon in making purchasing decisions. The development, release, and timing of any
features or functionality described for Oracle’s products remains at the sole discretion of Oracle.

This report was written by Andrews Consulting Group based on information provided to it by Oracle Corporation and other
sources. The assessments and opinions contained in this report are the independent conclusions of Andrews Consulting
Group. Oracle Corporation did not sponsor or underwrite the report, nor did it have control over its contents.
Want more information about JD Edwards applications?
      Get the latest news, analyses,and tips at
         The JD Edwards Advisor,
           a website for JD Edwards users
          from Andrews Consulting Group.

       www.JDEdwardsAdvisor.com

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The Transformation Of Jde 08 2008 Oracle

  • 1. The Transformation of JD Edwards Applications August 2008 David Andrews, President Lee Kroon, Senior Industry Analyst Introduction Introduction .................................................................. 1 Executive Summary ..................................................... 2 Oracle’s Commitment to JD Edwards Applications ... 3 After enduring years of uncertainty about their future, JD Edwards applications are here to stay! The Evolution of JD Edwards Applications................ 5 While they were never truly gone, there were times Why Companies Should Consider JD Edwards when users of Oracle JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Applications Today ................................................ 8 and World were concerned that their applications Andrews Consulting Group ....................................... 11 would eventually be phased out in favor of Oracle’s next-generation Fusion Applications. In both its statements and actions, however, Oracle made it clear that it will support and enhance both EnterpriseOne and World indefinitely. Both product lines will coexist with Fusion Applications and remain strate- gic to Oracle for years to come. This paper examines Oracle’s strategy and explains why JD Edwards applications remain viable and strategic solutions for companies that are considering their software options. 700 West Johnson Avenue Cheshire, CT 06410 203-271-1300 www.andrewscg.com © Copyright Andrews Consulting Group, Inc. 2008 All trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
  • 2. August 2008 The Transformation of JD Edwards Applications Executive Summary When Oracle acquired PeopleSoft and its JD Edwards • JD Edwards applications will remain an important applications in late 2004, most industry observers force in the enterprise application market for years predicted that the applications would play short- to come lived, minimal roles in Oracle’s product portfolio. Since then, exactly the opposite has happened—JD There are many reasons why companies should once Edwards applications are enjoying a renaissance. In again consider long-term investments in JD Edwards a series of surprising moves, Oracle has: applications. The solutions have the following attri- • Retained virtually all of the original JD Edwards butes that make them excellent fits for the require- development and support staff ments of many organizations: • Delivered major upgrades to both the EnterpriseOne • While the applications are robust, their functions and World product lines are integrated in ways that make them easier to • Committed itself to enhancing the solutions for use than other packages many years to come • They meet the unique requirements of companies • Launched a campaign to stimulate new sales in many vertical industries • Both products are easy to deploy and manage Oracle’s unequivocal support for JD Edwards applica- compared to competitive offerings, so they require tions was confirmed in April 2006 when the company fewer IT resources over time announced Applications Unlimited, its pledge to sup- • Because of their integration and ease of use, JD port and enhance its major application product lines Edwards applications have some of the lowest long after the arrival of its new Fusion Applications. costs of ownership of any solutions in their class As part of this strategy, Oracle will give EnterpriseOne • Both applications will support SOAs with consider- and World many of the same capabilities as its Fusion ably less risk than the next-generation products Applications, including technologies to support service- that many software vendors are developing oriented architectures (SOAs). By supporting SOAs, • Should EnterpriseOne and World customers wish JD Edwards products will remain competitive with to do so, they can exchange their existing applica- next-generation applications that feature service tions for Oracle Fusion Applications on a “like for orientation as a central benefit. like” basis at no extra charge as long as their soft- ware remains on maintenance Taken together, Oracle’s actions have enormous implications for both existing and prospective JD When one considers the strengths of JD Edwards Edwards customers. These actions confirm that: applications along with Oracle’s ambitious plans • Oracle has elevated JD Edwards applications to for the products, the conclusion becomes clear. strategic positions in its product portfolio EnterpriseOne and World have experienced a power- • Fusion Applications will not replace EnterpriseOne ful, positive transformation. As a result, Andrews or World, but will only be offered as an optional Consulting Group recommends that prospective upgrade path customers put the applications on their short lists • Oracle will not require JD Edwards users to switch for serious consideration. We also recommend that to its middleware or database products existing users consider deploying upgrades and add- • Upgrading to the latest EnterpriseOne and World ing new modules. The cloud of uncertainty that once releases once again makes sense loomed over JD Edwards applications is now gone. 2 © Andrews Consulting Group 2008
  • 3. August 2008 The Transformation of JD Edwards Applications Oracle’s Commitment to JD Edwards Applications Ever since Oracle acquired JD Edwards in 2005, many of the advanced technologies being developed its commitment to the product line has steadily by the Fusion Applications team. As such, JD Edwards increased. In its first meetings with customers, applications are just as much a part of Oracle’s future Oracle assured them that it would support their product portfolio as its Fusion Applications. applications through at least 2013. At the time, though, it left open the possibility that it would cease Oracle’s increased commitment to JD Edwards to enhance EnterpriseOne and World once it shipped applications stunned many industry observers who its next-generation Fusion Applications. Oracle also had predicted that the vendor would merge its mul- indicated that it would strongly encourage JD Edwards tiple product lines into Fusion Applications. Despite users to move to Fusion Applications by 2013. This their miscalculation, Oracle’s strategy is not an led many customers to conclude that the software abrupt change in direction, nor is it a policy that the vendor would eventually reduce its investment in company will reverse. That is because Oracle’s com- their applications. mitment to JD Edwards is grounded in its assessment of what it must do to be a leader in the enterprise In 2006, however, Oracle surprised its customers applications market. and the IT industry by announcing its Applications Unlimited strategy. As part of Applications Unlimited, Oracle has decided that if it is to compete effectively Oracle declared JD Edwards EnterpriseOne and with SAP and Microsoft—its biggest rivals—it must World to be strategic solutions that it will enhance retain nearly all of the customers it gains through its and market indefinitely. As a result, no plans exist numerous acquisitions and craft an appealing strat- to freeze product development or pressure users into egy for prospective users. This has led it to develop switching over to Fusion Applications. New releases a “retention and recruitment” strategy that includes will continue to arrive that will increasingly include the following principles: Oracle’s Applications Unlimited Strategy Oracle’s plans for JD Edwards products are part of a broader Applications, but also by its current products. If it achieves its strategy known as Applications Unlimited. Under the strategy, objective, Oracle’s multiple product lines will be able to invoke Oracle will support and enhance its JD Edwards, E-Business a common body of web services—which will include robust Suite, PeopleSoft, and Siebel product lines indefinitely. The vertical industry functionality—via a common set of open vendor will develop new releases of these products and standards. This could significantly expand their capabilities continue to certify them on the latest releases of third-party while enabling tighter integration between product lines. products that support them. For instance, Oracle will continue Surprisingly, industry observers and customers have not to certify EnterpriseOne and World on new releases of IBM’s understood this aspect of Oracle’s strategy. Applications DB2 database and WebSphere middleware. Unlimited is not just about removing limits to Oracle’s sup- As part of Applications Unlimited, Oracle will incorporate port for its existing product lines. It is also about removing technologies from its Fusion Applications—including sup- the architectural and functional limits on those applications port for service-oriented architectures—into all of its current so that they can support the expanding requirements of their users.  applications. The vendor’s long-term goal is to create a body of web services that can be used not only by Fusion 3 © Andrews Consulting Group 2008
  • 4. August 2008 The Transformation of JD Edwards Applications • Assemble a critical mass of enterprise applications sudden change of direction for the vendor. Instead, that meet the requirements of the industries that it was an extension of the logic that led it to seek a Oracle is targeting leadership position in the enterprise applications • Continue to support and enhance the acquired market and purchase dozens of software vendors. applications to retain their user bases Key elements of the Oracle line of thinking include: • Gradually incorporate support within all applica- tions for a common body of open industry standards, • EnterpriseOne and World occupy a special place middleware, and development tools that enable the in the market that no other applications can eas- products to support the service-oriented architec- ily fill. Their combination of robust functionality, ture (SOA) computing paradigm affordability, and ease of use particularly suit them • At the same time, create a next-generation prod- for medium-sized companies that would otherwise uct—Fusion Applications—that is designed from take less interest in Oracle’s applications. the ground up with the same body of standards, middleware, and tools • The vast majority of JD Edwards customers are • Use the same technologies to build a growing body happy with their applications and not inclined to of packaged integrations between its existing appli- make an immediate move to Fusion Applications cations that expand the functional capabilities of or any competitive software. each product • Offer upgrade paths from current products to Fusion • Fusion Applications will not become replacements Applications, but never force users to take them for EnterpriseOne and World. Instead, they will • Target industry-optimized versions of its current be offered to JD Edwards users as optional alter- applications at new customers in selected industries natives to upgrading to newer versions of their • Forge alliances with other vendors around the existing applications. open standards and technologies it is incorporating into both its existing and next-generation products • Oracle will enhance JD Edwards applications with many of the technologies found in its Fusion Appli- This strategy is transforming Oracle into one of cations. This will make it easier for JD Edwards the most accommodating of the major application users to make the transition to Fusion Applica- vendors. It provides a rationale for the company to tions if they so choose. Ironically, such moderniza- protect the investments of its thousands of acquired tion will make it less likely that they will do so, customers for years to come. It gives those customers as users will gain many of the benefits of Fusion considerable flexibility and choice when deciding Applications without having to deploy them. whether to upgrade existing software or deploy new products. The strategy also allows Oracle to target In April 2008, the authors of this paper personally different configurations of its multiple product lines asked Oracle President Charles Phillips to confirm at specific industries. Indeed, Oracle has decided that the company’s stance on JD Edwards and Fusion its JD Edwards applications will play strategic roles Applications. His answer was clear and unequivocal. among companies in a number of vertical industries. It does not matter to Oracle whether its customers stick with their current software or migrate at some What Oracle’s Actions Mean for future point to Fusion Applications because the net JD Edwards Customers effect will be the same. Customers that use Applica- As the paragraphs above demonstrate, Oracle’s tions Unlimited products such as JD Edwards will be expanded commitment to JD Edwards was not a able either to take advantage of Fusion technologies 4 © Andrews Consulting Group 2008
  • 5. August 2008 The Transformation of JD Edwards Applications within new releases of their existing applications or has a history of actively supporting and enhancing deploy those technologies via Fusion Applications. the products that it acquires. To this day, for instance, Phillips also indicated that Oracle will be satisfied Oracle continues to support the Rdb database that it even if sales of Fusion Applications to existing cus- acquired from Digital Equipment Corporation in 1994. tomers turn out to be very limited. The real test of success will be the degree to which the innovations Taken together, Oracle’s actions add up to one simple coming out of Fusion projects work their way into the conclusion: JD Edwards applications have experi- application portfolios of customers. enced a transformation. They now occupy strategic positions in Oracle’s product portfolio. Both existing Oracle’s highly accommodating strategy represents and prospective customers can expect a steady the only practical way for the company to maintain stream of enhancements to the applications for years the loyalty of JD Edwards users and convince them to come. This makes it safe for existing users to to stay on support contracts. Besides, Oracle has the deploy upgrades and add new modules. It also makes financial strength and scale needed to support and it safe for prospective new customers to put JD enhance JD Edwards applications. The company also Edwards on their short lists for evaluation. The Evolution of JD Edwards Applications Oracle has introduced significant enhancements to Tools 8.97, a release that brought native web services both EnterpriseOne and World since it acquired JD capabilities to EnterpriseOne. The release also deliv- Edwards, and ongoing enhancements are in plan. ered a new administrative interface that streamlined The vendor shipped EnterpriseOne 8.12 in April the management of EnterpriseOne servers. 2006, a release that includes extensive enhance- ments to the applications that manage supply chains, In addition, Oracle has introduced consoles that provide customer relationships, and human capital. The EnterpriseOne users with real-time information supply chain applications, for instance, include new about the status of their operations. For instance, modules for the operational sourcing of commodities the Plant Manager’s Dashboard provides users with and the management of growers that supply food and real-time metrics on manufacturing performance, beverage manufacturers. customer shipments, supplier performance, inven- tory, and other operational data. The Financial Man- At the same time that EnterpriseOne 8.12 shipped, agement and Compliance Console provides access to Oracle also released EnterpriseOne Tools 8.96. The metrics such as cash flow, liquidity ratios, actual vs. new release significantly expanded the ability of plan, profitability ratios, and accounts payable/receiv- EnterpriseOne to work with Oracle Fusion Middleware. able. These consoles are supported on EnterpriseOne It also improved the usability and performance of 8.11 and 8.12. Additional consoles will continue to be EnterpriseOne’s browser-based user interfaces. In added over time. November 2007, Oracle announced EnterpriseOne 5 © Andrews Consulting Group 2008
  • 6. August 2008 The Transformation of JD Edwards Applications Oracle has also committed to integrate additional on improving the user experience while reducing web services and other Internet technologies into the cost of deploying and managing the applications. EnterpriseOne. The company has certified that According to the company’s statement of direction, EnterpriseOne web services can interoperate with EnterpriseOne 9.0 will include more extensive use of services from its E-Business Suite and Peoplesoft web services. These services will improve integration products. This allows organizations to take functions levels not only with current versions of Oracle’s from all three of these application suites and inte- E-Business Suite and Peoplesoft applications, but grate them with each other in the support of business also with other applications that Oracle has acquired processes. Users can orchestrate how web services over the last several years such as Demantra, G-Log, from all three products work together using Oracle’s and Siebel. In addition, EnterpriseOne 9.0 will likely BPEL (Business Process Execution Language) Process be able to integrate with the first generation of Fusion Manager and IBM’s WebSphere Process Server. Applications. This will enable EnterpriseOne 9.0 and subsequent releases to act as platforms for service- As for the future, Oracle intends to ship a new ver- oriented architectures. sion of the product, EnterpriseOne 9.0, by the end of 2008. At the same time, Oracle intends to ship Besides investing in EnterpriseOne, Oracle is also EnterpriseOne Tools 8.98, a release that will focus committed to enhancing JD Edwards World for the What is a Service-Oriented Architecture? Service-oriented architecture (SOA) is a widely used name including the Internet. For this reason, they are often called for an innovative set of ideas about how software should be web services. designed and deployed. For decades, nearly all software As companies replace their existing applications with ones has been constructed as modules made up of thousands or based on SOA concepts, many of the challenges they even millions of lines of code. Most software products were face with their existing applications will likely become less designed to communicate with other products via interfaces troublesome. When they need to upgrade an application, that were proprietary to each software vendor. Because of they may only have to replace a handful of the services it their enormous size and monolithic design, most enterprise uses instead of replacing the entire code base. Integration applications are difficult to modify and expensive to upgrade. between applications will become a simpler and more error- Moreover, their proprietary interfaces make it hard for compa- free process. Adding new functions may be as simple as nies to integrate their IT systems or get them to communicate subscribing to new services that are offered by dozens of with those of their business partners. vendors via the Internet. The proponents of SOA seek to overcome these and In short, applications based on SOA designs could make other problems by gradually transforming large, monolithic enterprise applications less expensive to maintain. They applications into collections of smaller and more manageable could increase the flexibility of IT systems and thereby make services. Each service performs a discrete function—such as the businesses they support more agile and responsive. That providing a credit rating when given a customer’s name—in said, switching from today’s monolithic applications to SOA- a way that is predictable and understandable to the other enabled ones will be a long and challenging process for most services. In addition, each service communicates with all enterprises. That is one reason why Oracle plans to incor- other services via open, industry-standard interfaces. This porate SOA into JD Edwards applications in an incremental makes it easy for services created by different vendors manner that makes the transition easier for users.  to communicate with each other. Moreover, the services can communicate with each other across any network, 6 © Andrews Consulting Group 2008
  • 7. August 2008 The Transformation of JD Edwards Applications long term. In 2007, the company shipped World A9.1, At present, Oracle is building AIA compliance into a new version of the product that combines the code both EnterpriseOne 8.12 and World A9.1 by certifying bases and advantages of World A7.3 and A8.1. In the applications on its Fusion Middleware products addition, World A9.1 utilizes an architecture that and development tools. This could make it much lets it participate in SOAs. The new World version easier for JD Edwards users to add new functionality is “front ended” with Java-based interfaces through to their current applications. For instance, an Enter- which it can interoperate with web services from priseOne 8.12 customer might be able to use a service other software, including Fusion Applications. for maximizing the space in shipping containers that originally came from a G-Log application, or a service Besides incorporating SOA capabilities, World A9.1 for calculating optimal prices for retail products that includes enhancements in areas such as service and came from a Retek offering. These services could warranty management, payroll, and integration with be invoked by and integrated with the JD Edwards spreadsheet applications such as Microsoft Excel. applications using industry-standard middleware The new release also includes enhanced support for from Oracle, IBM, or possibly other vendors. managing compliance programs, a new web-based documentation system, and tools that make it easier In short, JD Edwards applications have a promis- for users to upgrade to World A9.1. ing future ahead of them. Oracle plans not only to enhance them through new releases, but also to give In a further sign of its commitment to JD Edwards, them access to a large body of web services. Because Oracle has told users that it will continue to ship their applications will be SOA-enabled, JD Edwards new releases of both EnterpriseOne and World. users may not have to go through as many time- Moreover, the company plans to release additional consuming upgrades to new releases to get the enhancements between releases. In some cases, these added functions they need. Instead, they could enhancements will be delivered via service packs; in enhance their applications in a more incremental other cases, they will be web services that users can and selective manner at a lower overall cost. integrate into their existing applications. Of course, the extent to which this will be possible Over the next several years, Oracle plans to turn will largely depend on how Oracle decides to package, much of the “best practices” business logic in its siz- price, and support its web services portfolio. If Oracle able applications portfolio into a large body of web does not get these key factors right, it will reduce services. These services will be made available not the benefits that users can realize. Based on what only to Oracle’s Fusion Applications, but also to its Oracle’s product managers are telling us, however, existing product lines. To enable its applications to we believe that the company realizes the potential consume these services, Oracle is working to make all benefits of its SOA strategy and wants to leverage of its products comply with its Application Integra- those benefits in the software market. If it does, it tion Architecture (AIA). This body of technologies and could significantly expand the flexibility and poten- industry standards dictates how business processes tial value of both EnterpriseOne and World. are packaged as web services and made available to Oracle applications. 7 © Andrews Consulting Group 2008
  • 8. August 2008 The Transformation of JD Edwards Applications Why Companies Should Consider JD Edwards Applications Today to streamline the deployment process. In the case While Oracle has made it clear that its JD Edwards of EnterpriseOne, for instance, the company offers applications will remain strategic solutions, indi- Oracle Accelerate packages that simplify deploy- vidual companies still must determine if the offerings ments by providing preconfigured applications, are good fits for their needs. After helping dozens recommended hardware configurations, integrated of companies to select and deploy ERP applica- middleware, and installation and user training tions, Andrews Consulting Group has found that aids. A similar offering known as World Express EnterpriseOne and World have unique attributes is available for World users. Oracle also provides that make them good fits for a number of companies. its partners with tools that let them create their Organizations that value the following attributes own Accelerate configurations to meet the needs of often find that JD Edwards applications are the best specific industries and countries. solutions for them. • Integration and breadth of capability. The Figure 1: Vertical industries supported by modules within EnterpriseOne and World are JD Edwards applications tightly integrated in ways that make them easier to understand and use than other comparable Industries EnterpriseOne World packages. This combination of deep functionality  Aerospace & Defense and simplicity may be the most important reason  for their long-term success. Automotive   Chemicals & Lubricants • Industry focus. The most successful enterprise  Communications software has always majored in meeting the   Engineering & Construction unique needs of specific industries. As Figure 1   Consumer Products shows, JD Edwards applications have the strongest vertical industry functionality in the manufactur-  Financial Services ing, distribution, and asset-intensive sectors as  High Technology well as in the construction and property manage-   Industrial Manufacturing ment fields. Companies in these industries often   Life Sciences find that JD Edwards applications provide superior  Media & Entertainment support for their unique business processes.   Natural Resources • Ease of deployment. While JD Edwards applica-   Oil & Gas tions provide robust support for industry business  Professional Services processes, they do so in ways that make them eas-   Public Sector ier to deploy than many comparable applications.   In the industries that JD Edwards applications Retail & Wholesale Distribution serve, many companies find that the applications  Travel & Transportation can be deployed “as is” with limited need for cus-  Utilities tomization. In addition, Oracle has done much 8 © Andrews Consulting Group 2008
  • 9. August 2008 The Transformation of JD Edwards Applications • Ease of management. Once JD Edwards applica- eastern United States—deployed EnterpriseOne tions are deployed, they frequently cost less to shortly before a European firm acquired it. Since manage than competitive alternatives. In par- the parent company used SAP R/3, our client ticular, World applications are renowned for their had to deploy it as well. Though the two applica- low cost of operations. This is because World was tions were functionally equivalent, it took our designed as a tightly integrated set of applications client twice as long to implement R/3 as it took to that run entirely on the IBM i operating system. deploy EnterpriseOne. By contrast, EnterpriseOne can be deployed on • Supports SOAs with less risk. Over the next multiple servers, operating systems, and middle- several years, applications that are based on ware platforms. It can also be accessed by a wider service-oriented architectures have the potential variety of client devices than World. While it to help companies become more responsive and usually requires more management resources flexible while reducing the cost of their IT sys- than World, EnterpriseOne costs less to support tems. As this report has already discussed, current than most of its competitors. One advantage of releases of EnterpriseOne already have many SOA EnterpriseOne is an architecture that allows users capabilities. Moreover, Oracle is incorporating to access all applications via web browsers instead SOA technologies from its Fusion Applications into of Windows clients. Unlike traditional Windows EnterpriseOne and World. However, Oracle is not clients, browsers do not need to be updated when rearchitecting JD Edwards applications to support the applications that they access are changed. SOAs; instead, it is modifying them “at the mar- Compared to Windows clients, browsers are also gins” in a gradual and incremental fashion. This much easier for most employees to use with mini- could be an advantage for their users, as deploying mal assistance. This allows browser-based clients SOAs on established applications will likely be less to reduce costs for PC administration, help desk risky than doing so on the next-generation applica- support, and user training. tions that many vendors are developing. • Low overall cost of ownership. Because of their • Supported by both Oracle and IBM. The two ease of deployment and use, JD Edwards appli- vendors have agreed that the JD Edwards com- cations often enable companies to support their munity is critical to sales of their respective prod- business processes at a lower cost than competi- ucts. As such, they are working together not only tive products. We base this conclusion on our own to support JD Edwards applications, but also to experience with clients as well as on formal stud- enhance them indefinitely. This puts two of the ies. For instance, a study by International Technol- world’s largest software vendors squarely behind ogy Group estimates that the cost to deploy and EnterpriseOne and World. manage World applications on IBM i over three years is 32 to 44 percent less than the cost for As the above paragraphs make clear, JD Edwards similar Windows-based applications. applications not only have a proven track record, but also have a promising future ahead of them. As for EnterpriseOne, our experience with clients For companies in the industries that they serve, indicates that the product has a markedly lower they combine robust functionality with low costs of cost of ownership than alternatives such as those ownership and the assurance that they will be sup- from SAP. In many cases, SAP applications take ported and enhanced for many years to come. This considerably longer to install and require more is why we recommend EnterpriseOne and World to staff to deploy than EnterpriseOne does. One our clients as sound investments that they should of our clients—a chemical manufacturer in the carefully consider.  9 © Andrews Consulting Group 2008
  • 10. Andrews Consulting Group Andrews Consulting Group (ACG) has been helping organizations make effective use of information technology since 1984. Few IT service businesses have achieved as high a level of client satisfaction over an extended period of time as ACG. This success is the result of ACG’s commitment to their clients’ success coupled with an experienced staff of consultants who pos- sess real-world experience as well as multidisciplinary technical skills. JD Edwards software has been an important area of focus for ACG for over ten years. More than one hundred organizations have used ACG over the years to get additional value out of their JD Edwards systems. ACG is a past multiple winner of JD Edwards Partner of the Year. One of the most effective ways in which ACG has helped its clients, especially those who are JD Edwards customers, is in the creation of business intelligence solutions. Numerous JD Edwards customers have business intelligence solutions de- signed and installed by ACG. This experience allows ACG to implement sophisticated, but cost-effective BI solutions for new customers in as few as five days, far faster than is possible using any other approach. The ACG Technology Services practice provides experienced architects, designers, developers, and technical support person- nel to offer a complete IT solution to our clients. ACG has successfully provided numerous Web-based solutions that inte- grate with JD Edwards EnterpriseOne and World. Andrews Consulting Group has been publishing white papers since 1987 when we were the first ones to accurately describe IBM’s plans for introduction of the AS/400 (known by the code name Silverlake at the time). Since then, ACG has published over 50 industry reports with a total circulation of over a million copies. David Andrews founded Andrews Consulting Group in 1984 after 17 years managing the implementation of advanced IT systems. He is the author of the book Revolutionizing IT (John Wiley and Sons, September 2002) and has participated in the creation of more than 40 white papers. He has made presentations to audiences in 17 countries about the effective use of IT within mid-sized organizations and has been widely quoted in trade journals and the business press. He can be contacted at dandrews@andrewscg.com. Lee Kroon has been a Senior Industry Analyst for Andrews Consulting Group since joining the firm in 1998. He has over 30 years of experience in the IT industry and has been studying mid-sized companies, IBM, and the ERP market since 1986. Lee’s name will be familiar to many in the JD Edwards user community as the author of more than 1,000 articles for professional journals and industry publications. His regular columns for MC Press Online are very popular among those interested in the IBM System i and the software packages, such as JD Edwards, that run on it. He welcomes your comments at lkroon@andrewscg.com. Additional information can be obtained by visiting the company’s websites, www.andrewscg.com and www.rapiddecision.net or calling 800.775.4261. The preceding document is intended to outline Oracle Corporation’s general product direction. It is intended for information purposes only and may not be incorporated into any contract. It is not a commitment to deliver any material, code, or other functionality, and should not be relied upon in making purchasing decisions. The development, release, and timing of any features or functionality described for Oracle’s products remains at the sole discretion of Oracle. This report was written by Andrews Consulting Group based on information provided to it by Oracle Corporation and other sources. The assessments and opinions contained in this report are the independent conclusions of Andrews Consulting Group. Oracle Corporation did not sponsor or underwrite the report, nor did it have control over its contents.
  • 11. Want more information about JD Edwards applications? Get the latest news, analyses,and tips at The JD Edwards Advisor, a website for JD Edwards users from Andrews Consulting Group. www.JDEdwardsAdvisor.com