Gartner says the worldwide supply chain management software market grew by 12.3 per cent to $7.7 billion in 2011 and remains an essential part of commercial success
The worldwide supply chain management (SCM) software market totalled $7.7bn in 2011, a 12.3 per cent increase from 2010, according to information technology research advisory firm Gartner. It was the second year of double-digit growth for the SCM software market as supply chain investments kept their priority status and moved forward, despite caution from IT budget decision-makers.
“Despite ongoing economic uncertainty, the market for supply chain applications showed itself to be pretty resilient in 2011, with most SCM providers continuing to expand their footprints,” said Chad Eschinger, Research Vice President at Gartner.
“North America and Western Europe continued to be the prime consumers of SCM software in terms of dollars spent, with nearly 79 per cent of market revenue.” His comments come ahead of two remaining dates that complete Gartner’s Supply Chain Executive Conference series this year.
Industry leaders
SAP continued to lead the SCM software market, accounting for 19.9 per cent of the worldwide market. Oracle was the number two vendor with 16.9 per cent market share. Ariba experienced the strongest growth among the top five vendors with SCM software revenue increasing 46.5 per cent in 2011. “The SCM software market is fragmented, with a plethora of small and mid-size vendors (with revenue of less than $50m) across regions and its four primary market segments,” said Eschinger.
“Nevertheless, the top five vendors – SAP, Oracle, JDA Software, Ariba and Manhattan Associates – collectively held 48.3 per cent of the worldwide SCM software market based on 2011 total software revenue.” Eschinger added that SCM offerings were delivered as “software as a service” (SaaS).
Subscriptions continued to bolster above-market growth in 2011 at 21 per cent for both long-standing incumbents and many best-of-breed point product vendors. Perpetual licences also grew significantly at 15 per cent.
Gartner Supply Chain Executive Conference 2012
The Gartner Supply Chain Executive Conference series combines strategic and tactical advice from Gartner analysts and thought-leaders who collectively have more than 150 years of supply chain and end-user experience. The remaining dates are 23-24 July, in Sydney; and 17-18 September, in London.
The IBM 2012 global CEO study
The IBM 2012 Global CEO Study was compiled following 1709 CEO interviews across 64 countries. This study is the fifth edition of IBM’s biennial Global CEO Study series. To better understand the challenges and goals of today’s CEOs, IBM consultants met face-to-face with the largest-known sample of these executives.