Jim Schaper, the chief executive of business software consolidator Infor hit out at rival SAP over its plans to move into the mid-market.
SAP announced that it was planning a move into the mid-market this week, prompting Schaper to break cover and criticise the strategy.
'One has to wonder is SAP truly understands the mid-market or whether this strategy is solely an effort to detract attention from the slowing growth of their Fortune 500 base,' Schaper said.
He said medium-sized businesses did not want all-in-one products that required customisation efforts.
'That approach is a relic of the past, when ERP implementations were akin to corporate open heart surgery,' said Schaper. 'The bottom line is that customers want more functionality, less complexity and the lowest total cost of ownership. That is not what we see from SAP.'
Further reading:
UK software groups face takeover
Infor pledges future for Pegasus/SunSystems
Wave of consolidation surges through business software sector
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