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This article at O’Reilly mentions open source ERP solution, Compiere. I didn’t even know there was such a thing! I am certainly skeptical, though, because the decision about which ERP system to use is - in my experience - a very political one. Plus, the decision is generally made by the less-than-savvy management types. And, as a rule, the deciding factors tend to be integration and support—rather than price and features. So, if your company uses Oracle… guess which ERP system you’re going to use.

From the Compiere website:

Compiere provides a comprehensive solution for small-to-medium sized enterprises…

Of course, that makes more sense. This isn’t targeted at Fortune 500 companies. I feel very strongly that Open Source has great potential in small-to-medium enterprise. But, it seems to be a little bit harder to make in-roads there because of the perceived risk. Often, small businesses don’t have a dedicated IT department (or person for that matter). Therefore, small business often look for a pre-packaged, all-in-one technological solution, rather than a services solution (e.g. don’t buy the software, buy the development, training and support). I certainly wish Compiere well.

While I’m on the subject, I’ve seen ERP projects become huge quagmires. Why is that some companies will spend tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars on software then turn around and spend even more money paying people to make it work? And this approach is picked over “in-house development”! This is mind-boggling to me. Would you buy a new car if you knew you would have to pay your mechanic $60/hr to make it work? If so, let me know, I know a great Oil Change Consultant.