Enterprise software, also known as enterprise application software (EAS), is software used in organizations, such as in a business or government,^[1] contrary to software chosen by individuals (for example, retail software). Enterprise software is an integral part of a (Computer Based) Information System.

Services provided by enterprise software are typically business-oriented tools such as online shopping and online payment processing, interactive product catalogue, automated billing systems, security, enterprise content management, IT service management, customer relationship management, enterprise resource planning, business intelligence, human resource management, manufacturing, enterprise application integration, and enterprise forms automation.

Due to the cost of building or buying what is often non-free proprietary software, only large enterprises employ a software that models their entire business system.

As enterprises have similar departments and systems in common, enterprise software is often available as a suite of customizable programs. Generally, the complexity of these tools requires specialist capabilities and specific knowledge.

Definitions

Enterprise software describes a collection of computer programs with common business applications, tools for modeling how the entire organization works, and development tools for building applications unique to the organization.^[2] The software is intended to solve an enterprise-wide problem, rather than a departmental problem. Enterprise level software aims to improve the enterprise's productivity and efficiency by providing business logic support functionality.

According to Martin Fowler, "Enterprise applications are about the display, manipulation, and storage of large amounts of often complex data and the support or automation of business processes with that data."^[3]

Although there is no single, widely accepted list of enterprise software characteristics,^[4] they generally include performance, scalability, and robustness. Furthermore, enterprise software typically has interfaces to other enterprise software (for example LDAP to directory services) and is centrally managed (a single admin page, for example).^[5]

Enterprise application software

Enterprise application software is application software that performs business functions such as order processing, procurement, production scheduling, customer information management, and accounting. It is typically hosted on servers and provides simultaneous services to a large number of users, typically over a computer network. This is in contrast to a single-user application that is executed on a user's personal computer and serves only one user at a time.

Types

• Enterprise software can be designed and implemented by an information technology (IT) group within a company.
• It may also be purchased from an independent enterprise software developer, that often installs and maintains the software for their customers. Installation, customization, and maintenance can also be outsourced to an IT consulting company.
• Another model is based on a concept called on-demand software, or Software as a Service (SaaS). The on-demand model of enterprise software is made possible through the widespread distribution of broadband access to the Internet. Software as a Service vendors maintain enterprise software on servers within their own company data center and then provide access to the software to their enterprise customers via the Internet.

Enterprise software is often categorized by the business function that it automates - such as accounting software or sales force automation software. Similarly for industries - for example, there are enterprise systems devised for the health care industry, or for manufacturing enterprises.

Developers

Major organizations in the enterprise software field include SAP, IFS AB, QAD Inc, IBM, BMC Software, HP Software Division, Redwood Software, UC4 Software, JBoss (Red Hat), Microsoft, Adobe Systems, Oracle Corporation, Inquest Technologies, CA Technologies, Wipro Technologies and ASG Software Solutions but there are thousands of competing vendors.

Criticism

The word enterprise can have various connotations. Sometimes the term is used merely as a synonym for organization, whether it be very large (e.g., a corporation with thousands of employees), very small (a sole proprietorship), or an intermediate size. Often the term is used only to refer to very large organizations, although it has become a corporate-speak buzzword and may be heard in other uses.

Some enterprise software vendors using the latter definition develop highly complex products that are often overkill for smaller organizations, and the application of these can be a very frustrating task. Thus, sometimes "enterprise" might be used sarcastically to mean overly complex software.

The adjective "enterprisey" is sometimes used to make this sarcasm explicit. In this usage, the term "enterprisey" is intended to go beyond the concern of "overkill for smaller organizations" to imply the software is overly complex or absurdly convoluted even for large organizations and simpler solutions are available.^[6]

See also

• Business informatics
• Business software
• Enterprise architecture
• Enterprise forms automation
• Identity management
• Identity management system
• Information technology management
• Integrated business planning
• Management information system
• Operational risk management
• Retail software
• Strategic information system

References