The shortcomings of enterprise software are numerous and well documented. A recent report by Forrester focused on the fact that enterprise software doesn’t address the difficulties users face when accessing the data needed to accomplish critical tasks. The report researched the emergence of market “players” as a direct result of enterprise software inability or unwillingness to provide what users needed.
The report research found:
- 75% of users have a hard time accessing information in their enterprise systems,
- 62% of users rely on others to access enterprise data, and 57% must rely on others to gain insights from enterprise data, and
- 74% of users would prefer to access to data that is relevant to them.
These dissatisfaction statistics are worrisome, especially given the trillions of dollars that organizations have collectively invested in enterprise software systems. However changes are coming, and they are coming in the form of new technologies for the corporate world that are closing the user dissatisfaction performance gap.
As noted the enterprise software today does a poor job of connecting users to all of the information and tools that they need. The emergence of micro-apps can change all of that without requiring an overhaul of a company’s enterprise software and stranding the company’s IT investment. Instead micro-apps leverage the companies IT investment. Micro-apps are essentially plugins, they are a way to make information more accessible and organized for users who need to use it.
One example of micro-apps adoption is in the Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) market space. Commercially available EAM micro-apps address such capabilities as Scheduling and Field Service, Analytics, Planning & Finance, Mobile, Warranty Management, and Reliability Management, among others, which the user’s enterprise software either does not address or does a poor job of addressing. In general these micro-apps typically focus on user productivity and yield in performing the day-to-day asset management functions while increasing user adoption and satisfaction. And while certainly important benefits they do not address the single largest asset life-cycle O&M cost component in the industrial sector, energy. That is until now!
ARC Research, stated; “EAM applications have an asset-specific structure. They manage each asset as either an individual item (like a kiln), or as a group (like a production line). A sustainability (energy and carbon management) program needs this asset-specific approach to identify those assets that need improvement, and the ones that are a best practice. Energy convergence with EAM (Enterprise Asset Management systems) is the best application space for managing energy and carbon footprint. EAM aggregators are in a uniquely well qualified position to capture the emerging market opportunity for companywide energy and carbon footprint management.” And now micro-apps can provide the answer to systematically strengthening management focus on energy efficiency and cost injecting organizational discipline across functional silos, providing requisite domain intelligence, introducing a systematic and sustainable approach into day-to-day operations, and providing management controls, validations and communication by plugging in to the EAM technology eco-system.
Micro-apps signify an ever-growing disruption in the enterprise asset management software market, some would say a disruption that is long overdue. Whatever the motivating factors are, EAM users are likely to reap the benefits of using intelligible software and companies can expect outstanding returns in productivity and cost reduction, this is particularly true with respect to energy expense. To learn how your company can benefit, contact Motors@Work.