Stories by Craig Stedman

Online Exchange Service Offers Automated Shipping

A new online service is emerging: transportation exchanges that let companies use the Web to automate logistics operations such as arranging product shipments to buyers both in the U.S. and overseas.

SAP Taps Users to Build Software

SAP AG is hiring a boatload of developers as it tries to catch up to more nimble vendors in application areas such as e-commerce and customer relationship management. But increasingly, it's also turning to key R/3 users for help.

SAP Boosts Development Efforts

SAP AG said it has software development staff increased by almost 15 percent this month in an effort to accelerate the delivery of new applications for e-commerce, data warehousing and other uses that go beyond the back-office stronghold of its R/3 enterprise resource planning (ERP) system.

Order Entry Flexibility an ERP Issue

Even at this advanced stage in the development of ERP systems, some users are discovering that the software isn't flexible enough to handle all of their needs for order entry and processing.

Market Pressures Make IT a Priority in Drug Merger

Information technology may not be the first thing on the minds of executives at Glaxo Wellcome PLC and SmithKline Beecham PLC as they move forward with a $76 billion merger deal that was announced last week.

SAP Execs to Get Options

In an attempt to stop a management brain drain at the U.S. subsidiary of SAP AG, the German software vendor's shareholders last week approved a plan to start offering stock options to senior executives and other "top performers."

IBM Partners on Inventory System

IBM Corp. and Industri-Matematik International Corp., a Swedish vendor of order-management software, next week plan to announce a combined set of inventory replenishment applications aimed at retailers.

Move to Single Global ERP System No Easy Task

Users who plan to follow Oracle Corp.'s new road map for centralizing their global enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems on a single database server may have a lot of prep work to do first.

British Firm Buys Best Software for $445M

The Sage Group PLC, a U.K.-based vendor of accounting software that runs on PCs, today said it signed a deal to buy Best Software Inc. in Reston, Va., for $445 million in cash.

ERP woes cut Grainger profits

For the third straight quarter, Chicago-based W W Grainger expects problems related to the installation of a new SAP R/3 system to put a damper on its earnings.

Baan Limits Off-hours Help

Baan last week confirmed that its telephone support workers have been told to stop providing off-hours assistance to users who don't have 24-hour support contracts.

PeopleSoft Forecasts Small Quarterly Profit

While Baan Co. was releasing a barrage of more bad news, rival PeopleSoft Inc. - itself no stranger to struggles - last week said it expects to report a small operating profit for the fourth quarter of last year.

ERP Woes Hit Grainger Again

For the third straight quarter, Chicago-based W.W. Grainger Inc. expects problems related to the installation of a new SAP R/3 system to put a big damper on its earnings.

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