A new study from ref="/directory/klas" target="_blank" class="directory-item-link">KLAS shows that, while there's no enterprise resource planning (ERP) vendor that overwhelmingly satisfies clients, the limited options in that market mean that migrating to a new one may not be worth the cost.
For the report – "The Conundrum of ERP: Is It Possible to Get Functionality and Service?" – KLAS interviewed 225 provider organizations, focusing primarily on the three most prominent players: Lawson, McKesson, and Oracle.
All three rated below the KLAS average for healthcare information technology.
"Many CIOs describe their experiences with ERP vendors as disappointing and painful," said Lorin Bird, KLAS research director and author of the report. "Providers say they can expect either robust functionality or service and attention – not both."
The study finds that most hospitals already have an ERP solution of some sort and are somewhat of a captive audience. That means that vendors have little reason to develop and support their core ERP products, instead focusing on developing peripheral modules to address related markets – such as human capital and workforce management – or acquiring new technologies to augment their existing offerings.
"Hospital executives are wishing a vendor would step forward with an integrated stack for ERP, including human capital management, workforce management and business intelligence, with a healthy dose of functionality and dependable service," Bird said. "No one has it all together – yet."
The top-rated vendor in the report was McKesson, with a score of 74.5 out of 100. It was followed by Oracle (71.8) and Lawson (68.6). API and MediClick were also highlighted, though neither could be included in head-to-head comparison with the above vendors, providing only some system components. Electronic Healthcare Systems, Kronos, MEDITECH, Microsoft, Oracle and SAP are also included in the early data portion of the report.
To purchase the full report, health care providers and vendors can visit KLASresearch.com/reports.
