The ERP Vendor Landscape: SAP, Oracle, Microsoft, NetSuite and More | ERP for Beginners Ep 6

Season One finale of ERP for Beginners. A vendor-neutral tour of who actually makes ERPs, how the market is tiered, and how companies choose. Just under six minutes on Tier 1 (SAP, Oracle, Microsoft Dynamics 365, NetSuite), mid-market specialists (Sage, Infor, Epicor, IFS), open source (Odoo, ERPNext), specialty vendors (Workday, ServiceNow), and a four-question decision tree. No vendor pitch. No rankings. Just the map. What You'll Learn: - Why ERP vendor selection is a decade-long, multi-million commitment — not a casual software purchase - Tier 1 — the four global giants: SAP, Oracle, Microsoft Dynamics 365, NetSuite — and what each is known for - Mid-market specialists — Sage, Infor, Epicor, IFS — and how each wins by going deep - Open source (Odoo, ERPNext) — self-hosted flexibility for SMBs and tech-savvy teams - Specialty vendors (Workday, ServiceNow) — companies that started in one domain and grew into ERP - The four questions that narrow the shortlist: size, industry, incumbent stack, speed vs flexibility Timestamps: 0:00 - Intro 0:12 - What's in this episode 0:30 - Why picking the vendor matters — a decade-long commitment 1:10 - Tier 1 — SAP, Oracle, Microsoft, NetSuite 2:05 - Mid-market — Sage, Infor, Epicor, IFS 2:50 - Open source + specialty — Odoo, ERPNext, Workday, ServiceNow 3:40 - How to choose — four questions 4:35 - Recap — the vendor map in four points 5:20 - Season 1 wrap + next steps Key Takeaways: 1. Tier 1 (SAP, Oracle, Microsoft Dynamics 365, NetSuite) covers most of the global enterprise market. Each has distinct industry and geography strengths. 2. Mid-market specialists (Sage, Infor, Epicor, IFS) win by going deep into specific industries or company sizes rather than trying to be general-purpose. 3. Open source (Odoo, ERPNext) offers self-hosted flexibility for SMBs and tech-savvy teams at a lower price point. 4. Specialty vendors (Workday for HR, ServiceNow for IT) grew outward from one domain and now compete in the broader ERP space. 5. Four questions drive most choices — company size, industry fit, incumbent software, and the speed-vs-flexibility tradeoff. Season 1 complete — six episodes, one foundation. Ready to go deeper with a specific vendor? The SAP Concepts series on this channel covers S/4HANA in eight episodes. More vendor-specific series are planned. Taught by CelesteAI. Like and subscribe to catch what comes next.