North America Analyst Summit Coverage

What can Unit4's strategy tell us about the direction of cloud ERP (and enterprise AI?)

In this insightful podcast, Jon Reed and Brian Sommer delve into Unit4's strategic approach to cloud ERP and enterprise AI. Recorded after an engaging session with Unit4's leadership, they discuss the company's "self-driving" ERP concept, its focus on service industries, and the broader implications for cloud ERP and AI in the enterprise sector. The conversation also touches on Unit4's end-of-maintenance policies and our unique handling of AI integration.

I think they're gonna be a fun company to watch.

Jon Reed, Diginomica

I liked how Unit4 really emphasized the human side of collaboration as part of their so-called ‘self-driving ERP’

Jon Reed, Diginomica

This meeting was a different kind of Unit4 meeting than so many of them I attended in the past, and it was a good meeting. It really was.

Brian Sommer, TechVentive

Driving Accountability and Success: Unit4’s Subscription Model and Unified Customer Approach

This post-summit article from 3Sixty Insights explores how subscription-based models in the software industry enhance vendor accountability and customer satisfaction. The piece reflects on insights shared during Unit4's recent analyst summit, highlighting our holistic approach to customer success. It emphasizes Unit4's unified team structure and outcomes-based strategies that ensure a seamless and value-driven customer journey.

Unlike most organizations where customer-facing teams such as support, consulting, and education operate in silos, Unit4 has centralized these functions under one unified team with a single leader and shared KPIs.

Unit4 ensures a cohesive approach where every touchpoint is managed within a streamlined framework

Nick Byron, 3sixty Insights

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Unit4 CEO Ettling outlines self-driving ERP strategy that operates in background

In this insightful article, Constellation Research delves into Unit4's innovative strategy to revolutionize enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems. CEO Mike Ettling articulates a vision where ERP operates unobtrusively, integrating automated workflows across multiple applications. This approach aims to enhance user experience by allowing employees to engage with familiar tools like Microsoft Teams or Slack, eliminating the need to directly interact with traditional ERP interfaces.

Ettling said: “Today, we are on ERPx, and tomorrow we're chasing this vision of self-driving ERP. We think this is going to become more and more prevalent. My Holy Grail of self-driving ERP is that you buy my ERP and nobody in the organization ever logs into it. Your access is through Microsoft Teams, Slack or through whatever. No one wakes up in the morning and logs in to the ERP to do ERP work.”

This Unit4 strategy could be ahead of its time. As generative AI becomes the new UI for enterprise software, many of the SaaS applications you log into will fade to the background. With copilots and agentic AI, the concept of headless enterprise applications is going to be more prevalent.

Larry Dignan, Constellation Research

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Analyst Insights: Matthew Merker Reflects on Engaging with Unit4's Team

In a recent LinkedIn post, Matthew Merker, a seasoned analyst at The Hackett Group, shared his positive experience connecting with the Unit4 team. He highlighted the team's dedication to innovation and their commitment to delivering value to customers. Merker's reflections underscore the importance of strong vendor-analyst relationships in driving industry advancements.

As AI is the buzzword everyone talks about non-stop, Unit4's take of “pragmatism” in AI development was refreshing, focusing on developing its AI in a thoughtful way for specific use cases that resonate with their ICPs.

Within HCM, the upcoming release of Payroll Navigator will provide HR professionals with a great tool for payroll management built directly into the flow of work, utilizing machine learning to speed what are usually tedious processes.

Unit4 has evolved their customer success program, providing a service package approach that gives their clients extensive control of their success journey in partnership with the vendor.

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Analyst Alan Neal Post on Unit4's Analyst Summit

In a recent LinkedIn post, Alan Neal, Division President at Info-Tech, shared his positive experience attending Unit4's Analyst Summit. He highlighted the company's innovative strategies and commitment to customer success, noting the valuable insights gained during the event. Neal's reflections underscore the importance of such engagements in understanding industry advancements and vendor approaches.

Last week I had the opportunity to attend Unit4’s Analyst Summit. In my role, I don’t always get to be part of these conversations, but it was refreshing and great to be on the ground, learning more about Unit 4’s strategic vision for the coming year, and some of the great work they are doing around focusing on the customer experience.

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Steve Goldberg's Post on Unit4's Analyst Summit

In his LinkedIn post, Stuart Goldberg shared his enthusiasm for reconnecting with Mike Ettling and Unit4's senior leadership team during the Analyst Summit. He highlighted the culture of candor at Unit4, where market opportunities and risks are openly discussed. Goldberg praised the strong leadership of Mike Ettling, noting how the CEO's vision has shaped Unit4’s culture, go-to-market strategies, and customer-centric approach.

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Insights from Unit4's Analyst Summit: Bonnie Tinder's Perspective

In a recent LinkedIn post, Bonnie Tinder, CEO and Founder of Raven Intelligence, shared her positive experience attending Unit4's Analyst Summit. She highlighted the company's innovative strategies and commitment to customer success, noting the valuable insights gained during the event. Bonnies's reflections underscore the importance of such engagements in understanding industry advancements and vendor approaches.

With intentional focus on their ICP (ideal customer profile) and a professional services program that can support migrations they are poised for growth in 2025.

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