The pace of change within the retail industry continues to speed up, and with it there are increasing demands on the internal IT department to deliver more value to the business. IT is increasingly challenged to deliver projects on time, within budget, and with promised functionality, in part because the IT organization must support heavy maintenance loads that prevent sufficient resources from being directed to new development efforts.

Retailers are looking hard at new application delivery models, moving irrevocably away from proprietary development and towards commercial packages, either “best-of-breed” packages or ERP/“suites.” The goal of most retailers considering these options is not only speed of delivery, but also a reduction in the ongoing cost to own a solution once it is in production.

RSR conducted this study, with 73 respondents including 62 self-identified retailers