Magic Quadrant for Oracle Applications Implementation Services, Worldwide

This Magic Quadrant focuses on the consulting and solution implementation service market worldwide for Oracle Applications and is aimed at the buyer segment that requires expertise for complex engagements. Service providers evaluated here have shown strength in local markets where they do business. Solution implementation services are offerings to design, develop, integrate and deploy specific processes, functions, applications or initiatives in user organizations. These services aim to optimize a company's processes and integrate related technology applications and platforms (see "Forecast: Application Solution Services, Worldwide, 2010-2015").

This analysis covers implementation of Oracle Applications, including all of its business process applications (for example, ERP, supply chain management [SCM] and CRM), business analytics applications (for example, enterprise performance management [EPM], governance, risk and compliance [GRC], and industry solutions), and related application value-adds (such as mobility or usability). The focus of this analysis is on service providers that can conceive and execute a large-scale engagement.

A large-scale engagement for which a service provider is hired to execute (through the use of Oracle Applications) stems from multiple needs, such as:

• Program management of multiple phases and associated project execution
• Organizational help for change and user adoption
• Integration of multiple units of a business due to consolidation of processes or alignment of processes
• Multicountry needs for language conversion/translation or tax or regulation issues
• Delivery of professional services from local offices or remote delivery network, as appropriate
• Strategy for replicating success across clients and regions
• Insights and investments across industries for Oracle Applications decisions
• Insights and investments as a partner of Oracle Corp.

Source: Gartner (September 2012)

Vendor Strengths and Cautions

Accenture

Accenture is a global firm ranked second in market share revenue by Gartner for the worldwide consulting and implementation service market in 2011, with $14.5 billion. It consistently ranks well in Gartner evaluations for finance, HR, CRM and business intelligence (BI) capabilities that are important in many application engagements. Accenture is a Diamond partner of Oracle with a global practice that Gartner estimates has 17,000 professionals for Oracle Applications and technology implementation in 2012, contributing approximately 14% of consulting and implementation (C&I) revenue. It has extensive life cycle services capability to design, implement and manage Oracle Applications, and it has the methodologies and proprietary tools necessary to establish and execute a comprehensive life cycle program.

Strengths

• Accenture covers the Oracle product set of E-Business Suite, Fusion, PeopleSoft and Siebel applications, and it has industry, functional and technical skills to implement complex transformational application initiatives for large organizations.
• Accenture has scale and scope with established local presence for its Oracle practice in Asia/Pacific, Europe, Japan, Latin America and North America, which work together with its global delivery network for project implementation.
• Accenture invests in key industries of banking, communications, the health and public sector, and utilities to create Oracle-based platforms or extend functionality to fill process gaps. The company continues to maintain its industry rigor in the other vertical markets it serves.
• Accenture invests in analytics, finance, CRM, human capital management (HCM), retail, and supply chain assets to enhance analysis capabilities, technology integration and process completeness, and its clients are generally satisfied with the expertise it brings in these areas.

Cautions

• Accenture performs best with application engagements that leverage its breadth of capabilities; organizations looking for more discrete services, particularly midmarket organizations (Gartner defines midmarket as below $1 billion in annual turnover), need additional due diligence, as Accenture solutions are not aimed at this segment.
• Accenture's clients, in some instances, cite that engagements are priced at a premium compared with the market and that its total value proposition, including items such as assets and global sourcing strategy, is difficult to measure.

Capgemini

Capgemini is a global firm ranked sixth in market share revenue by Gartner for the worldwide consulting and implementation service market in 2011, with $8.1 billion. It consistently ranks well in Gartner evaluations for finance, CRM and BI capabilities that are important in many application engagements. Capgemini is a Diamond partner of Oracle with a global practice that Gartner estimates has 4,500 professionals for Oracle Applications and technology implementation in 2012, contributing approximately 6% of C&I revenue. It has extensive life cycle services capability to design, implement and manage Oracle Applications, and it has the methodologies and proprietary tools necessary to establish and execute a comprehensive life cycle program.

Strengths

• Capgemini has breadth of capability across the Oracle product set of E-Business Suite, JD Edwards, Fusion, PeopleSoft and Siebel applications, bringing functional and technical skills for large-scale implementations.
• Capgemini has local presence for its Oracle practice in Europe and North America, which work together with its global delivery network for project implementation, and it has growing opportunities for similar coordination with its Asia/Pacific and Latin American areas.
• Capgemini's key industries are consumer products, communications, retail, the public sector and utilities. It has solutions that extend functionality in these sectors, as well as in the distribution, healthcare and transportation sectors.
• Capgemini's clients cite the company's team approach as a good fit, including its cultural fit, ability for problem solving, flexibility and project management.

Cautions

• Capgemini's clients sometimes cite that project resourcing is managed in a "just in time" manner and that getting staff with the highest level of industry expertise or thought leadership to support project goals can be a challenge.
• Capgemini Consulting has limited presence globally, and its capability is yet to promulgate across its client base, making its transformational impact on engagements more limited to the technology offerings of the Capgemini Oracle practice rather than from management consulting advice.

Cognizant

Cognizant is a U.S.-based firm ranked 27th in market share revenue by Gartner for the worldwide consulting and implementation service market in 2011, with $3.2 billion. It ranks well in Gartner evaluations for BI and CRM capabilities that are important in some application engagements. Cognizant is a Platinum partner of Oracle with a global practice that Gartner estimates has 4,200 professionals for Oracle Applications and technology implementation in 2012, contributing approximately 14% of C&I revenue. It has life cycle services capability to design, implement and manage Oracle Applications, and it has the methodologies necessary to establish and execute a life cycle program.

Strengths

• Cognizant is a co-development partner for Oracle and a participant in the Fusion Early Adopter Program. It has technical and functional capabilities for E-Business Suite, PeopleSoft and Siebel applications.
• Cognizant offers a diversity of pricing frameworks with clients so that it can be both price-competitive and value-driven.
• Cognizant's clients are generally satisfied with the company's service flexibility, technical capability and ability to bring templates, frameworks and prebuilt solutions to the engagements.

Cautions

• Cognizant has primary presence in North America for its Oracle practice, with an emerging presence in Europe and an opportunistic approach to implementations in other regions; therefore, clients seeking global assistance need to decide on the appropriate balance of global delivery and local delivery.
• Some Cognizant clients rate the company's supply chain and product life cycle management (PLM) capabilities as lacking, which is indicative of a broader need for business advisory strength in its application engagements.

CSC

CSC is a global firm ranked 13th in market share revenue by Gartner for the worldwide consulting and implementation service market in 2011, with $5.3 billion. It ranks well in Gartner evaluations for finance capabilities that are important in many application engagements. CSC is a Diamond partner of Oracle with a global practice that Gartner estimates has 4,500 professionals for Oracle Applications and technology implementation in 2012, contributing approximately 10% of C&I revenue. It has strong life cycle services capability to design, implement and manage Oracle Applications, and it has the methodologies necessary to establish and execute a life cycle program.

Strengths

• CSC has industry, technical and functional capabilities for the Oracle product set of E-Business Suite and PeopleSoft, and it is often engaged in large-scale initiatives; it is growing capabilities for Fusion and Siebel applications.
• CSC has developed solutions and accelerators for organizations in the construction, healthcare, life science, manufacturing, petroleum, oil and gas, retail, and transportation sectors.
• CSC's clients indicate the company's solid methodology and project management, and they are generally satisfied with the overall work style during project delivery.

Cautions

• CSC delivers projects globally, with strength for Oracle centered in North America, the U.K. and France, and complementary delivery centers in Asia/Pacific and Europe.
• CSC's investment in global delivery continues to grow, but clients cite issues with resourcing and communication; therefore, CSC needs to continue investing in this area to reach delivery levels expected in the market.

Deloitte

Deloitte is a global professional services firm, and it provides audit, tax, consulting and financial advisory services. It ranked fifth in market share revenue by Gartner for the worldwide consulting and implementation service market in 2011, with $8.2 billion. It consistently ranks well in Gartner evaluations for finance, GRC, CRM and BI capabilities that are important in many application engagements. Deloitte is a Diamond partner of Oracle with a global practice that Gartner estimates has 11,000 professionals for Oracle Applications and technology implementation in 2012, contributing approximately 25% of C&I revenue. Its focus is on the implementation of Oracle Applications, and it has the methodologies and proprietary tools necessary to establish and execute a complex program.

Strengths

• Deloitte has industry, technical and functional capabilities for the broad range of Oracle products of E-Business Suite, Fusion, JD Edwards, PeopleSoft and Siebel applications to implement large-scale transformation initiatives.
• Deloitte has established local presence for its Oracle practice in Asia/Pacific, Europe, Latin America and North America, which work together with its advisory practices and global delivery network to bring together multiple capabilities for an implementation.
• Deloitte has developed a "SolutionsPrint" preconfigured solution and methodology to offer Oracle configurations covering the Planning and Budgeting, Account to Close (ATC), Hire to Retire (HTR), Order to Cash (OTC), Procure to Pay (PTP), Plan to Manufacture (PTM) module configurations.
• Deloitte provides a breadth of services to all ranges of clients, regardless of size, and clients generally express a strong rating for success and satisfaction.

Cautions

• Deloitte's clients and prospects may find barriers to working with the firm when there is an existing audit relationship because Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) independence rules mandate restrictions on the consulting services that the audit/attest industry can provide.
• Deloitte's clients and prospects sometimes cite challenges evaluating a proposal response, as the scope of the proposal may be broader than requested or the pricing may be high.

Hitachi Consulting

Hitachi Consulting is part of the larger Hitachi Corp. and is ranked seventh in market share revenue by Gartner for the worldwide consulting and implementation service market in 2011, with $8 billion. Hitachi is a Diamond partner of Oracle with a global practice that Gartner estimates has 2,300 professionals for Oracle Applications and technology implementation in 2012, contributing approximately 5% of C&I revenue. It has life cycle services capability to design, implement and manage Oracle Applications, and it has the methodologies necessary to establish and execute a life cycle program.

Strengths

• Hitachi Consulting has technical and functional capabilities for Oracle Applications products of E-Business Suite, as well as has experience in JD Edwards and Siebel, and it is developing expertise in Fusion Applications.
• Hitachi Consulting has solutions for the banking, consumer goods and retail, construction, high-tech, and oil and gas industry sectors, where it has developed frameworks and implementation assets for service quality and speed to solution.
• Hitachi Consulting's clients indicate that the company's working style is flexible and responsive, and they are generally satisfied with capabilities for applications and technology.

Cautions

• Hitachi Consulting has presence in North America and Japan for Oracle engagements; however, its reach is limited globally, and some clients express challenges accessing local resources in other markets.
• Hitachi Consulting's clients in some instances indicate that turnover or just-in-time resourcing can result in challenges accessing local resources.

HP

HP Enterprise Solutions is the services group of HP. HP is ranked ninth in market share revenue by Gartner for the worldwide consulting and implementation service market in 2011, with $7.4 billion. It consistently ranks well in Gartner evaluations for finance capabilities that are important in many application engagements. HP is a Platinum partner of Oracle and is on the path to achieve Diamond certification. Gartner estimates HP has 2,000 professionals for Oracle Applications and technology implementation globally in 2012, contributing approximately 3% of C&I revenue. It has life cycle services capability to design, implement and manage Oracle Applications, and it has the methodologies necessary to establish and execute a life cycle program.

Strengths

• HP has technical and functional capabilities for Oracle products of E-Business Suite, JD Edwards, Fusion, PeopleSoft and Siebel applications, Oracle Financials Industry Solutions, and Oracle Communications Industry Solutions. HP has developed accelerators and tools to provide a life cycle approach to its implementation services through its "Design for Run" methodology.
• HP uses its industry frameworks as the basis for its Oracle solutions to increase quality and accelerate deployment for clients especially in the following industries: communications, media and entertainment; consumer and retail; energy; financial services; health and life sciences; manufacturing; public sector; and transportation.
• HP works with its existing clients to extend the portfolio of products and services it provides, and clients are generally satisfied with the company's services — particularly its knowledge of client cultures, systems and processes.

Cautions

• HP has a strong brand for products and services, and its strategy is to take more bundled offerings to market, which can conflict with other stack offerings of vendors in the marketplace; therefore, clients should understand the implications of bundled offerings on their IT environments.
• HP has strength in North America and Europe for Oracle presence; however, its global reach for Oracle is available through its Industrialized Delivery System.
• HP has limited business consulting strengths, which results in more limited impact for organizations' business models.

IBM GBS

IBM Global Business Services (GBS) is the consulting group of IBM. IBM is ranked first in market share revenue by Gartner for the worldwide consulting and implementation service market in 2011, with $20.1 billion. It consistently ranks well in Gartner evaluations for finance, HR, CRM and BI capabilities that are important in many application engagements. IBM GBS is a Diamond partner of Oracle with a global practice that Gartner estimates has 13,500 professionals for Oracle Applications and technology implementation in 2012, contributing approximately 10% of C&I revenue. It has extensive life cycle services capability to design, implement and manage Oracle Applications, and it has the methodologies and proprietary tools necessary to establish and execute a comprehensive life cycle program.

Strengths

• IBM GBS has the industry, technical and functional capabilities for the Oracle products of E-Business Suite, Fusion, JD Edwards, PeopleSoft and Siebel applications. It also has solutions to address complex engagements for all segments of organizations — from midsize to large.
• IBM GBS has scale and scope with established local presence for its Oracle practice in Asia/Pacific, Europe, Japan, Latin America and North America, which work together with its advisory practices and global delivery network to bring together multiple capabilities for an implementation.
• IBM GBS has developed a "Solution Workbench for Oracle" as a productivity accelerator supporting the implementation and upgrade of Oracle products, which contain industry standard practices and IBM best-practice content.
• Clients of IBM GBS are generally satisfied with services delivered and appreciate its technical expertise and integration capabilities for the Oracle products.

Cautions

• IBM GBS has built a strong global delivery network for Oracle professionals, including in India and China; however, this is sometimes at the expense of local resourcing capability.
• Some clients of IBM GBS occasionally cite challenges in resourcing projects because of turnover, just-in-time resourcing or availability of local staff — all issues that can impact project execution; however, clients find IBM GBS's flexibility good in managing through resourcing issues.

Infosys

Infosys is a global firm that is ranked 26th in market share revenue by Gartner for the worldwide consulting and implementation service market in 2011, with $4 billion. It consistently ranks well in Gartner evaluations for finance, CRM and BI capabilities that are important in many application engagements. Infosys is a Diamond partner of Oracle with a global practice that Gartner estimates has 7,200 professionals for Oracle Applications and technology implementation in 2012, contributing approximately 14% of C&I revenue. It has extensive life cycle services capability to design, implement and manage Oracle Applications, and it has the methodologies and proprietary tools necessary to establish and execute a comprehensive life cycle program.

Strengths

• Infosys has a portfolio of offerings across the Oracle product set of E-Business Suite, Fusion, JD Edwards, PeopleSoft and Siebel applications, with functional and technical skills to implement transformational initiatives.
• Infosys has made key investments in co-development with Oracle and with its clients; Infosys invests in tools and accelerators to increase delivery quality; Infosys has developed asset-based solutions for the banking, communications, healthcare, high-tech, retail, oil and gas, and utilities industries.
• Infosys is a strategic co-development partner with Oracle, and its clients indicate that its expertise on Oracle Applications is high.

Cautions

• Infosys has been on a path to add experts in its business consulting and advisory offerings; however, these professionals are not active in all engagements, and their capabilities are not pervasive for all of Infosys' Oracle projects.
• Infosys' clients sometimes cite issues in areas ranging from knowledge transfer to resource continuity, indicating that methodologies and turnover can affect execution.

Oracle Consulting

Oracle Consulting is the professional services unit of Oracle. It is ranked 10th in market share revenue by Gartner for the worldwide consulting and implementation service market in 2011, with $2.9 billion. Gartner estimates Oracle Consulting has 5,000 professionals for application implementation work globally in 2012, contributing approximately 45% of C&I revenue. It has life cycle services capability to design, implement and manage Oracle Applications, and it has the methodologies necessary to establish and execute a life cycle program.

Strengths

• Oracle Consulting has functional and technical skills to lead initiatives for a portfolio of offerings in E-Business Suite, Fusion, JD Edwards, PeopleSoft and Siebel applications, and Oracle Consulting professionals often are used as supplemental staff on projects or as subject matter experts provided through Expert Services.
• Oracle Consulting goes to market by region, and its industry expertise follows its client footprint in financial services, telecommunications, utilities, public sector, life sciences and healthcare, retail, manufacturing and distribution.
• Oracle Consulting has developed tools for implementation and upgrade of Oracle Applications and technologies using Oracle best practices, and clients are generally satisfied with these capabilities.
• Clients cite the connection between Oracle Consulting and Oracle products as a reason for working with the firm, and they are generally satisfied with the product knowledge that consulting professionals bring.

Cautions

• Oracle Consulting focuses on the Oracle portfolio of products and does not staff experts for products outside this portfolio.
• Clients that used Oracle Consulting as a subcontractor sometimes cite lower satisfaction for in a multisourcing environment, where occasional challenges with knowledge transfer, communication and flexibility can be present.
• Clients that used Oracle Consulting as the project lead sometimes cite high prices as a challenge to hire the company and limited industry and business process expertise.
• Oracle Consulting's methodology and presence globally are limited by the success of the company's product share, and Oracle Consulting relies on partners more in emerging market locations.

PwC

PwC is a professional services firm in more than 158 countries, and it provides audit, tax, consulting and financial advisory services. It ranked 14th in market share revenue by Gartner for the worldwide consulting and implementation service market in 2011, with $4.6 billion. It consistently ranks well in Gartner evaluations for finance and GRC capabilities that are relevant in some application engagements. PwC is a Diamond partner of Oracle with a global practice that Gartner estimates has 2,500 professionals for Oracle Applications and technology implementation in 2012, contributing approximately 7% of C&I revenue.

Strengths

• PwC has technical and functional capabilities for Oracle applications of E-Business Suite, Fusion, Hyperion, GRC, PeopleSoft and Siebel, and PwC takes its solutions to market by industry, in which it has an established position.
• PwC has relationships with client leaders (especially with CFOs), which positions it to lead enterprisewide transformational projects that require the involvement and buy-in from top management.
• PwC is growing its Oracle practice, developing solutions in its industries of strength, such as utilities, healthcare and financial services, while also expanding in the industries of energy, products and services, and public sector.
• PwC's clients are generally satisfied with the company's services and commend consultants' flexibility, general knowledge and project management, and they particularly cite as important PwC's ability to quote proposal estimates well.

Cautions

• PwC's clients and prospects may find barriers to working with the firm when there is an existing audit relationship, because the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC's) independence rules mandate restrictions on the consulting services that the audit and test industry can provide.
• PwC's clients sometimes express difficulty during project execution with documentation and knowledge transfer, which is indicative of a practice in growth mode.
• PwC's ability to provide full life cycle services in Oracle Applications is still low. It also follows a partnership model and collaborates with third parties for certain services, such as managed services; therefore, clients will need to perform added due diligence to execute a life cycle program with PwC.
• PwC global presence is lacking in emerging markets for Oracle resources.

Tata Consultancy Services

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) is a global firm ranked 16th in market share revenue by Gartner for the worldwide consulting and implementation service market in 2011, with $3 billion. It ranks well in Gartner evaluations for finance and CRM capabilities that are important in many application engagements. TCS is a Diamond partner of Oracle with a global practice that Gartner estimates has 7,000 professionals for Oracle Applications and technology implementation in 2012, contributing approximately 16% of C&I revenue. It has life cycle services capability to design, implement and manage Oracle Applications, and it has the methodologies and tools necessary to establish and execute a life cycle program.

Strengths

• TCS has technical and functional capabilities for the Oracle product set of E-Business Suite, Fusion, Hyperion, JD Edwards, PeopleSoft and Siebel applications, for which it has developed industry-ready solutions that integrate into the application life cycle services it provides.
• TCS has invested in process maps, data models and solution accelerators for its banking, financial services, insurance, energy and utilities, retail, telecommunications and media, travel and transportation industries, as well as for implementation and upgrades of Oracle products, and it is increasingly involved in application transformation initiatives.
• TCS's clients are generally satisfied by the company's services and cite the technical excellence of its consultants and their relationship focus as reasons for engagement success.

Cautions

• TCS has strong presence in North America for Oracle services and selective presence in Europe, Asia/Pacific and the Middle East and Africa (MEA) based on existing client relationships or establishment of global delivery centers; clients sometimes indicate that limited local presence is a challenge.
• TCS has a model of high growth that requires the company to continuously hire, train and mentor associates, which clients sometimes cite as resulting in skills mismatch when more-experienced consultants are desired to deal with business process issues or provide business advice.

Wipro

Wipro is a global firm ranked 31st in market share revenue by Gartner for the worldwide consulting and implementation service market in 2011, with $2.6 billion. It ranks well in Gartner evaluations for finance capabilities that are important in many application engagements. Wipro is a Diamond partner of Oracle with a global practice that Gartner estimates has 7,500 professionals for Oracle Applications and technology implementation in 2012, contributing approximately 23% of C&I revenue. It has life cycle services capability to design, implement and manage Oracle Applications, and it has the methodologies and tools necessary to establish and execute a life cycle program.

Strengths

• Wipro has a broad staff available for the Oracle product set of E-Business Suite, Fusion, JD Edwards, PeopleSoft and Siebel applications, with assets for implementations and functional and technical upgrades for all major packages within the Oracle Applications suite.
• Wipro invests in solution development as one of Oracle's largest partners for co-development of industry solutions, with accelerators for the banking, communications, consumer products, energy and utilities, pharmaceutical, and retail industries.
• Wipro's clients often cite the company's teams' flexibility on engagements as important to the success of the project.

Cautions

• Wipro has strong presence in North America and growing presence in other regions, especially Asia/Pacific, Africa and Latin America, for its Oracle practice.
• Wipro's clients cite a variety of issues that can be a challenge during project implementations — this is a result of turnover and just-in-time staffing that can introduce discontinuities in execution.

Vendors Added or Dropped

We review and adjust our inclusion criteria for Magic Quadrants and MarketScopes as markets change. As a result of these adjustments, the mix of vendors in any Magic Quadrant or MarketScope may change over time. A vendor appearing in a Magic Quadrant or MarketScope one year and not the next does not necessarily indicate that we have changed our opinion of that vendor. This may be a reflection of a change in the market and, therefore, changed evaluation criteria, or a change of focus by a vendor.

Added

This is a new analysis.

Dropped

This is a new analysis.

A broad group of vendors offer Oracle Applications implementation services. Magic Quadrants do not include all vendors in a given sector. Vendors considered for inclusion in this Magic Quadrant research are those that provide application implementation services for large-scale engagements and can handle complex situations. Gartner methodology dictates that vendors meeting the inclusion criteria cannot elect to be excluded from a Magic Quadrant.

Quantitative Criteria

• Service providers that offer implementation services for Oracle Applications, with revenue derived from clients in North America, Latin America, EMEA and/or Asia/Pacific, whereby the total revenue is generated in three of the four regions.
• A minimum of US$200 million in revenue (estimated for fiscal year 2011) in worldwide implementation services for Oracle Applications.
• Based on these inclusion criteria, a minimum of six reference submissions is requested. References should demonstrate the ability to deliver large-scale implementations, regardless of region. References should be representative of the consulting and implementations that the service provider offers.

Qualitative Criteria

• Overall market interest in and visibility of the provider, determined by serious consideration for selection from enterprise clients
• Gartner analysts' interactions with enterprise buyers, which reveal interest in specific service provider offerings of implementation services for Oracle Applications
• Competitive market considerations, such as participation in the Oracle ecosystem, and consideration by respondents in the reference survey

Evaluation Criteria

Ability to Execute

Gartner analysts evaluate IT services providers on the quality and efficacy of the processes, systems, methods or procedures that enable IT provider performance to be competitive, efficient and effective, and to positively impact revenue, retention and reputation. Ultimately, IT services providers are judged on their ability and success in capitalizing on their vision. Our assessment of a vendor's ability to execute consisted of these ability to execute evaluation criteria.

Product/Service: Core services offered by the provider that compete in/serve the Oracle service market. This includes current service offerings, as defined in the market definition and expressed by growth, capacity, market penetration, skills availability, breadth and depth of offering, and so forth. Subcategories include

• Vendor's effective use of partnerships and alliances
• Vendor's end-to-end capabilities
• Vendor's comprehensive set of industry offerings
• Vendor's capabilities to deliver against business-outcome-based objectives and metrics

Overall Viability (Business Unit, Financial, Strategy, Organization): Financial viability includes an assessment of the overall organization's financial health, the financial and practical success of the business unit, and the likelihood of the individual business unit to continue to invest in the service and continue to offer the service, advancing the state of the art within the organization's portfolio of services. Subcategories include: assessment of service provider's practice area profile (for example, financial strength, number of dedicated resources, growth, utilization and attrition); and analysis of strategy and organization.

Sales Execution/Pricing: The service provider's capabilities in all presales activities and the structure that supports them. This includes deal management, pricing and negotiation, presales support and the overall effectiveness of the sales channel, as well as customer feedback on value for the money.

Market Responsiveness and Track Record: Ability to respond, change direction, be flexible and achieve competitive success as opportunities develop, competitors act, customer needs evolve, and market dynamics change. This criterion also considers the provider's history of responsiveness and track record in offering different pricing mechanisms.

Marketing Execution: This factor is not evaluated. Programs designed to deliver the organization's message to influence the market, promote the brand and business, increase awareness of the products, and establish a positive identification with the product/brand and organization in the minds of buyers is important. However, Gartner considered this mind share issue within the other "execute" factors listed here.

Customer Experience: Overall customer satisfaction with provider. Included in this criterion are ease of working with and flexibility in responding to changes, as well as delivering on time, within budget and to scope with a system that meets business needs.

Operations: The ability of the organization to meet its goals and commitments. Factors include the quality of the organizational structure, including skills, experiences, programs, systems and other vehicles that enable the organization to operate effectively and efficiently on an ongoing basis. Subcategories include:

• Investments in and with software vendor
• Applied use of methodologies and other assets
• Global delivery model

Source: Gartner

Completeness of Vision

Gartner analysts evaluate IT services providers on their ability to convincingly articulate logical statements about current and future market direction, innovation, customer needs, and competitive forces and how well they map to the Gartner position. Ultimately, IT services providers are rated on their understanding of how market forces can be exploited to create opportunity for the provider. Our assessment of a vendor's completeness of vision consisted of these completeness of vision evaluation criteria.

Market Understanding: Ability of the provider to understand buyers' needs and translate these needs into products and services. Vendors that show the highest degree of vision listen and understand buyers' wants and needs, and can shape or enhance those wants with their added vision. Subcategories include: service providers' knowledge and articulation of key market direction and trends; and the analysis of the service providers' executive leadership (including thought leadership, continuity, operational capabilities, and so on).

Marketing Strategy: A clear, differentiated set of messages that are consistently communicated throughout the organization and are externalized via the communication, advertising, customer programs and positioning statements.

Sales Strategy: The strategy for selling services, which uses the appropriate network of direct and indirect sales, marketing, service, and communication affiliates that extend the scope and depth of market reach, skills, expertise, technologies, services and the customer base. Subcategories include: service providers' strategies for partnerships and alliances; and vision for creating new and/or additional business.

Offering (Product) Strategy: An IT services provider's approach to product implementation and service delivery that emphasizes differentiation, functionality, methodology, and feature set as they map to current and future requirements. This criterion includes vision on improving business and process design, implement, test, change management, and training.

Business Model: The soundness and logic of the vendor's underlying business proposition within the context of changing market forces.

Vertical/Industry Strategy: The IT services provider's strategy to direct resources, skills and offerings to meet the specific needs of individual market segments, including industry buyers. Industry and process investments as revealed by dedicated resources, training and related assets (such as software or templates) in selected industries and processes.

Innovation: Direct, related, complementary and synergistic layouts of resources, expertise or capital for investment, consolidation, defensive or pre-emptive purposes. Investment in tools, methods, prebuilt assets, industry/process maps, and so on, to assist in improving speed and/or quality of implementation, reducing total cost of ownership (TCO) or accelerating ROI of solution.

Geographic Strategy: The provider's strategy to direct resources, skills and offerings to meet the specific needs of geographies outside the "home" or native geography, either directly or through partners, channels and subsidiaries, as appropriate for that geography and market. This criterion includes geographic scope to assist in global rollouts as well as appropriate global delivery centers around the world. As well as a strategy for replicating success of large-scale implementations.

Source: Gartner

Quadrant Descriptions

Leaders

Leaders are performing well today, gaining traction and mind share in the market; they have a clear vision of market direction, are helping clients beyond product road maps, and are actively building competencies to sustain their leadership position in the market.

Challengers

Challengers execute well today for the portfolio of work selected, and they continue to refine views of market direction. Most limitations of service providers listed as Challengers relate to geographic coverage and local assistance for clients, as well as global coordination of capabilities.

Visionaries

Visionaries articulate important market trends and direction. However, they may not be in a position to fully deliver and consistently execute. They may need to improve their optimization of service delivery. No Visionaries are present in this analysis, as the Oracle road map provides a clear direction for service providers to time the market.

Niche Players

Niche Players focus on a particular segment of the market, such as industry segment, functional area (for example, HCM and order management), or geographic region. Their ability to execute is limited to those focus areas and, therefore, is assessed accordingly. No Niche Players are present in this analysis, as all companies are among the largest service providers in the worldwide market for Oracle products. There are, however, many focused providers by country market, Oracle product set, or type of service in the market that are not evaluated here.

This Magic Quadrant analyzes the leading vendor landscape for Oracle Applications implementation services. The relative positioning of vendors in this Magic Quadrant is based on factors determined by Gartner as relevant to this market. We analyze consulting and solution implementation projects that may require a blend of business, industry, technology, program and project management skills that must align with the buyer's objectives, institutional and business culture, and employees.

When organizations are considering service providers for a request for information or request for proposal, they should not simply select service providers in the Leaders quadrant. All selection processes are enterprise-specific; consequently, vendors in the Challengers, Visionaries or Niche Players quadrants may prove to be more appropriate for an organization's engagement. This analysis is for the consulting and solution implementation services required for discrete project work only. This analysis excludes multiyear contractual engagements typical for outsourcing agreements. This Magic Quadrant is a point-in-time analysis, and the view covers key competitors with the breadth and scale of offerings across a large array of criteria. A service provider may appear in a specific quadrant of the analysis, given its strategy, as compared with the full market criteria set in this evaluation. As a result, in any given deal, provider selection is best decided by a client's needs; therefore, service providers should not underestimate any potential competitor because the inclusion criteria in the Magic Quadrant result in the analysis of the most-established providers in the implementation market. Other service providers not evaluated in this Magic Quadrant may present equally compelling alternatives for an organization's business and IT requirements.

Oracle has a large and extensive ecosystem of solution implementation and system integration partners; however, only a segment of these partners has the breadth and depth of capability to execute on large-scale engagements. These service providers compose solutions that bring together a vision for how Oracle Applications should align with a business strategy as well as the capability to design and implement that Oracle-based solution.

Solutions consist of offshore services — as a competitive necessity — to offer blended rates at low price points and establish scale for global capability. Standardized solutions through templates are becoming a reality as Oracle Applications have matured. Vertical market knowledge has increased as practitioners join consulting firms and bring intimacy into an industry practice. Execution excellence has improved as service providers have established quality programs for their delivery. Buyers today expect service providers to come to the table with a sophisticated set of processes to deliver repeatable, quality work.

In addition, service providers are partnering more closely with Oracle across the whole application development process. Those that co-develop help establish product functionality. Participants in early adopter programs gain experience for implementation of new products. Committed partners, such as Platinum partners with Oracle, gain insight into clients' needs and gaps in clients' application use. Diamond partners commit to having resources on staff for specific areas of expertise.

As organizations expand their global presence, they require vendors to provide products and services that fit that expansion. This Magic Quadrant looks at the largest service providers in the Oracle ecosystem that are building capabilities across the breadth of Oracle products for complete process solutions, as well as capabilities globally to service clients as organizations expand and grow.