The ERP market grew 11.3% in 2024 to $66 billion (Gartner), with Oracle ($8.7B) surpassing SAP ($8.6B) as the #1 vendor by revenue for the first time. Key market dynamics:
Key Segments: Large Enterprise ERP, Mid-Market ERP, SMB ERP, Industry Cloud, ERP Components (HCM, SCM, Finance)
| Company | Event | Date | Status | Impact |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SAP | Joule Cash Management Agent — automates reconciliation, identifies cash shortages/surpluses, saves 70% time on manual reconciliation | Q1 2026 | CONFIRMED | Major |
| SAP | Joule Bid Analysis Agent — automatically compares supplier bids including total cost, shipping, payment terms | Q1 2026 | CONFIRMED | Significant |
| SAP | Production Planning Agent — validates and releases production orders autonomously | Q1 2026 | ANNOUNCED | Significant |
| SAP | Joule Deep Research & Action Bar — new UX innovations in beta | Q1 2026 | ANNOUNCED | Moderate |
| Oracle | Release 26A — touchless corporate card processing, AI-assisted sourcing, Access Request Assistant agent | Q1 2026 | CONFIRMED | Significant |
| Oracle | 50+ Role-Based AI Agents — "Agentic Finance" for autonomous GL anomaly detection, supply chain pivots, automated close | 2026 | CONFIRMED | Major |
| Microsoft | Dynamics 365 License Enforcement — F&O user licenses enforced starting Jan 15, 2026 | Jan 15, 2026 | CONFIRMED | Significant |
| Microsoft | Copilot Agent Mode — Word, Excel, PowerPoint agents making active file changes with transparency | Jan 2026 | CONFIRMED | Significant |
| Workday | Military Skills Mapper — translates military backgrounds to civilian skills for recruiting | Feb 3, 2026 | CONFIRMED | Moderate |
| Workday | Demand Forecasting — Scheduling and Labor Optimization for retail/hospitality | Late Jan 2026 | CONFIRMED | Moderate |
| Infor | Industry AI Agents — role-based agents for manufacturing, distribution, services built on GenAI Assistant | Q1 2026 | CONFIRMED | Significant |
| Infor | Infor Leap — fixed-fee, fixed-timeline cloud migration program with 2-year satisfaction clause | Q1 2026 | CONFIRMED | Significant |
| NetSuite | 2026.1 Release — Analytics Warehouse AI Connector, MCP support for external AI (Claude, ChatGPT, Copilot) | Q1 2026 | CONFIRMED | Moderate |
| Vendor | Customer | Details | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| SAP | Nestlé | World's largest S/4HANA Cloud Private implementation — 50,000 users across 112 countries with Joule integration | CONFIRMED |
| Oracle | Alrajhi Medicine (Saudi Arabia) | First private healthcare group in Saudi to adopt Oracle Health + Fusion Applications as unified platform | CONFIRMED |
| Workday | Retail & Hospitality | 1,800+ retail/hospitality companies now using Workday for frontline workforce management | CONFIRMED |
| Type | Parties | Value | Status | Rationale |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acquisition | SAP → WalkMe | $1.5B | CONFIRMED | Digital adoption; 45% premium for customer value realization |
| Acquisition | SAP → LeanIX | Undisclosed | CONFIRMED | Enterprise architecture; AI-powered S/4HANA migration support |
| Acquisition | Oracle → Next Technik | Undisclosed | CONFIRMED | Field service management for NetSuite |
| Acquisition | Workday → Pipedream | Undisclosed | CONFIRMED | iPaaS platform connecting 3,000+ apps for agentic AI |
| Acquisition | Deloitte → SimplrOps | Undisclosed | CONFIRMED | ERP implementation automation (Workday, SAP, Oracle) |
59% of companies now fully/partially live on S/4HANA, up 13 percentage points from 2024. 30% on Cloud Private (up from 19%).
Oracle ($8.7B) overtook SAP ($8.6B) as #1 ERP vendor by revenue in 2024 for the first time.
43% of buyers say AI influenced their ERP decisions (up from 14% in 2023).
Jan 14: Companies leaving AI gains on table — productivity time lost to rework and output verification.
Named Leader in 2026 Gartner Magic Quadrant for CPQ and 2025 MQ for Cloud ERP (Product-Centric).
Consultant rates rising 30-50%; projects starting in 2026 face compressed timelines.
| Company | Event | Timing | Status | Impact |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Microsoft | Dynamics 365 Wave 1 2026 — semi-annual release across Sales, Finance, SCM, HR, Business Central | Apr 2026 | ANNOUNCED | Major |
| Oracle | Release 26B — quarterly Fusion Cloud update | Q2 2026 | EXPECTED | Significant |
| Workday | Workday Frontline Agent — AI agent for frontline worker support | Spring 2026 | ANNOUNCED | Significant |
| NetSuite | SuiteAgents Framework — agentic experiences within workflows | Q1-Q2 2026 | ANNOUNCED | Significant |
| Infor | Velocity Suite Expansion — process mining + automation + GenAI bundle | Q1-Q2 2026 | EXPECTED | Moderate |
| Company | Event | Date | Status | Significance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Workday | Q4 FY26 & Full Year Results | Feb 24, 2026 | CONFIRMED | Critical year for AI strategy validation |
| Infor | VISUAL Focus Conference | Feb 22-25, 2026 | CONFIRMED | Infor VISUAL ERP user conference, Mandalay Bay |
Commercial pricing updates for Microsoft 365 suites effective July 1, 2026 — includes expanded AI/security capabilities.
Cloud ERP Private adoption continues accelerating; legacy ECC usage now below 50% of installations.
Goldman Sachs notes 2026 critical for Workday updating core tech stack and integrating Sana acquisition.
HireVue, Paradox, Trintech, Euna launching AI integrations in Workday ecosystem.
| Event | Location | Dates | Status | Significance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SAP Sapphire & ASUG Annual Conference | Orlando, FL | May 11-13, 2026 | CONFIRMED | Major product announcements, S/4HANA roadmap, Joule expansion |
| SAP Sapphire Virtual | Online | May 12-13, 2026 | CONFIRMED | Livestreamed from Orlando |
| SAP Sapphire Madrid | Madrid, Spain | May 19-21, 2026 | CONFIRMED | European market focus |
| BLUEPRINT 4D Cloud Summit | Dallas, TX | May 4-7, 2026 | CONFIRMED | Oracle Cloud community event |
| Company | Prediction | Status | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| SAP | SAP Cloud ERP — successor to legacy ERP/Business Suite; cloud-first, AI-based platform | ANNOUNCED | Unveiled Aug 2025, continued rollout |
| NetSuite | NetSuite Next Preview — AI-first ERP with Ask Oracle, Autonomous Close, AI Canvas | EXPECTED | Late 2026 GA, preview at events |
| Workday | Military Skills Mapper GA — full availability for Workday Recruiting | ANNOUNCED | Fall 2026 availability announced |
| All Vendors | Autonomous ERP Capabilities — agents handling close, reconciliation, procurement autonomously | EXPECTED | Current trajectory of agentic AI features |
S/4HANA roadmap updates, Joule expansion, industry cloud announcements expected at May event.
18 months to SAP ECC end-of-life. Organizations starting now face compressed timelines and premium costs.
Natural language ERP interaction could reshape mid-market expectations for all vendors.
As all vendors reach 50+ agents, differentiation shifts to industry-specific depth and integration quality.
Joule agents (Cash, Bid, Production), 59% S/4HANA adoption, 2027 deadline driving urgency, Sapphire May 11-13
Fusion Cloud +18% growth, "Agentic Finance" vision, Alrajhi Medicine win, CloudWorld Oct 26-29
Wave 1 2026 (Apr), license enforcement Jan 15, Copilot Agent mode, pricing changes July 2026
1,800 retail/hospitality customers, Frontline Agent (Spring), Pipedream acquisition, FY26 results Feb 24
Industry AI Agents, Leap migration program, Velocity Suite, VISUAL Focus Feb 22-25
2026.1 AI Connector, MCP support, Ask Oracle natural language, Autonomous Close, late 2026 GA
AI enhancements, strong professional services/nonprofit, mid-market cloud focus
Flexible cloud ERP, strong channel, construction vertical strength
Kinetic platform, manufacturing-focused cloud transition
Aerospace, defense, energy, field service management strength
This report uses live web research from February 2026 sources including SAP News Center, Oracle investor relations, Microsoft Learn, Workday newsroom, and industry publications. Most items are now CONFIRMED or ANNOUNCED rather than predicted.
| Level | This Report | Description |
|---|---|---|
| CONFIRMED | ~55% | Press releases, official announcements |
| ANNOUNCED | ~25% | Roadmaps, scheduled events |
| EXPECTED | ~15% | High-confidence based on patterns |
| RUMORED | ~0% | Industry speculation |
| PREDICTED | ~5% | Analyst inference |
59% adoption sounds high, but 41% still need to migrate. Consultant rates 30-50% higher. Projects starting in 2026 face severe timeline compression.
Workday research (Jan 14) shows AI gains being absorbed by rework—fixing mistakes, verifying outputs. ROI not guaranteed.
Microsoft Dynamics F&O enforcement (Jan 15) may catch unprepared organizations with compliance gaps.
Microsoft 365 pricing update July 2026 adds cost. All vendors raising prices for AI capabilities.
50+ AI agents per vendor creates complexity. Organizations struggle to adopt and measure effectively.
Autonomous agents deeply integrated into workflows increase switching costs significantly.