If you haven’t heard, we’re celebrating 25 years of Intellitec Solutions this year, which feels like an incredible milestone. It also has got us thinking back on when we first started out and reminiscing over how rapidly technology in the ERP business has changed in such a short amount of time. We started to realize, a lot of trends came and went, as seemingly “world-changing” technologies, concepts, and even buzzwords that we thought might become the norm just didn’t stick.
So, we thought we’d get you in on the nostalgia trip by sharing 25 of the fads we found to be the most impactful and relatable in our experience (and we’ll see if you agree!).
The Millennium Wasn’t the End of the World
Many of us remember that growing fear of what would happen when the clocks hit midnight on January 1, 2000. Thankfully, it wasn’t the case. Our technology survived and from there came our earliest fads as we navigated the brave new world of the early 2000s and launching Intellitec Solutions.
1. The “Y2K Scare” (1998–2000)
Again, the Year 2000 Problem caused a big stir starting around ’98. Obviously, nothing terrible happened thanks to upgraded, fixed, or uncaring systems.
2. E-mazing Use of “E-” for “Electronic-” Something (2000–2002)
Everyone slapping “e-“onto every word to appeal to tech savvy consumers but the “e-“ was eventually dropped from most day-to-day business offerings. Glad we didn’t go with “Intellitec E-Solutions”, in hindsight.
3. The Great “Project Green” Dream (2003–2007)
Those in the biz heard tell of Microsoft’s “Project Green”, a plan to unify four ERP solutions into one: Great Plains, Navision, Solomon, and Axapta. However, it proved to be too disruptive and pricey, so they cancelled it.
4. Making ERP Personal for Your Industry (2005–2012)
Vendors and resellers saw the gap in the ERP business caused by a “one-size-fits-all” approach and a race began to create “industry flavored”, vertical-specific solutions for construction, healthcare, warehousing, etc., which are now just packaged back into today’s platforms.
5. The Social ERP Network…? (2006–2010)
Many ERP developers thought social-looking activity feeds and the ability to like and comment on each other’s work or jump into chats and use emojis was needed. In the end, though, people just wanted to get their work done, so most of those features faded away.
6. The ERP Consolidation (Early 2000s–2010s)
There used to be many small ERP developers until the big three, Microsoft, Sage, and Oracle/NetSuite, began acquiring the competition into the handful of ERP available now. It’s a classic business strategy and isn’t surprising, but 25 years ago, the ERP business landscape was very different!
Everyone Online Always
The 2010s into the 2020s saw the stabilization of the internet, as network options for both home and businesses became faster & easier to connect, leading to an explosion in technology. Social media exploded, the cloud offered a digital storage solution, Apple reinvented the way we use phones, and video conferencing expanded. These and many other factors have heavily influenced technology and how we use it.
7. That Time Dexterity Was the Go-To Language (1993–2010)
If you haven’t heard of it, Great Plains was developed on its own custom language, Dexterity, and gave Dynamics GP users the ability to customize their ERP into exactly what they needed. Unfortunately, it fell out of fashion as web- and cloud-based technologies became the standard.
8. “The Very First Cloud Company” (1998–2016)
NetSuite branded itself the founders of the cloud ERP, as they brought out the first truly multi-tenant cloud ERP. As everyone started tapping into the cloud though, their founding-story salespoint lost its luster.
9. The Years of Cloud-Washing (2010–2014)
Not everyone had a real handle on cloud technology like NetSuite, but most tried to claim they did. A lot of publishers tried to connect their on-premise solutions and slap a “cloud” label on it, without actually rebuilding the architecture into a true multi-tenant SaaS. Thankfully, consumers got savvier and vendors either stopped trying to sell something they didn’t have, or they built a truly cloud-ready solution.
10. In-Memory Thrill Ride (2011–2016)
SAP’s HANA (High-performance ANalytic Appliance) stores data in RAM rather than on a hard disc drive, letting you comb through tons of data fast. Of course, everyone wanted a piece of that, but performance gains aside, it’s really expensive and more technology than the average mid-market business needs, cooling the hype.
11. Everyone Got an App for That (2011–2016)
The advent of smart phones drove every ERP vendor to get into the App Store, but people quickly realized that most modules didn’t translate well to mobile form.
12. The Buzz for “Big Data” (2012–2016)
“Big Data” became the buzzword du jour and was a part of almost every conversation we had as a catch-all for describing the amount of data we all dealt with. We eventually figured out specific terms instead.
13. Connecting Everything with IoT (2014–2019)
IoT, the Internet of Things, where every piece of manufacturing technology had a wireless connection added for the Industry 4.0 era. Naturally, ERP vendors wanted to integrate that, and we have, but not at the scale or as easily as we thought.
14. Warehouse Wearables (2015–2018)
Another Industry 4.0 innovation came with wearable smart technology to bring more hands-free efficiency to the shop floor. However, they have yet to become an industry standard due to cost and fragility.
15. “Digital Transformation” Gets the Buzz (2015–2021)
While it was a great way to inspire and describe any big tech initiative for a company, the phrase started to lose all meaning after being used too much. Like “Big Data”, we have found ways to get more specific in WHAT technology is transforming.
16. Perpetual Licenses Move Over for SaaS (2015–2022)
We started seeing a huge push for customers to get into a more flexible and financially reliable (for vendors) subscription- or consumption-based pay structure, though not everyone was ready to adopt so fast. Now this is largely the industry norm.
17. ERP That Talks Back (2017–2020)
AI technology has been around longer than the current buzz, as we saw with the wave of chatbots in different ERPs. Since the language models were clunky and couldn’t reliably communicate the complexities of the ERP environment well-enough to help, and they faded away… until today.
18. The Blockchain Meets the Supply Chain (2017–2020)
Blockchain technology was posed as the solution to make a more trustworthy and traceable supply chain. It seemed good on paper, but hype faded when the whole process became too complex for the payoff when companies tried to apply it across trading partners who didn’t have compatible technology or the funds to set it up.
Making Work More Flexible
As we got into the 2020s, there was a lot of focus on making work more flexible in various ways. Not to mention a certain global crisis forced our hands in many ways. That drive also affected the ERP business world and it’s where we’re currently sitting.
19. Boom of Low-Code/No-Code ERP (2019–2024)
Simplifying the backend of ERP and other platforms, vendors promised full customization by anyone, without the need for IT oversight. The whole “no IT needed” thing only went so far, though: it’s good for little things but, eventually, companies need IT to make any truly impactful and safe changes to their platforms.
20. The Work from Home Movement (2020–2021)
COVID-19 shook up the whole world in many ways, and it was no different at the office, which many people were forced to take home. That drove an urgent need to make remote access and cloud offerings the focus for most developers, helping to stabilize the remote and hybrid work environments. Now the pace of cloud adoption has normalized.
The Fads That Last
Finally, we highlight what started as a fad or buzzword but has stood the test of time. Alternatively, there are fads that have faded and then made periodic comebacks. It’s really interesting to see what sticks when compared to the above.
21. The Paperless Promise (2000–Present)
We’ve seen offices move away from paper with every new tech innovation, but also, we haven’t. We consistently see a new solution yet again promise you can go paperless, but paper still remains an integral part of the office.
22. ERP Marketing Messaging Pendulum (2000s–Present)
One year it’s “A focused ‘best-in-breed’ is the way to go,” and then a few years later it’s, “You should have a ‘one-size-fits-all’ solution”, and then it shifts back. So, what’s the real answer? Do one thing well or everything fine? We’ll see what the ERP business world says next year!
23. You’ll Upgrade If We Tell You To (2001–Present)
The world’s big retailers (Amazon, Costco, Walmart, etc.) update their EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) requirements periodically, which forces everyone in the supply chain to upgrade their ERP. If they don’t, then they can’t do business with said retailers.
24. An ERP By Any Other Name… Again (2001–Present)
Companies just can’t stop rebranding and renaming their systems with each new acquisition, sometimes multiple times within a product’s lifetime. It gets really confusing and frustrating for customers to keep track of 3 or 4 new names for the same product in as many years. Thankfully, we’ve hit a nice plateau as the cost of renaming and rebranding far outweighs the benefits. Trust us, though, it’s still gonna’ happen!
25. AI Agents for Everyone (2023–Present)
Every major ERP has been chasing the AI boom and announcing some sort of copilot or assistant integrated into their platform. Unfortunately, they’re not all truly AI. As the current hype dies off, we’ll see the truly autonomous AI agents stand out in the end.
26. SURPRISE ENTRY! Intellitec Solutions (2021–Present)
Well, we certainly don’t consider ourselves a fad but starting a new business is always a scary thing. 25 years of working with great clients and a fantastic team, though, has proven we have what it takes. Our expertise with various industries, our deep knowledge of some of the biggest ERP systems, together with our love for what we do, for helping our clients succeed, we feel is what has made Intellitec Solutions more than a fad.
With that said, thanks for going on this trip down memory lane with us while we celebrate our 25th anniversary. It’s been a wild ride looking back on the past quarter century in the ERP business and seeing how far technology has come and the changes it brings to our industry, and our clients. If you want to reminisce with us or actually have questions about a “digital transformation” (lol), then reach out to our team, we’d love to talk.
