SAP or Oracle?

SAP or Oracle is a very common topic which has been debated over and will continue to do so. Today we are going to explore what separates these two companies.

Enterprise resource planning software has been around for as long as commercial software has been available to businesses. Both SAP and Oracle have long invested in ERP technology to bring together the financial records of enterprise businesses, with product offerings that get more complex and potentially more useful every year. Since SAP and Oracle both have a highly financial focus, many of the common features are accounting and reconciliation-based financial software. This software encompasses features to streamline the upkeep of records, consolidation across departments and locations and integration of sales and procurement from the entire supply chain. So, what makes them different? Do you select SAP or Oracle?

SAP primarily builds its products from the ground up and targets companies with at least $1 billion in annual revenue.

Oracle’s main strength is acquiring product lines that can provide flexible functionality to a variety of industry niches, targeting companies with at least $750 million in annual revenue.

Now, let’s have a look at head to head comparison in the below table:

	SAP	Oracle
Sector	Enterprise resource planning.	Database management system.
Functionality	Real-time management of business processes.	Managed data in enterprises.
Languages	SAP runs on ABAP language.	Oracle is accessed via SQL.
Definition	SAP provides set of tools to facilitate information flow in business.	Oracle is a multi-model database management system.
Key Area	SAP is Application + Database.	Oracle is Database only, with no application.
Functional Area	Sales, Distribution, Accounting etc.	Data warehousing, transaction processing, database workloads etc.
Product	SAP R/3	Oracle Database 18c
Cost	SAP implementation cost is considered higher.	Oracle implementation cost is lower compared to SAP ERP.

Once you have a clear picture of the differences between SAP and Oracle, you should check their online training programmes which are structured according to the skills required to streamline business processes. SAP users can receive training on Finance, Material Management and HR etc. Similarly, Oracle users can sharpen their skills in configuring, installing, designing and managing.

SAP provides an enterprise solution for a business process which can include database capabilities as well. Oracle can provide a data-solution, which is just one of the components of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP). SAP gives the business a comprehensive solution for all your enterprise level needs, whereas Oracle operates on multiple operating systems or platforms and would provide a solution for all data related requirements.

Choosing SAP or Oracle

To conclude when choosing between SAP or Oracle it is recommended that enterprises and multinational businesses looking to streamline their financials, supply chain and procurement departments fully investigate what SAP and Oracle have to offer, including on-boarding, data enablement and ongoing support. Implementing a new ERP solution requires significant investment in time and capital and many businesses fail to fully prepare and properly train their employees on a new ERP, which greatly reduces the overall success of the investment. Be sure to do your research, understand your company’s immediate and future feature needs and confirm that the ERP providers you talk to offer ongoing support after the sale is complete.

Here at Cavendish Professionals we recruit for many different SAP consultants’ roles internationally. If you are on the lookout for talented SAP consultants or you are a SAP consultant searching for a new challenge, look no further and get in touch with us today via our technology team and we will be happy to assist.