The Forrester Wave™: Collaborative Supply Networks, Q4 2024

Collaborative Supply Networks Vendor Product Comparisons 2024

Key features and pros and cons of top Collaborative Supply Networks products:

Coupa - Leaders

Pros:

No-code platform with 12+ million configuration options powering 10 million suppliers and buyers
Above-par roadmap with detailed features and dates for next four releases, delivering 350 features in 2023
$200 million annual development budget with three major releases per year and minor releases every two weeks
Above-par partner ecosystem with 10,000 certified implementors
Impressive 110% renewal rate through outcome-directed client engagement model
Superior intelligent order management with scenario modeling and best fulfillment option search
Above-par discovery and recall functionality with user-defined search criteria and network data insights
Superior supporting services including treasury and inventory management
Effective in boosting supply chain resilience and sustainability

Cons:

Not explicitly mentioned in the report

RELEX Solutions - Leaders

Pros:

In-memory analytics enabling fine-grained supply chain digital twin modeling
Superior vision of adaptive and autonomous supply chain
Above-par innovation strategy with 25-30% of revenue invested in R&D
97.2% retention rate demonstrating strong client satisfaction
Above-par pricing flexibility with value-based pricing delivering 1,000% ROI
Superior intelligent order management using multiobjective constrained optimization
Above-par demand signal and forecast collaboration with sophisticated predictive modeling
Above-par multitier visibility with preconfigured EU supply chain due diligence support
Sophisticated understanding of demand management

Cons:

Not explicitly mentioned in the report

SAP - Leaders

Pros:

Business network manages $5.8 trillion in transactions across 190 countries
Superior network participant identification and authentication via Ariba network
Above-par connectivity supporting xml, EDI, fax, and email
Impressive discovery and recall with supplier lifecycle and performance data
Superior constraint-based planning with sophisticated mathematical modeling
Above-par multitier visibility with scope 3 carbon footprint and EU compliance support
Above-par adoption strategy with 92.3% retention rate
Above-par pricing strategy aligned with realized client value
Established global business network for supply chain synchronization

Cons:

Declined to participate in full Forrester Wave evaluation process

Anaplan - Strong Performers

Pros:

Above-par partner ecosystem with recognizable global systems integrators and 1,000+ certified resources
Above-par commit and upside collaboration with dynamic ATP/CTP data
Superior application cohesion with common low-code platform and configurable UX
Impressive constraint-based planning enabling user-defined objective functions
Effective support for onboarding and boosting resilience
Full transparency and accountability for collaborative decision-making

Cons:

Below-par multitier visibility with limited support for scope 3 carbon footprint and compliance
Mixed customer views about platform scalability
Roadmap shared only at high-level to Forrester

Blue Yonder - Strong Performers

Pros:

Above-par vision of adaptive multienterprise network
99.2% retention rate for ONE platform showing strong adoption
Above-par connectivity with 950 public APIs and various formats/protocols
Above-par discovery and recall with purpose-built functionality and chain of custody
Above-par intelligent order management with autonomous agent-based selection
Above-par commit and upside collaboration with network alerts for ATP/CTP changes
Unified planning and execution through One Network acquisition
Effective scalability, forecast collaboration, and innovation per customer feedback

Cons:

Below-par roadmap lacking detail on items, timing, and resourcing
Partner ecosystem strategy lacks quantification of certified implementation resources
Below-par supply network optimization (dynamic inventory placement vs. network node replanning)

e2open - Strong Performers

Pros:

Above-par innovation strategy with $130 million annual investment in AI/ML-powered digital twins
Above-par discovery and recall with supply chain visualization at all bill of materials levels
Above-par demand signal and forecast collaboration with real-time event response
Impressive internationalization supporting global trade management in 200+ jurisdictions
Platform scalability and ability to improve resilience confirmed by customers
End-to-end supply chain platform for ecosystem collaboration

Cons:

Below-par roadmap with no disclosed details or dates
GenAI lacks workflow described by on-par vendors
Often used to complement Oracle deployments lacking collaborative functionality

IBM - Strong Performers

Pros:

Above-par network participant authentication including EU self-sovereign identity framework support
Superior connectivity with cross-functional protocols and hundreds of thousands of EDI endpoints
Above-par roadmap with detailed dates and features
Superior scheduling change symmetry capabilities
Extreme-scale microservices for delivering perfect order
Strategic partnership with Adobe for Order Management solutions
Blockchain support for supply chain authentication
Platform scalability praised by reference customers

Cons:

Below-par discovery and recall with no explicit disclosure of recall functionality
Below-par embedded genAI offering only visualization dashboards without generated content
On-par innovation, partner ecosystem, adoption, and supporting services

Kinaxis - Strong Performers

Pros:

Above-par partner ecosystem with 100 partners and 11,480 certified professionals
Above-par synchronization of master data with data cleansing and bidirectional sync
Impressive commit and upside collaboration with sophisticated ATP/CTP syndication
Above-par constraint-based planning with mathematically optimized sourcing decisions
Platform scalability and effectiveness in boosting resilience confirmed by customers
In-memory supply chain planning and execution solution
Sophisticated application of data fabric and AI technologies to multienterprise S&OP

Cons:

On-par strategy and roadmap
On-par multitier visibility with specific EU compliance support
Primarily appeals to enterprises growing by acquisition needing to synchronize heterogeneous ERP instances

o9 Solutions - Strong Performers

Pros:

Superior multienterprise collaborative scheduling with real-time alerts and rescheduling
Above-par internationalization with global trade compliance and address validation
Above-par architecture with modular containerization and zero-downtime upgrades
Above-par embedded AI/ML with TensorFlow and neural networks enabling 70% touchless planning
Above-par embedded genAI using synthetic data for S&OP and task tracking
Innovation strategy, scalability, and onboarding commended by customers
GenAI and LLMs to convert tribal knowledge into digital knowledge models

Cons:

Below-par roadmap lacking details or dates
Below-par adoption with no disclosed client attrition or retention rates
Below-par network participant authentication lacking legal entity ID or SSI
On-par strategy overall

SupplyOn - Strong Performers

Pros:

Above-par network participant authentication with EU SSI framework support
Superior semantic harmonization with active role in defining industry standards
Above-par portfolio cohesion with consistent UI and central role/permission control
Analytics layer converging enterprise and IoT data for supply chain digital twin
AI-infused multitier supply chain collaboration platform
Strong buy-side and sell-side network collaboration for tiered supply chains

Cons:

No supply network optimization functionality (clients use complementary applications)
Below-par adoption score due to undisclosed retention/attrition rates
Did not provide reference customers for evaluation
On-par strategy overall

OpenText - Contenders

Pros:

Above-par roadmap sharing detailed functionality by release date
Above-par partner ecosystem with 15,000 certified implementation professionals
Named partnerships with public cloud providers and global systems integrators
Application marketplace for extended functionality
ESG-related compliance and risk monitoring for suppliers
Supply chain performance and disruption monitoring
Provenance tracking of manufactured goods through supply chain

Cons:

Below-par current offering for demand signal/forecast collaboration, commit/upside collaboration, collaborative master scheduling, and supply network optimization
Below-par innovation with lack of public data on innovation investment
Below-par adoption with no disclosed client retention data
Below-par pricing flexibility and transparency
Declined to participate in full Forrester Wave evaluation process

TraceLink - Contenders

Pros:

Above-par connectivity with API connectors to multiple named ERP systems
Multiple data exchange protocols to accommodate large diverse client base
Outstanding chain of custody capabilities
Well-known pharmaceutical supply chain traceability
1,600 clients including 800+ life science manufacturers and 284,000+ patient-facing organizations
Ideal chain-of-custody solution for complex supply networks with stringent regulatory requirements

Cons:

Below-par vision and roadmap compared to integrated planning/execution solutions
Weaknesses in demand signal/forecast collaboration and constraint-based planning
Only one reference customer responded to Forrester outreach
On-par innovation and pricing strategies
Primarily focused on supply chain execution rather than planning

Infor - Challenger

Pros:

Above-par portfolio cohesion dependent on operating system
Above-par multitier visibility
Impressive innovation history including predictive ETA (2016), control tower (2019), carbon monitoring (2023)
Extensible low-code logistics platform
Complementary solutions for network design, S&OP, demand, supply, inventory, transportation, sustainability
Strong global trade management capabilities

Cons:

Innovation plans lack quantification of R&D budget
No supply network optimization functionality (available only as complementary solution)
Below-par constraint-based planning with configurable modeling not meeting on-par standards
Declined to participate in full Forrester Wave evaluation process
Primarily appeals as complement to existing supply chain planning rather than integrated solution

FAQs

Q: Which vendors are Leaders in 2024?

A: Coupa, RELEX Solutions, SAP

Q: What does "Leader" mean in Forrester Wave terms?

A: Leaders in the Forrester Wave for Collaborative Supply Networks are vendors that demonstrate the strongest current offering and strategy. They excel in providing platforms that help enterprises scale multienterprise responses to volatility through: 1) Platform adoption with ease of onboarding and sustained investment in user experience and full range of use cases to minimize client attrition, 2) Multitier supply chain visibility to map extended supply chains and verify ESG credentials at every tier, and 3) Constraint-based planning using mathematical optimization techniques to systematically explore optimal sourcing, production, and distribution decisions. Leaders typically show strong innovation investments, detailed roadmaps, robust partner ecosystems, high client retention rates, and superior capabilities in areas like intelligent order management, demand/forecast collaboration, discovery and recall, and network optimization.

Q: How do I interpret a Forrester Wave?

A: https://www.forrester.com/policies/forrester-wave-methodology/

Report:

Top Vendor Products for Collaborative Supply Networks in 2024

Collaborative Supply Networks Vendor Product Comparisons 2024

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FAQs

Q: Which vendors are Leaders in 2024?

Q: What does "Leader" mean in Forrester Wave terms?

Q: How do I interpret a Forrester Wave?

Reference