Lumenia to host ERP HEADtoHEAD Dublin for 15th year

Lumenia Consulting will hold its ERP HEADtoHEAD Dublin event at the Crowne Plaza Dublin Airport, marking the event's 15th year in Ireland.

The two-day programme is aimed at organisations considering an ERP upgrade, replacement or first-time implementation. It will feature side-by-side demonstrations of 13 ERP systems using predefined business scenarios, rather than vendor-led presentations.

The scenarios will cover finance, procurement, supply chain planning, manufacturing, human capital management, and business intelligence and analytics. Vendors due to be represented include Microsoft, SAP, Sage, Infor, and IFS.

The format is intended to give delegates a more direct comparison across core business processes. The event will also include customer case studies, panel discussions, and networking sessions involving software vendors, implementation partners, and business leaders.

Selection process

ERP selection remains a significant decision for many organisations because these systems sit at the centre of finance, operations, workforce management, and reporting. Projects to replace or implement ERP software can involve large budgets, long deployment periods, and wide-ranging changes to internal processes.

That has helped drive demand for comparison-based events and external advisory services, particularly among mid-sized and larger companies weighing products from global software providers. Buyers are also under pressure to assess not only software features, but also implementation readiness, internal resourcing, and project risk.

Lumenia's consultants are due to provide guidance on readiness, system selection, and implementation planning. The programme also includes a panel discussion on the role of artificial intelligence in the ERP market, reflecting the growing focus on how software suppliers are integrating AI features into business systems.

Ian O'Toole outlined the factors that can lead companies to review their core systems.

"A variety of factors can drive the, sometimes urgent, need to update or replace business systems. These can include growth, mergers and acquisitions, evolving business operations, technical redundancy, and so on. Comparing ERP solutions can be difficult and time-consuming. ERP HEADtoHEAD gives business leaders the opportunity to see leading systems side by side, ask detailed questions, and learn from organisations that have already been through the process," said Ian O'Toole, Managing Partner, Lumenia Consulting.

Market context

The ERP market has been reshaped in recent years by cloud adoption, subscription pricing, and a push by software groups to bring data analysis, automation, and AI tools into finance and operations platforms. For buyers, that has made product comparisons more complex as the range of deployment models and functional add-ons has widened.

In Ireland, as in other markets, many companies are reviewing legacy systems that may no longer meet current reporting, supply chain, or workforce requirements. Mergers, international expansion, and changing compliance demands have also increased pressure on management teams to reassess back-office software.

Industry events that allow prospective buyers to compare systems in a structured setting have become one way through that process. The ERP HEADtoHEAD format centres on common scenarios so organisations can judge how competing products handle similar tasks.

Lumenia has run the ERP HEADtoHEAD series since 2010. The Dublin edition is now in its 15th year, and the wider series has reached its 28th event. The company, which has offices in Ireland and the UK, focuses on ERP strategy, selection, and implementation advice.

O'Toole said the event is intended to help organisations make decisions more efficiently.

"Combined with expert-led sessions, customer insights, and opportunities to engage directly with solution providers, the event is designed to help organisations evaluate the market more efficiently and make more informed ERP decisions," said O'Toole.