About ERP Management

ERP Management

ERP Management is the German-language specialist journal for enterprise-wide application systems, published in Berlin by the GITO Verlag. Introduced in 2005, it appears six times a year and concentrates on the ERP domain: the selection, implementation and use of enterprise resource planning systems, and complex software-integration topics. Edited by Norbert Gronau, professor of business informatics at the University of Potsdam, the journal combines academic rigor with practical relevance, addressing IT decision-makers, consultants and project managers across industries. As the organizer of the "ERP-System des Jahres" competition, awarded annually since 2007, ERP Management has become the leading orientation medium of the German-speaking ERP market.

Overview

ERP Management – short for Enterprise Resource Planning Management – is published by the Gito mbH Verlag (GITO Verlag) in Berlin-Charlottenburg. The journal appears six times a year, carries the print ISSN 1860-6725, and is edited by Norbert Gronau, who holds the chair of business informatics, in particular processes and systems, at the University of Potsdam and serves as scientific director of the Center Industrie 4.0 Potsdam. The managing director of the publishing house is Chantal Ruppert.

The journal is a cross-industry specialist medium focused on the ERP field. Its program informs readers about enterprise-wide application systems and about the selection, implementation and operation of ERP systems, as well as complex software-integration topics that arise when companies connect their core systems to the surrounding application landscape. Trade-press directories describe it as by far the leading medium for orientation on the ERP market, guiding readers through the selection, introduction, operation and replacement of ERP systems and reporting on the challenges and trends of the field.

The readership consists of CIOs and IT managers, ERP project managers, consultants and system integrators, and executives responsible for business processes and digitalization – in manufacturing, trade, services and the public sector alike, wherever enterprise systems shape daily operations. The journal's sister publications are Fabriksoftware and Industrie 4.0 Management, which together with ERP Management form the GITO portfolio for industrial IT.

History

ERP Management was introduced in 2005 by the Berlin-based GITO Verlag, at a time when enterprise resource planning systems had become the backbone of medium and large companies and the market for ERP software was consolidating and internationalizing. The journal's founding editor, Norbert Gronau, brought an academic perspective to the new title: as a professor of business informatics and author of standard works on ERP systems, he positioned the journal at the intersection of research and practice.

A milestone in the journal's development came in 2007 with the launch of the "ERP-System des Jahres" (ERP System of the Year) competition, which ERP Management has organized annually ever since. The competition evaluates ERP systems across categories and has become a recognized benchmark in the German-speaking ERP market, giving vendors a prestigious award and giving buyers an independent orientation aid. The journal's role as competition organizer reinforced its position as the neutral authority of the ERP scene.

In recent years the journal has expanded its evaluation formats. Working with GITO Media and in close cooperation with the Center for Enterprise Research at the University of Potsdam, the editorial team now publishes annual TOP 10 ERP systems for key industries – beginning with mechanical engineering – and awards a "TOP 10 ERP-System" seal to solutions that demonstrate particularly high suitability for the industry's requirements. The selection is based on criteria including industry-specific functionality, customer satisfaction, verified references, specialist and market coverage of the vendor, awards already won, and case studies transparently presenting customer project goals and successes.

Content and Sections

The content of ERP Management follows the lifecycle of enterprise systems. Selection topics help readers navigate the ERP market: market overviews, evaluation methodologies and comparisons of systems support the complex decision of choosing the right platform. Implementation articles address project management, change management, data migration and the organizational challenges of ERP rollouts. Operation and optimization topics cover the productive use of systems, upgrades, and the integration of ERP with surrounding applications such as CRM, MES, PLM and business-intelligence tools.

A distinctive editorial thread is the connection between ERP and the broader digitalization of industry. Articles explore how ERP systems interact with Industry 4.0 concepts, the Internet of Things, artificial intelligence and advanced planning systems, reflecting the journal's academic roots at the University of Potsdam's Center Industrie 4.0. Complex software-integration topics – from enterprise application integration to API management – are treated with the technical depth that the journal's expert readership expects.

The competition coverage forms a further pillar: reports on the "ERP-System des Jahres" award, the TOP 10 industry rankings and the seal awards give readers independent, criteria-based assessments of the market's leading solutions. Case studies from user companies show how ERP projects succeed in practice, with transparent accounts of project goals, challenges and results. Together these formats give the journal a distinctive role: not just reporting on the market, but actively structuring it through transparent evaluation.

Publisher and Organization

The publisher is the Gito mbH Verlag (GITO Verlag), based in Berlin-Charlottenburg, with Chantal Ruppert as managing director. The publishing house specializes in industrial IT media, with ERP Management as its flagship journal alongside the sister publications Fabriksoftware and Industrie 4.0 Management. The GITO Media activities extend the publishing business into selection kits, seals and consulting formats for the ERP market.

The editor is Norbert Gronau, professor of business informatics at the University of Potsdam and scientific director of the Center Industrie 4.0 Potsdam. His academic position gives the journal direct access to current research: the cooperation with the Center for Enterprise Research at the University of Potsdam underpins the journal's evaluation formats, from the annual competition to the TOP 10 industry rankings. This integration of university research and trade journalism is unusual in the German trade-press landscape and defines the journal's character.

The journal's authors include academics, consultants and practitioners from the ERP community, and its pages serve as a forum where vendors, users and researchers meet to debate the future of enterprise software. The "ERP-System des Jahres" competition, with its independent juries and transparent criteria, embodies this forum character and has made the journal a fixture of the industry's annual calendar.

Digital Presence

The digital presence of ERP Management centers on erp-management.de, the journal's online portal, which carries news, background articles and information on the journal's issues and competitions. The portal extends the six-issue print rhythm with continuously updated reporting on the ERP market, from vendor news to the announcements of competition winners and TOP 10 rankings.

The GITO Media digital formats complement the journal: the ERP selection kits for industries such as mechanical engineering are published online, giving buyers downloadable orientation aids based on the editorial team's evaluations. The "ERP-System des Jahres" competition is presented and documented digitally, with the award ceremonies covered as industry events. Newsletters keep subscribers informed about new issues, competition deadlines and market developments, ensuring the journal stays present in its readers' inboxes between the six print editions.

As a specialist journal with an academic editor, a six-issue print rhythm and a growing digital service layer of rankings, seals and selection kits, ERP Management exemplifies the modern trade-media model for complex B2B markets: journalism as the trusted core, surrounded by evaluation formats and decision aids that monetize the same editorial expertise and serve the same community of IT decision-makers.