Infor M3 vs. SAP Business ByDesign

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Infor M3
Score 6.6 out of 10
N/A
Infor M3 is designed for medium to large global manufacturers, distributors, and after-sales service providers—delivering flexibility to manage mixed-mode and complex value chains. M3 is designed with industry-specific functionality and flexible deployment options, and presents a multi-company, multi-country, and multi-site enterprise resource planning (ERP) cloud solution platform. M3 was originally developed by Intentia, which merged with Lawson (2005), and which in turn was acquired by…N/A
SAP Business ByDesign
Score 7.4 out of 10
Mid-Size Companies (51-1,000 employees)
SAP Business ByDesign is SAP's cloud ERP suite offering, launched in 2007, designed for the SMB market. The product includes a broad range of capabilities including financials, human resources, sales, procurement, customer service, and supply chain. Business ByDesign is a new platform, delivered entirely through a SaaS model, with functionality that overlaps somewhat with BusinessOne, which is also an SMB product, although not a true SaaS product.N/A
Pricing
Infor M3SAP Business ByDesign
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Infor M3SAP Business ByDesign
Free Trial
NoYes
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeOptional
Additional DetailsSAP Business ByDesign is available for a monthly software-as-a-service (SaaS) subscription, based on a base package, user types, and number of users.
More Pricing Information
Features
Infor M3SAP Business ByDesign
Payroll Management
Comparison of Payroll Management features of Product A and Product B
Infor M3
8.6
4 Ratings
18% above category average
SAP Business ByDesign
8.4
2 Ratings
15% above category average
Pay calculation9.04 Ratings00 Ratings
Benefit plan administration9.04 Ratings4.51 Ratings
Direct deposit files8.04 Ratings9.11 Ratings
Customization
Comparison of Customization features of Product A and Product B
Infor M3
8.0
4 Ratings
10% above category average
SAP Business ByDesign
9.2
5 Ratings
24% above category average
API for custom integration8.04 Ratings9.24 Ratings
Plug-ins8.04 Ratings9.25 Ratings
Security
Comparison of Security features of Product A and Product B
Infor M3
8.0
4 Ratings
2% below category average
SAP Business ByDesign
9.3
5 Ratings
13% above category average
Single sign-on capability8.04 Ratings9.04 Ratings
Role-based user permissions8.04 Ratings9.65 Ratings
Reporting & Analytics
Comparison of Reporting & Analytics features of Product A and Product B
Infor M3
8.7
6 Ratings
22% above category average
SAP Business ByDesign
9.2
5 Ratings
28% above category average
Dashboards8.05 Ratings8.85 Ratings
Standard reports9.06 Ratings9.25 Ratings
Custom reports9.06 Ratings9.65 Ratings
General Ledger and Configurable Accounting
Comparison of General Ledger and Configurable Accounting features of Product A and Product B
Infor M3
8.4
6 Ratings
10% above category average
SAP Business ByDesign
8.7
5 Ratings
13% above category average
Accounts payable8.05 Ratings9.24 Ratings
Accounts receivable8.05 Ratings9.24 Ratings
Global Financial Support9.04 Ratings9.22 Ratings
Primary and Secondary Ledgers9.04 Ratings9.22 Ratings
Journals and Reconciliations8.03 Ratings8.82 Ratings
Configurable Accounting8.04 Ratings9.22 Ratings
Standardized Processes9.04 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Inventory Management
Comparison of Inventory Management features of Product A and Product B
Infor M3
8.8
2 Ratings
11% above category average
SAP Business ByDesign
9.1
4 Ratings
15% above category average
Inventory tracking9.02 Ratings9.24 Ratings
Automatic reordering9.02 Ratings10.03 Ratings
Location management9.02 Ratings8.03 Ratings
Order Management
Comparison of Order Management features of Product A and Product B
Infor M3
8.6
2 Ratings
10% above category average
SAP Business ByDesign
8.5
4 Ratings
9% above category average
Pricing8.92 Ratings9.24 Ratings
Order entry8.02 Ratings9.24 Ratings
Credit card processing9.02 Ratings4.51 Ratings
Cost of goods sold8.02 Ratings9.24 Ratings
Order Orchestration8.02 Ratings9.22 Ratings
Subledger and Financial Process
Comparison of Subledger and Financial Process features of Product A and Product B
Infor M3
8.1
4 Ratings
9% above category average
SAP Business ByDesign
9.2
3 Ratings
22% above category average
Billing Management7.03 Ratings8.83 Ratings
Cash and Asset Management8.94 Ratings9.22 Ratings
Travel & Expense Management8.02 Ratings10.02 Ratings
Budgetary Control & Encumbrance Accounting8.93 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Period Close8.02 Ratings9.22 Ratings
Project Financial Management
Comparison of Project Financial Management features of Product A and Product B
Infor M3
8.4
2 Ratings
10% above category average
SAP Business ByDesign
9.2
2 Ratings
19% above category average
Budgeting and Forecasting8.02 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Project Costing8.02 Ratings9.22 Ratings
Cost Capture9.02 Ratings9.22 Ratings
Capital Project Management8.02 Ratings9.22 Ratings
Customer Contract Compliance9.01 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Project Revenue Recognition9.02 Ratings9.22 Ratings
Project Execution Management
Comparison of Project Execution Management features of Product A and Product B
Infor M3
8.3
2 Ratings
19% above category average
SAP Business ByDesign
8.3
3 Ratings
19% above category average
Project Planning and Scheduling8.02 Ratings9.23 Ratings
Task Insight for Project Managers8.02 Ratings8.02 Ratings
Project Mobile Functionality8.02 Ratings8.02 Ratings
Definable Resource Pools8.02 Ratings00 Ratings
Grants Management
Comparison of Grants Management features of Product A and Product B
Infor M3
8.3
2 Ratings
9% above category average
SAP Business ByDesign
10.0
1 Ratings
28% above category average
Award Lifecycle Management8.02 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Procurement
Comparison of Procurement features of Product A and Product B
Infor M3
8.4
2 Ratings
19% above category average
SAP Business ByDesign
8.0
1 Ratings
14% above category average
Bids Analyzed and Compared8.02 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Contract Authoring8.02 Ratings00 Ratings
Contract Repository8.02 Ratings00 Ratings
Requisitions-to-Purchase Orders Integrated8.02 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Supplier Management8.02 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Risk Management
Comparison of Risk Management features of Product A and Product B
Infor M3
8.7
2 Ratings
29% above category average
SAP Business ByDesign
-
Ratings
Risk Repository9.02 Ratings00 Ratings
Control Management9.02 Ratings00 Ratings
Control Efficiency Assessments9.02 Ratings00 Ratings
Issue Detection9.02 Ratings00 Ratings
Remediation and Certification9.02 Ratings00 Ratings
Logistics
Comparison of Logistics features of Product A and Product B
Infor M3
8.3
2 Ratings
19% above category average
SAP Business ByDesign
9.2
3 Ratings
29% above category average
Transportation Planning and Optimization8.02 Ratings00 Ratings
Transportation Execution Management8.02 Ratings00 Ratings
Trade and Customs Management8.02 Ratings00 Ratings
Fulfillment Management8.02 Ratings00 Ratings
Warehouse Workforce Management8.02 Ratings9.22 Ratings
Manufacturing
Comparison of Manufacturing features of Product A and Product B
Infor M3
8.7
2 Ratings
14% above category average
SAP Business ByDesign
9.0
3 Ratings
18% above category average
Production Process Design9.02 Ratings9.23 Ratings
Production Management9.02 Ratings9.23 Ratings
Configuration Management9.02 Ratings8.02 Ratings
Work Execution8.92 Ratings8.02 Ratings
Manufacturing Costs8.02 Ratings9.23 Ratings
Supply Chain
Comparison of Supply Chain features of Product A and Product B
Infor M3
9.0
2 Ratings
22% above category average
SAP Business ByDesign
8.6
3 Ratings
17% above category average
Forecasting9.02 Ratings9.23 Ratings
Inventory Planning9.02 Ratings9.23 Ratings
Performance Monitoring9.02 Ratings8.02 Ratings
Product Lifecycle Management
Comparison of Product Lifecycle Management features of Product A and Product B
Infor M3
7.9
2 Ratings
9% above category average
SAP Business ByDesign
-
Ratings
Proposal Management7.12 Ratings00 Ratings
Product Master Data Management7.02 Ratings00 Ratings
Best Alternatives
Infor M3SAP Business ByDesign
Small Businesses
Acumatica
Acumatica
Score 8.8 out of 10
Acumatica
Acumatica
Score 8.8 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Infor VISUAL
Infor VISUAL
Score 7.2 out of 10
Infor VISUAL
Infor VISUAL
Score 7.2 out of 10
Enterprises
SAP Business ByDesign
SAP Business ByDesign
Score 7.4 out of 10
Oracle Fusion Cloud ERP
Oracle Fusion Cloud ERP
Score 8.1 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Infor M3SAP Business ByDesign
Likelihood to Recommend
8.0
(7 ratings)
9.6
(7 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
-
(0 ratings)
9.0
(3 ratings)
Usability
9.0
(3 ratings)
8.0
(1 ratings)
Support Rating
9.0
(3 ratings)
9.0
(1 ratings)
Implementation Rating
-
(0 ratings)
8.0
(1 ratings)
User Testimonials
Infor M3SAP Business ByDesign
Likelihood to Recommend
Infor
Manufacturing: Infor M3 is designed specifically for manufacturers and provides robust production planning and supply chain management features. The software can help optimize production processes, improve inventory management, and automate purchasing and order fulfillment.Distribution: Infor M3 offers advanced supply chain management capabilities, including inventory management and order tracking, making it an ideal solution for distribution companies.Large Organizations: Infor M3 is a scalable solution that can accommodate the needs of large organizations with complex supply chain and production requirements. The software's modular design allows organizations to customize their implementation to their specific needs.Global Operations: Infor M3 provides multi-language and multi-currency support, making it a suitable solution for organizations with global operations.
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SAP
Do you plan on going public at some point? If so, this may not be the best solution for you
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Pros
Infor
  • Very stable product. Some of its weaknesses are also its strengths. The lack of web services seems to actually increase stability.
  • No software vendor in this space is perfect. Lawson does perform as advertised.
  • Again, a weakness of this (limited functionality) is a hidden strength as well. In software there is a complexity/feature tradeoff. Where Lawson lacks in features, it does give you a more simple setup for your organization.
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SAP
  • I like the ease of use and the implementation methodology.
  • With SAP Business ByDesign you can integrate other systems with Web Services, and data technology to get information easy and fast.
  • SAP Business ByDesign includes an Analytics Module to create new reports in regards to your needs.
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Cons
Infor
  • Not intuitive at all, difficult to learn.
  • System is archaic, seems to be largely unchanged since the early 2000's.
  • Reports are all in PDF form, which for financial reporting purposes is tedious to turn back into Excel sheets.
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SAP
  • Time off request could be better. Right now, there is no option for sick time
  • It crashes often
  • Customization could be better
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Likelihood to Renew
Infor
No answers on this topic
SAP
SAP BYD work centers are consistent and easy to navigate once you understand one work center. The document flow tab that is in each window allows one to see all related transactions. Document flow is important because one is able to see the flow of transactions and can therefore reverse transactions by following the document flow in reverse. It is possible to group items in each overview screen to see what items are open. The system is working as hoped.
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Usability
Infor
This is a highly configurable product. Where all available support provided by [Information] is very good and exceeds our expectations! The investment in this product by Infor continues to be significant and is showing results! Infor is going a long way and is here to stay! No doubt about that!
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SAP
Because SAP Business ByDesign allows us to improve our work, reduce the operational steps, implement audit controls, allows us found standard reports or it allows us to create new ones if you need more than the exists are enough for your work or your needs. Overall, SAP Business ByDesign allows us to standardize our operations, enhance our work, improve our skills, work over a web environment or mobile interface.
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Support Rating
Infor
The support is satisfactory, given the large user base of the product. We had no issues to meet our reporting deadlines with Lawson. The organizational support team internally are well trained and hence only on exceptional basis issues are escalated to Lawson support team. We had no negative experience so far with the support of Lawson.
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SAP
The Business ByDesign support is stablished since you contract the service with SAP. SAP resolves according to the service level agreement. Currently, we continue with the service and we are using the support channels available. We are receiving the support. The SAP support gets an incident and after that, they contact us to resolve the incident, if necessary, they set the meeting to understand it or we explain the incident
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Implementation Rating
Infor
No answers on this topic
SAP
I recommend implementing all workshops during the ERP selection that you need to know very well about the ERP software. It allows us to gather information to accurate the plan of the project implementation. Additionally, we must reach the high-level commitment to achieve the main goals, to define the RACI matrix and communicate to all project stakeholders.
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Alternatives Considered
Infor
Lawson is comparable to the other ERP's I have used. Similar functionality and interface. Usability is comparable.
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SAP
ByDesign stacks up well against the competition. Companies that do multiple things are usually the best fit (manufacturing, distribution, and service). The more 'modules' used, the fewer competitors will be able to meet the company's needs. It is not inexpensive, but if the needs of the company have the complexity from either a global perspective and need localizations and foreign currency, or a volume perspective and need resources greater than what can be easily housed on-premise, ByDesign should be a top consideration.
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Return on Investment
Infor
  • I wish Infor M3 (formerly Lawson Intentia) were more detailed. But, this actually may be a weakness of my employer and not Infor M3 (formerly Lawson Intentia).
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SAP
  • Positive - Access to the real-time reporting allowing for faster decision making especially when fixed price projects are heading into an over budget position.
  • Positive - Complex KPI can now be tracked and as a consequence intensive plans can be made to capitalise on this level of reporting. Staff also have clear visibility over their own performance.
  • Negative - We are a bit on the small side at 30 employees for a ByD solution so it was relatively expensive for us. It would be a much better value preposition above 50 employees.
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ScreenShots

SAP Business ByDesign Screenshots

Screenshot of With the embedded analytics of SAP Business ByDesign this is easily possible for key users or end users to define dashboards that contain tailored reports and KPIs for their roleScreenshot of Screenshot of SAP Business ByDesign comes with many reports pre-delivered by SAP. Customers can easily create additional reports or KPIsScreenshot of For each business document in ByDesign you can open the document flow, which shows you in a graphical the predecessor and successor business docuemnts as well as any associated accounting documents. This shows at what point you are in the entire business process.Screenshot of SAP Business ByDesign includes a Project Management module that is integrated with CRM to sell and bill projects, with HR to staff projects, and with SCM and SRM for procurement.Screenshot of The Financial Closing business scenario helps you to perform financial period-end closing activities to ensure correct financial statements, such as Balance Sheet, Income Statement, and Cash Flow Statement. The Closing Cockpit helps to minimize the risk of missing important steps or incorrect timing.