PepsiCo is to standardise its global consumer goods
empire on the mySAP Business Suite.
PepsiCo has not previously had a company-wide ERP system. Units
the company built by acquisition, such as Frito-Lay, Tropicana and
Gatorade, are still running the business applications they selected
as independent companies.
PepsiCo decided to move to one ERP system for better integration
and began evaluating suppliers several months ago. SAP won the
contract because of its track record and extensive history in the
consumer goods market, according to spokesman Mark Dollins.
Dollins said the scope and sequence of the roll-out is still
being determined.
"All we can say at this point is that we expect it to be a
multiyear project," he said. Heading the initiative is PepsiCo's
vice-president of enterprise systems, George Legge.
SAP will displace some of its competitors in PepsiCo's IT
infrastructure - most notably, Oracle, which counts Pepsi-Cola
North America, Frito-Lay and Tropicana as customers of its ERP
applications.
PeopleSoft's software runs PepsiAmericas' CRM system, while
Siebel Systems powers Quaker Oats' system. Also in the mix are a
number of applications from smaller suppliers and a profusion of
custom systems.
PepsiCo totalled $27.6bn in sales last year, from hundreds of
brands within four operating divisions.
In 1999, it created the PepsiCo Business Solutions Group as a
central IT organisation. Five years later, PepsiCo still has a
fragmented technology infrastructure.
Stacy Cowley writes for IDG News Service
