Enterprise resource planning systems, long the backbone of corporate operations, face a profound reinvention as agentic AI—autonomous software capable of planning, reasoning and executing tasks—emerges as the dominant force in business technology. This shift promises to dismantle decades of vendor lock-in and monolithic rigidity, enabling modular architectures that adapt to business needs rather than forcing companies to conform. A sponsored report from MIT Technology Review Insights, produced with Rimini Street, charts this evolution, noting how composability and agentic AI address longstanding gaps in innovation freedom, rapid iteration and interoperability.

Historically, ERP progressed from 1960s mainframes and material requirements planning to cloud-based SaaS models, each era demanding businesses reorganize around the technology. “Composable architectures let organizations assemble capabilities from multiple systems in a mix-and-match fashion, so they can swap vendor gridlock for an à la carte portfolio of fit-for-purpose modules,” the report states. Agentic AI layers on top, coordinating disparate systems not originally designed to interoperate, turning multi-step processes into automated operations.

Early data underscores the stakes: A 2024 study cited in the MIT report found AI-driven ERP yields 30% higher user satisfaction and 25% productivity gains, with another showing up to 45% processing time savings and 60% better decision accuracy. These metrics signal a once-in-a-generation edge for early adopters, as enterprises pivot from costly upgrades to reconfiguring existing cores.

Historical Shackles Give Way to Modular Freedom

The rigidity of legacy ERP—dominated by giants like SAP and Oracle—has bred frustration, with upgrades often costing millions and delivering marginal gains. Rimini Street’s push for “Agentic AI ERP” highlights how forward-thinking firms achieve 10-20% cost reductions in operations, automating 60-80% of transactions while preempting errors and optimizing inventory, as shared in their recent announcements. At NRF 2026, SAP unveiled Joule-driven tools for retail, including an Order Reliability Agent to flag issues proactively, while Microsoft and Workday pitched agentic stacks for merchandising and scheduling, per ERP Today.

Oracle, too, embeds agents in Fusion Cloud ERP for invoice processing and supplier onboarding, moving from pilots to production workflows, according to Forbes. “AI is no longer just an add on to ERP; it will run ERP,” predicts Intelligent CIO North America, forecasting AI agents as orchestration layers by year’s end, with federated data fabrics replacing centralized warehouses.

SAP’s vision for 2026 emphasizes “no-app ERP,” where agents handle intent-driven tasks atop structured workflows, as outlined in their news center. This paradigm flips the script: Technology now organizes around business imperatives.

Vendor Strategies Ignite the Agentic Race

McKinsey warns of a widening gap between AI experimentation and scalable impact, with only 40% of firms seeing enterprise-level EBIT gains due to poor ERP integration. “AI use cases rely on much of the data and many of the applications that are housed in ERP systems,” their analysis states, urging modernization to unlock agentic potential in a report. Bain & Company echoes this, questioning if agentic AI marks the inflection for scaling ERP transformations, advocating “touchless platforms” over pilot purgatory.

Forrester predicts half of ERP vendors will launch autonomous governance modules by 2026, with protocols like SAP’s Model Context Protocol (MCP) ensuring agents access authorized data akin to human users. IBM’s Enterprise Advantage aims to scale agentic deployments, while Zoho offers pre-built agents for inventory and HR via low-code studios, per AIMultiple research. QAD’s Adaptive ERP leverages agents for manufacturing volatility, as Tom Roberts detailed in an Automotive World Q&A.

Challenges persist: InformationWeek advises CIOs to balance incremental optimizations with bold reinvention, forming “agent factories” overseen by multidisciplinary teams. “Agentic AI will transform, rather than replace, most ERP systems,” it notes in 2026 recommendations.

Quantifiable Gains Fuel Adoption Surge

Performance metrics are compelling. Infor’s Coleman AI executes ERP actions via voice, while Rimini Street’s 20 Agentic UX solutions target ERP pain points faster and cheaper. Forbes contributors report agents slashing ERP process times by 60%, handling approvals and reconciliations dynamically across modules.

Retail sees SAP’s Retail Intelligence harmonizing sales and supplier data for AI simulations, cutting stock costs. Manufacturing benefits from 30-40% efficiency gains via autonomous scheduling, per Top10ERP analysis. Deloitte highlights data architecture frictions but praises reimagined operations treating agents as workers.

Constellation Research flags ERP abstraction under agentic pressure, with all-you-can-eat licensing emerging as CxOs push back on consumption models.

Governance and Risks in the Autonomous Shift

Gartner’s forecast looms: Over 40% of agentic projects may falter by 2027 due to costs and risks, per Forbes’ 2026 predictions. Intelligent CIO stresses embedding ethical governance, with audit trails for every agent action. McKinsey urges tying agents to measurable outcomes like margins and service levels.

On X, Aaron Levie of Box emphasized bridges between AI and workflows as the real value, handling security and context in hostile environments. Gokul Rajaram noted enterprises lack talent for complex agents, pivoting startups toward full-stack delivery.

TechTarget outlines 2026 ERP trends: Evaluate models, infrastructure and governance for compliance. As agentic AI matures, success hinges on process redesign and human-AI collaboration.

Path Forward for Enterprise Leaders