????本世紀之交，企業軟件行業步入了漫漫的創新寒冬。

????甲骨文（Oracle）首席執行官拉里?埃里森宣稱行業整合的時候到了。隨之，甲骨文收購了超過80家規模較小的軟件開發公司和科技供應商。2003年以來，IBM軟件業務已進行了超過70宗收購，SAP也沒閑著。從2000年到2010年，我戲稱整個行業處于“創新枯竭”階段。當然，也有例外，如企業云計算公司Salesforce.com以及全球虛擬化和云計算基礎架構廠商VMware，少數企業軟件創新公司一舉成名。

????當然，同樣是這十年。在硅谷，一群20多歲、穿著套頭衫的帥哥們建起了Facebook、Twitter等眾多消費者網絡2.0公司。風險投資人爭相對他們進行投資，就像一群癡狂的女歌迷們在英國男子組合One Direction的演唱會上，完全神魂顛倒。與之形成對比的是，企業軟件初創公司完全成了明日黃花，連大部分硅谷投資人的門都進不去。

????如今，企業軟件行業已重新煥發魔力。

????新一代的初創公司正在借助云服務、社交網絡和移動設備的飛速發展，全面改革企業的行為方式。他們提供數字營銷和銷售渠道，提供讓消費者參與的平臺，支持企業內部及產業鏈上下協作，甚至全面改革了諸如出具賬單、會計和交易等這樣的基本功能。

????這些公司對新一類的商用消費者（bizumers）別具吸引力。商用消費者往往不理會IT部門的建議，自行尋找能提高工作效率的設備和應用軟件。云應用軟件的“免費+增值”模式和訂購特性使得商用消費者很容易繞過常規流程，因此一些企業軟件初創公司的軟件安裝率非常可觀。

????比如，成立四年的企業社交軟件公司Yammer宣稱有超過400萬用戶，包括85%的財富500強公司，并已經陸續吸引到了總計1.42億美元的風險投資。云文件分享初創企業Box宣稱有超過10萬家公司的800萬用戶；風險投資人已向這家由一位年輕首席執行官執掌的公司投入了1.50億美元。即便是前企業軟件公司高管也不能抵御行業前景誘惑。仁科（PeopleSoft）創始人戴夫?達菲爾德和阿尼爾?博斯瑞已成立了一家新的云公司，專注于提供會計和人力資源應用軟件Workday。該公司宣稱有超過250家企業客戶，并傳言正在考慮IPO。

????At the turn of the century, the enterprise software sector entered a nuclear winter innovation-wise.

????Oracle (ORCL) CEO Larry Ellison declared it time for consolidation, and his company obliged by snapping up more than 80 smaller developers and technology vendors. Since 2003, IBM (IBM) Software Group has made more than 70 acquisitions, and SAP (SAP) has also done its part. From 2000 to 2010, I joked that the industry was idea-bankrupt. With the notable exceptions of companies such as Salesforce.com (CRM) and VMware (VMW), few enterprise software innovators made a name for themselves.

????Of course, during the same decade, hoodie-wearing, 20-something entrepreneurial dudes in Silicon Valley fired up an amazing new crop of consumer web 2.0 businesses like Facebook and Twitter. Venture capitalists on Sandhill Road swooned for their attention like a gaggle of girls at a One Direction concert. In contrast, enterprise startups were treated like has-beens who couldn't get a first date with most Valley moneymen.

????Now, enterprise software has gotten its mojo back.

????A new generation of startups is harnessing momentum in cloud services, social networks and mobile computing to introduce fundamentally new ways for enterprises to do just about everything. They offer digital channels for marketing and generating revenue. They provide platforms for engaging with customers. They support collaboration internally and across supply chains. They even overhaul basic functions such as billing, accounting and transactions.

????These companies have a particular allure for the new breed of business tech consumers; aka "bizumers." These are workers who shun the recommendations of IT departments to find for themselves devices and applications that make their work lives more efficient. The freemium and subscription nature of cloud applications makes this process of circumvention easy, and bizumers are fueling astonishing adoption rates for some enterprise startups.

????For example, in four years, enterprise social software company Yammer claims more than 4 million users, including 85% of the Fortune 500. It has attracted $142 million in venture capital along the way. Cloud file-sharing startup Box claims 8 million users at more than 100,000 businesses; VCs have made a $150 million bet on this company run by a young CEO. Even former enterprise software executives can't resist the allure. PeopleSoft founder Dave Duffield and Aneel Bhusri have formed a new cloud company focused on accounting and human resources applications called Workday. The company claims more than 250 enterprise customers and is rumored to be considering an IPO.