Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) systems have long served as the backbone of product development, ensuring efficient collaboration, data management, and compliance. For decades, on-premise PLM systems like Agile PLM have been instrumental in managing product data. However, as the demands of global collaboration, remote work, and digital transformation intensify, these legacy systems are increasingly becoming a liability.
Agile PLM has seen no real innovations in years, offering only bug fixes and security patches since their last release all the way back in 2017. With its end-of-life looming, organizations are reluctant to invest in productivity enhancements, leaving users stuck with outdated tools and processes.
Below, we’ll dive into the many productivity costs of Agile PLM and highlight why transitioning to a modern, cloud-native solution like Propel Software is essential for staying competitive.
The Hidden Productivity Costs of Agile PLM
1. Limited Accessibility
On-premise systems are inherently limited in accessibility. Agile PLM, for instance, relies on complex VPN setups, making it difficult for suppliers and globally distributed teams to collaborate in real time as they often require secondary systems and desktop client access from outside the firewall. These barriers are particularly problematic in today’s global and remote work environments, causing delays and inefficiencies as they struggle to get and maintain access to the system. Logging into a VPN adds latency and slows down performance, rampant session time-outs—and with the extra security tokens and protocol steps—this adds to poor user experience and adoption.
2. Complex Maintenance and IT Overhead
Maintaining Agile PLM demands significant IT resources and expertise. Organizations often find it difficult to recruit and keep experienced Agile PLM administrators, as there is less interest in learning, an aging pool of administrators, and all this tribal knowledge is vanishing. The business has complete reliance on these admin specialists which creates a bottleneck for even the most simple configuration changes. This dependency not only increases operational costs but also hampers agility. Stacking further onto IT overhead are the continual vulnerabilities, most recently in 9.3.6 in which unauthenticated attackers remotely accessed Agile’s sensitive files, product data, and Intellectual Property (IP).
Additionally, with Agile PLM nearing end-of-life, companies are hesitant to invest in updates or enhancements to support evolving user needs whether it’s meeting new regulations, improved processes, or the demands of expanding into new markets. This leaves the business stuck with archaic tools and antiquated processes.
3. Slow Adaptation to Market Changes
Agile PLM’s outdated architecture makes adapting to new business and market demands a cumbersome and time-consuming process. The inability to modify its user interface limits organizations’ ability to tailor the system to evolving processes and growing business needs. Creating reports in Agile PLM is equally as challenging, requiring extensive effort to extract actionable insights—a critical limitation in today’s data-driven business environment. The market is also demanding modern tools like AI and NLP to be easily adapted into PLM solutions, which Agile severely lacks due to its rigid UI and archaic data model.
In contrast, businesses using modern PLM systems can quickly adapt to evolving needs, integrating new tools and changing workflows with minimal disruption. Propel’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) is designed to enhance the efficiency and intelligence of Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) processes, leveraging artificial intelligence to automate tasks, uncover insights, and enable smarter decision-making. These AI Agents are integrated into Propel’s cloud-native PLM platform.
4. Archaic User Experience and Steep Training Curve
Agile PLM’s outdated and rigid user experience is also a significant barrier to productivity. New hires, particularly those accustomed to modern tools, are often frustrated by the steep learning curve and unintuitive design. If employees are required to use a system that is burdensome to learn, retaining top talent will be increasingly difficult. The system also relies heavily on tribal knowledge from highly experienced users and administrators, which is quickly vanishing as fewer professionals are interested in using or maintaining Agile PLM.
Propel, by contrast, offers a highly intuitive and modern interface that facilitates rapid onboarding and minimizes training needs. Built on Salesforce’s best-in-class Lightning Web Components (LWC) framework, Propel allows organizations to easily tailor the UI to fit the unique needs of each role, dramatically improving user experience and productivity.
5. Scalability Issues
As businesses grow, Agile PLM struggles to keep pace with modernization and innovation. Scaling hardware, managing increasing amounts of data, and integrating with new technologies all require significant IT resources and investment. Companies adding employees, expanding to new markets, increasing outsourcing, or making acquisitions require even deeper hardware, file servers, and administration expenses to scale and support. With Agile PLM’s end-of-life on the horizon, these challenges are only compounded, leaving companies with a barrier to growth, unable to keep up with competitor’s momentum.
6. Exposure to Security Vulnerabilities
Oracle Agile is continually compromising a company’s security, exposing companies to severe vulnerabilities, countless patches, and stolen Intellectual Property. Four “High Severity” vulnerabilities have been reported in the last year alone. The NIST vulnerability database highlights multiple exploitable flaws in Agile PLM, often requiring minimal technical skill to exploit. These malicious acts result in data breaches, IP theft, and disrupted production.
These risks underscore the necessity to move to a secure, modern PLM platform. Manufacturers must perpetually evaluate Agile PLM’s security measures so they can protect their critical product data. This also requires proactive planning and rapid response strategies for Agile PLM’s ongoing vulnerabilities. However, organizations that have moved to modern cloud PLM solutions, such as Propel, benefit from being on the most secure platform in the industry.
Why Cloud PLM is the Answer
1. Enhanced Accessibility and Collaboration
Cloud-native PLM systems like Propel enable real-time collaboration across countries and continents without the need for VPNs or other workarounds. This accessibility eliminates bottlenecks and ensures high availability and performance, as a result leading to teams that are always aligned, no matter where they’re located.
2. Lower IT Burden
Cloud solutions like Propel have a tremendous number of skilled administrators, thereby eliminating the need for organizations to rely on scarce Agile PLM administrators or to invest in outdated infrastructure. With Propel, automatic updates and a managed infrastructure significantly reduce IT overhead. Companies no longer need to worry about backups, patches, or system downtime, freeing up resources for strategic initiatives.
3. Faster Deployment and Innovation
Unlike Agile PLM, which has not introduced significant innovations in years, Propel is built to scale and evolve. Built on today’s most configurable framework, Propel PLM allows businesses to build custom UIs for specific roles, ensuring that each user has an optimized experience. Updates and enhancements are deployed seamlessly, enabling businesses to stay at the cutting edge of their industry.
4. Improved User Experience
Propel’s intuitive interface is designed to meet the expectations of modern users, significantly reducing onboarding times. New hires can quickly ramp up, eliminating the frustration associated with learning Agile PLM’s archaic processes. The system’s modern design ensures that all users can operate efficiently, regardless of their experience level.
5. Scalability and Future-Proofing
Propel’s cloud-native infrastructure allows businesses to scale effortlessly as they grow. Its flexibility supports the integration of new tools and technologies, including AI and IoT, ensuring that organizations are prepared for the future. Unlike Agile PLM, Propel empowers businesses to adapt without requiring extensive customizations or IT support.
6. Modern Security Safeguards
Moving to a modern cloud PLM platform like Propel offers a secure alternative, with automatic updates, advanced encryption, and built-in compliance, ensuring robust protection for valuable product data and intellectual property. Investing in Propel PLM’s platform safeguards IP while ensuring resilience among ever-changing modern cyber risks.
Case in Point: Propel’s Cloud PLM Solution
Propel is a cloud-native PLM solution offering unparalleled flexibility and innovation. Propel delivers a customizable UI that enhances productivity for every role. Its intuitive design and powerful reporting tools eliminate the frustrations of Agile PLM, allowing teams to focus on driving innovation.
Companies that have switched to Propel report faster deployments, reduced IT costs, and faster time to market. With Propel, your PLM system becomes a strategic asset rather than a maintenance burden.
Savant Systems is just one of many customers that have experienced successful digital transformations with great business value as a part of migrating away from Agile PLM and over to Propel:
- 35% revenue growth in two years
- 50% reduction in order entry and account management labor
- Over 1,000 hours saved in customer service
- 74% reduction in time-to-market
Conclusion
Agile PLM, once a leader in the PLM space, is fading into the past. Its lack of innovation, reliance on tribal knowledge, and cumbersome workflows are dragging businesses down at a time when agility and efficiency are paramount. With its end-of-life approaching, the case for transitioning to a modern PLM solution has never been clearer, or more urgent.
Propel offers a future-proof alternative, delivering the accessibility, scalability, and innovation that today’s businesses demand. It’s time to leave behind the productivity costs of Agile PLM and embrace the value of cloud-native PLM.
