Constructing an Open Source ERP Sales pitch - in Search for Interpretative Repertoires

Open source enterprise resource planning (OS-ERP) systems have been gaining recognition in the last few years. However while the research has focused on the implementation phase of OS-ERP systems, there is scant research done on the adoption process of such systems. This paper looks at an early paper on an OS-ERP system, targeting both practitioners and researchers, to identify the repertoires used to argue for the adoption of the said system. To achieve this aim the paper is evaluated by using a strain of discourse analysis interpretative repertoires. Three distinct repertoires are identified that are used to argue for the unique value gained by adopting the OS-ERP in question, by both highlighting positive aspects of the system, as well as alluding the pitfalls of other systems. These repertoires are also mapped to the existing literature on diffusion of innovations and resource based view to highlight how the existing ideas are reformulated in the identified repertoires.