By David Sims

David at firstcoffee d*t biz

 

The news as of the first coffee this morning, and the music is Antonin Dvorak's Symphony #9 in E Minor:

 

Apatar, a vendor of open source software tools for the data integration market, has launched Apatar On-Demand for Salesforce.com CRM and QuickBooks accounting software.

 

Apatar On-Demand Edition is a hosted service that synchronizes order data between Salesforce.com CRM and desktop QuickBooks accounting software. "Designed for business users," Apatar officials say, the product's process of setting up the integration link "does not require technical skills."

 

Apatar On-Demand Edition for Salesforce.com and QuickBooks allows running one- or two-way, recurring or one-time synchronization of account, contact, order, and opportunity data, while preserving links between tables in both Salesforce.com and QuickBooks, company officials say:

 

"Designed specifically to avoid double entry, subscription to Apatar software also includes embedded data quality service. Apatar software searches and removes duplicate accounts every time it synchronizes order data."

 

According to Forrester Research, 66 percent of North American and European enterprises are afraid to adopt SaaS applications due to integration issues. A recent survey by Kelton Research cited by Apatar officials "confirms the enterprise's increasing interest in on-demand services, with nearly 73 percent of large companies saying they had adopted or plan to adopt SaaS in the next 18 months."

 

"The days when Salesforce.com users had to wait for weeks before they could see customer order histories are gone," said Renat Khasanshyn, the founder and CEO of Apatar. "Today these users can be up and running in 30 minutes or less."

 

. . . .

 

So, anybody buying a new phone today?

 

Oracle has announced the first in a series of free Oracle business applications for the Apple iPhone -- Oracle Business Indicators -- are available on the Apple App Store. Company officials say they intend to release CRM products for the iPhone.

 

These new Oracle business applications are designed, the Oraclians say, to use the Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition Plus and Oracle Business Intelligence Applications, Fusion Edition to "provide access to key metrics and analytical data."

 

These native applications for the Apple iPhone also use the Serviced-Oriented Architecture capabilities of OBIEE and the set of Oracle Business Intelligence Web Services. They have support of SSL encryption protocol as well.

 

With Oracle Business Indicators, users can view company financial trends, sales managers can be alerted to sales performance and customer satisfaction issues, and commodity managers can assess the viability of a supplier using an iPhone.

 

Oracle officials say they plan to follow this initial release with support for ERP business approval processes with analytical context. "For example, while en route to meetings, an executive or manager would be able to review and respond to pending approvals for new employee hires or expense reports, with supporting analytics, making informed decisions without delay," they explain.

 

. . . .

 

InsideSales.com, a vendor of Lead Response Management, has announced the beta release of PowerDialer for Salesforce.com, an on-demand dialing and marketing product embedded directly into Salesforce.com CRM.

 

Through an interface, the PowerDialer provides integrated lead marketing toolsets with inbound / outbound dialing, voice messaging, e-mail, and fax capabilities.

 

InsideSales.com is a hosted lead management CRM product with built-in dialer and telephony tools, pitched to sales reps who sell remotely. This announcement, company officials say, is "a decision to offer the telephony tools and lead response management technologies to Salesforce.com users."

 

PowerDialer for Salesforce.com blends the CRM with telephony objects. "It is intuitively designed," company officials say -- "simply generate a list of leads or contacts in Salesforce.com and start dialing. Once dialing you can automatically leave voice messages, send e-mails, send faxes, and schedule future actions."

 

. . . .

 

Jenzabar, a vendor of software for higher education, has announced the company's strategic direction for the Jenzabar EX suite of business office applications. Plans for the Microsoft SQL Server-based system include a new Budget module, an enhanced Purchasing module, and adoption of the Microsoft Dynamics GP product.

 

In 2009, Jenzabar plans to help colleges' business offices "gain control over spending with a new Budget module that manages the budget lifecycle from creation through adjustment, tracking, reporting and administration." It will allow constituents to create and consolidate budgets from various offices on campus.

 

In addition, Jenzabar officials say, the company will enhance the Purchasing module, streamlining the purchasing process across campus with advanced notification workflow, more granular access to line items and a personalized workspace.

 

Other enhancements to be included are line item approvals, a rules-based automatic approval track system, automated purchase order creation and encumbrance release, on-demand requisition status checks and more.

 

Jenzabar is also working with Microsoft to provide tighter integration with Microsoft Dynamics GP. The product offers financial management functionality.

 

. . . .

 

ICIMS, a Software-as-a-Service provider of talent management platforms, has announced that it has eclipsed the 600 client mark, adding such clients as Enterprise Rent-a-Car, Jamba Juice and Genworth Financial to its client base. The talent management software provider now supports 600 customers.

 

Decentralized workforce management is supported by iCIMS through localized Career Centers, geographic and divisional reporting capabilities, and multi-lingual employment applications and forms. With iCIMS' software, users can streamline talent management initiatives across widespread global locations and business units.

 

A need for an effective Candidate/Contact Relationship Management (CRM) program prompted Genworth Financial to seek a CRM product to complement its existing applicant tracking system, ICIMS officials say, adding that iCIMS' CRM tools allow organizations such as Genworth to stay in communication with candidates, helping recruiters engage, track, and search for a pool of talent.

 

The vendor's Customer Support provides clients with dedicated customer service 24 hours a day, Monday-Friday, as well as access to industry tools and resources, and training sessions twice a week.

 

. . . .

 

CDC Software, a wholly owned subsidiary of China's CDC Corporation and vendor of enterprise software applications, has announced that it has completed its acquisition of Dynamic Business Consultants, a software systems integrator based in Melbourne.

 

DBC is expected to market and sell CDC Software's Process Manufacturing products, including CDC Factory and Ross Enterprise. The acquisition of DBC is intended not only to expand CDC Software's market presence in Australia but to expand the products and services footprint for CDC Software's Australia-based Praxa services business.

 

CDC Software officials say that DBC's offerings complement its process manufacturing focus and "broaden the company's product and services offerings in vertical industries such as in the discrete manufacturing, construction, and services industries."

 

Founded in 1994, DBC specializes in Enterprise Resource System and Manufacturing Resource Planning.