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Software for all seasons [Bangkok Post, Thailand](Bangkok Post (Thailand) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) May 02--In a globalised world, industries must move quickly to stay competitive in the market, but in what direction should they move? With the assistance of widely available business software solutions, firms can move faster to bring products to the market and better serve customer needs. There are many products offered in the market. Which is the right one to suit the user's requirements? Infor Global Solutions, the world's No.3 supplier of enterprise applications and services, vows to bring minimum headaches to industries adopting its technology. The company has designed enterprise software applications for 12 industries (see box), aiming to help customers take advantage of technology to work more effectively and improve performance in business operations. Infor, already strong in applications for several industries, last year acquired Lawson, a provider of enterprise resource planning software, allowing the company to offer services covering its 12 focus industries plus financial management software that can be applied across all industries. 'Inf'or10 products are specialised by industry and designed to help customers go faster CHARLES PHILLIPS CEO, Infor Global Solutions The company resists the strategy of one-size-fits-all, applying a different approach than other major players with preconfigured necessary functions to match each industry, minimising the need for extensive customisation, which often leads to long and costly implementation. Infor has spent time designing products that are described by CEO Charles Phillips as offering zero modifications to users. This means that once users are in the 12 mentioned industries, they can simply buy the application _ marketed under the Infor10 brand _ and go live with no need for customisation to match individual requirements, hence shortening deployment time and lowering costs. "With our new Infor10 Industry Suites, our goal is zero modifications," said Mr Phillips, who took the helm at Infor in late 2010. "Integrations, configurations and analytics should be less a part of an implementation and more a part of the application. Infor10 products are specialised by industry and designed to help customers go faster." The company has committed to spending US$300 million in R&D and adding over 600 software engineers and designers in 2012, enabling it to launch as many new products, features and integrations as possible. In 2012, Infor plans to ship 102 new products, 5,293 new features and 219 new integrations, representing increases of 240%, 175% and 800% from levels in 2010 _ before Infor recruited Mr Phillips from Oracle, the second-largest software provider in the world after SAP AG. The company in 2011 recorded US$2.8 billion in revenue and $840 million in earnings, and it expects double-digit growth again this year. A core technology assisting Infor in achieving its goal is Infor10 ION (Integrated Open Network), the lightweight middleware that will become the bridge allowing seamless integration of Infor and non-Infor applications. The next-generation middleware was launched in September 2011 and will become the centre of applications that Infor will develop in the future, says president Duncan Angove. Presenting at the annual Inforum 2012 in Denver, Colorado, Mr Angove said competitiveness depends on speed, not scale, and what will drive speed is the technology. Infor will offer a 60% one-time discount to buyers of ION Foundation before July 31. Through this strategy, the company can add new customers while not pushing them to buy Infor solutions right away. Once customers are on board with ION Foundation, the hope is that they will later buy more products. The company has introduced its ION Workspace 10.2 offering three key factors: common security features, common applications and a common look and feel to users in specific industries. Workspace will provide relevant data to users in any department to help them make decisions. For example, the screen may show an overdue bill or a delay in delivery of raw materials; staffers in the financial or production departments would know they have to take action. Infor also launched Local.ly, software for multinational companies to find information about local tax, finance and other regulations related to business in countries where they operate. These all-new products are in addition to the framework to develop applications on Syteline _ rebranded as Infor10 ERP Business last year. Coupled with Infor10 Mongoose, customers can have in-house applications that meet their specific business needs. The applications will help executives monitor transactions throughout the organisation, including manufacturing, supply chain, customer/supplier relationships, warehousing, distribution and financial management. Mobility is another focus of Infor's development. The company has introduced Infor10 Motion, deploying ION and cloud technology to optimise speed in innovation, customer deployment and application delivery. Nick Borth, the Infor10 Motion product manager, said the application is available for iPad users and will soon be out for other platforms like Android. The company launched four applications during the first four months of the year, with 33 more planned soon. ___ (c)2012 the Bangkok Post (Bangkok, Thailand) Visit the Bangkok Post (Bangkok, Thailand) at www.bangkokpost.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |