Software4Distributors: December 2012

Monday, December 31, 2012

I.B.I.S. and ERP for Business Leadership

Localization does not have to be a hurdle for your business! In a new video from I.B.I.S. you'll see how you can grow business while expanding operations into new markets and simultaneously leveraging centralized systems, existing investments, processes, and best practices. Read more on the I.B.I.S. website.

The Brown Smith Wallace 2012 Mid-Year Supplements are available. Visit our website to download your copy!

Friday, December 28, 2012

Microsoft Dynamics CRM for Government

Government organizations at all levels require technology to help their employees fully engage with their constituents and meet the needs of citizens. Microsoft Dynamics business applications can help local, regional and federal agencies to do this in a cost-effective manner. The offerings that follow provide a glimpse into ways that agencies can reap the benefits of greater visibility and collaboration.

Microsoft Dynamics CRM provides the tools to help…

311 service centers
Justice case management
Licenses and permits
Social casework
Grants management
Government eXtended CRM (XRM)

To read more about the benefits of CRM for government agencies, visit the Microsoft Dynamics website.

The Brown Smith Wallace 2012 Mid-Year Supplements are available. Visit our website to download your copy!

Wednesday, December 26, 2012

Montebello Packaging Speeds Production with Infor

Infor, a leading provider of business application software serving more than 70,000 customers, recently announced that Montebello Packaging has selected Infor VISUAL and Infor PLM Discrete. Montebello Packaging, a manufacturer of collapsible aluminum and laminate tubes and aerosol cans, will integrate both Infor products with their existing Computer-aided Design (CAD) system. Infor VISUAL and Infor PLM Discrete will provide a unified data repository, helping to automate processes for faster production and reduced order delivery times to customers.

To read more about the implementation and Infor VISUAL and Infor PLM Discrete systems, visit the Infor website.

The Brown Smith Wallace 2012 Mid-Year Supplements are available. Visit our website to download your copy!

Monday, December 24, 2012

Specialized Services with Sage ERP X3 Version 6.5

Released earlier this fall, Sage ERP X3 Version 6.5 provides specialized services from the cloud, introduces new electronic document management and delivery features, and boasts an impressive range of enhancements for financial, sales, and inventory modules such as better tracking of inventory movement, more control over accounts payable and accounts receivable terms discounts, and the ability to add free-form notes and images to inventory records.

Sage ERP X3 is a powerful and flexible ERP solution by for mid-sized and larger companies looking to grow a competitive business in a cost-effective way, with limited resources. To learn more about the specific features available in this release, visit the Sage ERP blog.

The Brown Smith Wallace 2012 Mid-Year Supplements are available. Visit our website to download your copy!

Friday, December 21, 2012

SAP Labs Addressing China-Specific Needs

SAP uses its SAP Labs network across the globe to deliver local market-oriented solutions for different geographies. SAP Labs China, one of the four hub labs that drive corporate product strategy and execution of global projects, is taking the right steps to integrate local requirements and deliver product capabilities that address the above issues:

■ Solutions customized for China regulations and business practices.
■ More ease of use. To solve the ease-of-use problem, including the user interface look and feel and usage behavior of the product, SAP Labs China reinvented finance user experience and business processes for Chinese customers, and it also optimized the user interface for its human resource module.
■ To standardize SAP’s global offering, SAP also reverse integrated the local innovations into SAP solutions as add-ons, such as the account aging analysis based on HANA, as well as mobile workforce scheduling features.
■ All the above capabilities are based on the design-thinking strategy where the product design and release plan is based on the customer requirement by engaging clients from the bottom up.

To learn more about SAP and the work they are doing for customers in China, visit the Forrester blog.

The Brown Smith Wallace 2012 Mid-Year Supplements are available. Visit our website to download your copy!

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Infor PLM Improves Workflow for Teledyne LeCroy

Infor, a leading provider of business application software serving more than 70,000 customers, recently announced that Teledyne LeCroy, a manufacturer of electronic design and test devices, has implemented Infor PLM Discrete. Teledyne LeCroy selected the product lifecycle management (PLM) application, built specifically for discrete manufacturers, to integrate with its existing Infor ERP solution, to enable consolidated data storage, enhanced workflow and faster approvals. It also delivers a user-friendly interface to facilitate improved internal processes and business decisions.

Learn more about Infor PLM Discrete and the Teledyne LeCroy implementation on the ChemInfo blog.

The Brown Smith Wallace 2012 Mid-Year Supplements are available. Visit our website to download your copy!

Monday, December 17, 2012

Evolving to New Heights with Epicor University

In today’s global economy education is more important than ever for companies implementing and using ERP systems, yet education must evolve. Today we face different challenges and opportunities in learning. For example, we have the Net generation, global business climate, cost pressures, competition, and the ever-changing demographics in the workplace. Companies that make a solid investment in education see the benefits in both tangible and intangible results. It is certain we see the return on the investment in education for customers in implementation of ERP systems––on-time implementations, project completed per budget, and most importantly, implementation with knowledge transfer.

Read more about Epicor University on the Connected Enterprise blog.

The Brown Smith Wallace 2012 Mid-Year Supplements are available. Visit our website to download your copy!

Friday, December 14, 2012

Acumatica Named to the 2012 SaaS Top 250 Companies List

Acumatica, a leading global provider of cloud Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and financial software, today announced it has been recognized as a member of the 2012 global SaaS Top 250 company listing by Montclair Advisors.

The SaaS Top 250 debuted in 2010 and has become very popular with software executives, investors and analysts. It provides a comprehensive view of the leading companies that make up this dynamic Cloud-based software market. Companies that are selected for this list are leaders in the pure and hybrid SaaS categories globally. The list is comprised of start-ups as well as notable public SaaS firms such as Salesforce.com, Cisco, and IBM.

To read more visit the Acumatica website.

The Brown Smith Wallace 2012 Mid-Year Supplements are available. Visit our website to download your copy!

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Sales Up For Distributors, But Has The Economy Recovered?

Sales for U.S. wholesalers rose for the first time in four months this August, ending three months of declines. It was the biggest one-month gain since February, according to an Associated Press article on the Industrial Distribution website. But will it boost the still-recovering economy?

The Commerce Department reported that wholesale inventory grew 0.5 percent that month, and total wholesale inventories stood at $487.5 billion. That level is 27 percent higher than the low point of the recession, great news for distributors. In addition, the unemployment rate fell in September to 7.8 percent, down from 8.1 percent in August. That’s the biggest decline since January 2003.

Read more on the Advanced Distrubution Today website.

The Brown Smith Wallace 2012 Mid-Year Supplements are available. Visit our website to download your copy!

Monday, December 10, 2012

Australia’s Inspirations Paint Selects Pronto Software

Australia’s largest paint specialist group of stores, Inspirations Paint, has selected Pronto Software to provide enterprise resource planning (ERP) and business intelligence (BI) services to 100 of its retail stores nationwide.

Pronto Software with deploy its flagship solution Pronto Xi Dimensions, across the Company’s franchise stores and national office. Inspirations Paint chose to deploy Pronto Xi modules to integrate Financials, Distribution, Inventory, CRM and Point of Sale operations across the business.

Tired of an outdated system that was not unified between its national network of retail outlets and national headquarters, Gary Jeston, Financial Controller at Inspirations Paint, began looking for a solution that would streamline processes, add functionality and eliminate double handling, while maintaining a high level of data integrity. Read more on the Pronto Software website.

The Brown Smith Wallace 2012 Mid-Year Supplements are available. Visit our website to download your copy!

Friday, December 7, 2012

Manufacturing & Distribution: It’s All About the Cloud and Logistics

According to Gartner research, up to 32% of wholesale distribution companies will be using cloud technology within two to five years, while up to 10% of manufacturing companies will use the cloud. That’s impressive growth—especially when you consider that just a few years ago no one had ever heard of manufacturers running their business in the cloud. Why move to the cloud for your business? The answer is to ensure business profitable growth, flexibility, and responsiveness to your customers’ requirements. To learn about cloud ERP technology for distribution and manufacturing, read more on the Cloud NetSuite blog.

The Brown Smith Wallace 2012 Mid-Year Supplements are available. Visit our website to download your copy!

Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Infor Delivers Mobile App To Report And Track Municipal Requests

Infor, a leading provider of business application software serving more than 70,000 customers, recently announced the availability of Infor Mobile Citizen Request, an innovative new mobile application that helps the public report and monitor service requests within the public sector.

The solution is supported across a wide range of mobile operating systems including Apple, Android and Windows 7 devices. Some of the technology highlights include:

Central Processing, Better Visibility - The application features a "Review Status" component which allows intuitive review of chronological service requests and their corresponding status, further granting the public visibility.
Enhanced Capability for Simple Reporting - The application extends core Infor Hansen CRM functionality to a wider range of users.
Cost Effective Implementation and Operation - The Infor Mobile Citizen Request is delivered in the cloud as a service, so no perpetual software license purchase is required.
Secure Data Management - All interactions are processed through Infor Hansen software and are limited to the Advanced Mobile Integration Services. This secure approach minimizes security concerns associated with crowd-sourcing data.

To learn more, visit the Infor website.

The Brown Smith Wallace 2012 Mid-Year Supplements are available. Visit our website to download your copy!

Monday, December 3, 2012

The Increasing Importance of VAT Compliance

Unless you’ve been running your business from under a rock, you’ll know that VAT has been steadily rising across Europe over the last few years. VAT now typically represents one fifth to one quarter of a company’s turnover, which is no small sum.

The complexity associated with calculating tax correctly in the first instance, preparing VAT returns and subsequently being able to provide all the supporting data upon request should not be underestimated. Even for businesses that have relatively straightforward tax processes and internal systems it will be time-consuming at best; but, inevitably, as business models become more complex, so does the path to compliance.

Ensuring your ERP system adequately supports your evolving business and the ongoing revisions to legislation is essential. As Alex Baulf, Manager, Indirect Tax, Grant Thornton, explains, “A company’s IT infrastructure may not provide the level of detail necessary, or the level of detail may reside in part of the system not easily accessible. Legacy systems and the limitations of native VAT functionality can also result in errors.” Read more on the Cloud NetSuite blog.

The Brown Smith Wallace 2012 Mid-Year Supplements are available. Visit our website to download your copy!

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