Enterprise Apps

A legal dispute between Oracle and erstwhile client Montclair State University illustrates that despite the steady evolution of ERP technology and implementation methodologies, these projects can still turn ugly. The two have filed suits against each other over a failed project, called the "Bell Tow...

Business Process Management provider AuraPortal has added a new module to its product lineup -- Marketing Campaigns, or MC. It is based on template-oriented pattern processes -- as all of AuraPortal's applications are -- which means it can be easily tailored by end-users. MC is able to follow up on ...

The idea of taking CRM into the field has been around for a decade -- long enough to lull many people into ignoring it in favor of newer, flashier and more social ideas. But this isn't the time to take your eye off mobile CRM. The technology is about to emerge as a force that will boost adoption, in...

It has been a wild ride for retailers these past few years. But when we look back, we won't be talking about the economy, the drive for lean inventory, or deep discounting. Rather, we will recognize the fundamental change that occurred was in the shopping process itself. Shoppers are often interac...

DemandResults is getting set to release version 2.0 of its SEO for Salesforce.com app. This iteration builds on the premise of the first app, founder and CEO Howard Brown said, which was essentially a basic insertion of Google Analytics into the Salesforce.com platform. In this upcoming version, set...

I've written several CRM Buyer Guides in the last four years, and the buying process I recommend hasn't really changed much. Unlike people who leap into the technology right at the outset, I always advocate a period of self-assessment for the company -- in other words, a thorough internal examinatio...

Most of the people I talk to think of a business model as the way a company makes money. We certainly agree on that. One's business model can encompass numerous things, like product mix, marketing and sales plan, how you sell -- direct, channel, retail -- and lots more. One thing that usually mis...

It's long been discussed that marketing and sales need to "get along." But the reality is that marketing and sales actually need to work smoothly together along a defined lead management process. The lack of this cooperation costs companies more than wasted leads. It increases sales costs and reduce...

Sales have traditionally been considered an art, science or a mix of both for most practitioners and businesses. Aside the different views on each end of the spectrum; the truth is that Sales is a data-driven function. Performance of each sales rep and organization can be monitored, measured and ass...

The past year has seen business process management (BPM) achieve tremendous growth in the enterprise, but there continues to be a good deal of misunderstanding about BPM itself. At its core, BPM is about automating and streamlining manual processes. These processes may represent a diverse range of t...

Yesterday Zuora, the billing and payment solution company for subscription businesses, did a smart thing, at least I think so. At NetSuite's user meeting, SuiteWorld, Zuora chief Tien Tzuo announced that his trademark product is now pre-integrated with NetSuite's financials. But that wasn't what's...

Rash assumption of leadership on the part of product managers creates an environment of uncertainty, and can result in the degradation of work ethic and productivity. Therefore, wise project managers will pay special attention to how they portray themselves and the manner in which they execute the ...

Admit it: You never think about data storage any more. We used to, quite a bit. Long before the storage glut that exists today, there was already too much of it, and it was hard to find places to store it. When we built software, it was with an eye toward maximizing our limited storage capacities...

Gartner's Business Intelligence Summit 2011 kicked off on Monday in Los Angeles. It is the sister conference to one held in the beginning of the year in London. While the keynote speakers and participating companies vary, the general themes running through both conferences are the same. One is that ...

For the past few years, many companies have taken advantage of Google AdWords and other pay-per-click platforms to generate sales leads. The barriers to entry are low for these services, making PPC advertising a relatively easy and cost-effective lead-generation strategy for smaller businesses. Popu...