In-Depth

Briefs: NetLedger/HP initiative for business operations, Captiva ForeWare and InputAccel

HP/NetLedger online solution for small business management; Captiva updates its flagship input management software

• By Stephen Swoyer
• 06/25/2003

Hewlett-Packard Co. and NetLedger Inc. announced an initiative to offer a range of technology solutions—hardware, services and online business management applications—designed for small- and medium-sized businesses (SMB).

The two companies say the initiative will allow SMBs to manage their businesses using HP products and NetLedger's NetSuite, a popular front- and back-office business management application.

Like NetLedger’s hosted applications, the combined offering will be provided in the form of online services. NetLedger and HP say that they will be able to deliver integrated hardware and online application software that can be used to manage key aspects of an SMB's operation—such as accounting, payroll, sales and customer support, order processing, inventory management, Web site and Web-store creation and hosting. Separately, NetLedger also announced Sales Compensation Manager, an automated incentive-based sales compensation system that will be part of the NetCRM and NetSuite offerings NetLedger plans to announce this summer.

Kelly Spang Ferguson, principal CRM analyst with market research firm Current Analysis Inc., says the Sales Compensation Manager, in particular, helps to differentiate NetLedger—a relative newcomer to CRM—from some of its more entrenched competitors. “[T]he Sales Compensation Manager is one where NetLedger’s roots in accounting help the company to create a system that not only enables sales reps to monitor their compensation and analyze different scenarios, but NetLedger’s back office experience enables the compensation application to be tied to the accounting and payroll systems to automate the payment of the commissions,” Ferguson writes.

NetLedger is making the Sales Compensation Manager a standard feature in its NetCRM and NetSuite offerings. As a result, notes Ferguson, current customers should gain access to this functionality at no additional charge when the new versions of both services are announced at the end of the summer.

Captiva Overhauls Form and Document Capture Products

Captiva Software Corp. announced FormWare 5.0 and InputAccel 5.0, revamped versions of its flagship input management software offerings. FormWare is a forms capture product. Version 5.0 enhancements includde eEntry, a browser-based data entry feature for streamlined remote data completion. eEntry leverages XML and HTTP technologies to support web-based completion, key-from-image, and field reject repair from any Web browser client anywhere in the world.

Other enhancements include e-mail alert notification, workstation polling, form-level image pre-processing, improved virtual form registration, and inverse text optical character recognition (OCR) and key-from-image abilities.

InputAccel is a document capture product. Among its new capabilities are ScaleServer, which increases productivity by enabling the processing of more documents and document types.

In addition, InputAccel features a new Administrator module, enhanced server monitoring, and the localization of key client modules that enable it to operate in different languages for international customers.

Captiva says that both products have been enhanced to interoperate more effectively. Both products are available immediately. See http://www.captivasoftware.com for details.