Technology Round-Up – April 2, 2015

Posted by Ardent Partners Analyst Team on April 2nd, 2015
Stored in Articles, Complex Categories, Procure-to-Pay, Solution Providers, Technology

Concur to Release Re-Engineered Travel Risk Application by Mid Year

According to Business Travel News, Concur, the Washington state-based subsidiary of SAP, has re-engineered its legacy travel and risk management application, conTgo, and will release it sometime in the middle of 2015. The new release, called the Concur Risk Messaging mobile application, will allow enterprises to track employee travel and whereabouts even if they are travelling on non-approved itineraries or bookings. It will also allow travelers to leverage the travel risk intelligence source of their choosing, as well as allow them to store information for transmission when there is no signal available. The new app will also pull in corporate HR data, which will allow corporate managers to track the whereabouts of non-travelling employees, such as those living abroad for work (i.e., ex-pats) and local employees in the event of a crisis or incident.

DocuSign Acquires Algorithmic Research, Ltd.

On March 11, DocuSign, a provider of cloud-based digital transaction management (DTM) and electronic signature applications, announced that it has acquired the digital signature and security firm, Algorithmic Research, Ltd. (ARX) after a three-year partnership. Although the terms and conditions of the deal were not announced, DocuSign will acquire ARX’s 2,000-plus customers and partners and build upon its growing Global Trust Network. Together, the two San Francisco companies, operating under the DocuSign brand, will offer DTM and digital security services to customers that will allow them to securely transact at anytime on any platform and operating system.

Apttus Releases New Quoting Application, Sprint CPQ

On March 10, Apttus, the California-based provider of quote-to-cash, contract, and supplier management solutions, announced the release of Sprint CPQ (configure price quote). The new release is meant for Salesforce customers and businesses looking to grow, as it can be easily deployed and integrated with the Salesforce platform. Sprint CPQ eliminates paper and spreadsheet-based quoting systems, allows sales teams to work with the most current product and pricing information, and fosters product cross-sell and up-sell opportunities. It also has the potential to help sales teams offer a more valuable customer experience, as it should reduce the number of product or pricing errors, and allow them to match and build out quotes for customers in real time.

Williams Lea Refreshes Service Offerings, Brand, and Website

On March 16, London-based Williams Lea, a specialist business process outsourcing (BPO) and marketing supply chain provider, announced that it has refreshed its portfolio of services: Digital and Document Workflow, Business Support Services, and Customer Communications and Publishing. According to Dan Ellerton, Williams Lea Group CEO, “Our solutions have evolved to combine re-engineered procedures, leading technologies, and highly experienced collaborative client teams to help shape tomorrow’s business processes.” Williams Lea also updated its logo to include yellow in a nod to its sister organization, Tag, which it re-launched in 2013, as well as its parent company, Deutsche Post-DHL. “Our new brand and identity embody the promise that we can help take our clients to the next level,” added Ellerton. To reflect its refreshed product offerings, logo, and corporate relationships, Williams Lea also refreshed their website.

aPriori Updates Cost Management Solution

On March 10, aPriori, the Massachusetts-based provider of cost management solutions for manufacturing enterprises, announced (via Automation World) that it has released a new version of its cost management solution, aPriori R1. The refresh is meant to provide enhanced cost management capabilities – notably, more detailed cost estimates for an increasing number of parts – from product design and engineering, to strategic sourcing and supplier collaboration, all the way to product assembly.

aPriori R1 leverages computer-aided design and intelligent cost models to provide real-time cost analysis of a manufacturer’s parts and products – including real-time analyses of alternative parts and the impact on cost, location, quality, and quantity of the product produced. The tool also allows users to pull product cost and design information from other enterprise applications, such as ERP and PLM tools, and build out a bigger cost picture for a given part or product. The new release features more than a half dozen updates, including enhanced user management and access control, improved cost overhead calculation, greater usability and control over building cost estimates, user-guided cost models, improved automated costing, and a few other enhancements.

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