GimmalSoft and NextDocs Announce Partnership to Provide Microsoft SharePoint Content and Records Management Solutions for Highly Regulated Industries

by OpenView

GimmalSoft, a division of Gimmal, that delivers market leading, enterprise content governance and compliant records solutions built on SharePoint and NextDocs, a leader in Microsoft SharePoint based software solutions for the life sciences industries, have partnered to offer a comprehensive content and records management solution for the highly regulated pharmaceutical and oil & gas industries.

NextDocs solutions simplify and automate business processes for organizations needing to comply with FDA, ISO and other industry regulations and guidelines.  Companies can close the loop in effectively managing SOPs and Training Records, along with Corrective and Preventative Actions (CAPA) from an intuitive user interface, that allows clients to meet these standards. Combined with GimmalSoft’s governance and records management solutions for the enterprise, organizations can accelerate their ability to have centralized tracking and content management for critical business processes that adhere to  records management policies. By using GimmalSoft and NextDocs solutions built on Microsoft SharePoint, companies are provided with a familiar software platform that increases their efficiency in finding, using and managing documents throughout their lifecycle, as required by governing bodies.
“We are excited to formally announce our partnership with GimmalSoft. Our joint collaboration will allow for us to deliver a complete, integrated software solution that our customers have been asking for,” said Erik Smith, VP of Sales and Alliances of NextDocs. “Customers will now be able to connect two leading solutions, take further control of their content and maximize the value of their enterprise investment in Microsoft SharePoint.”
“Highly regulated industries can now have a governed and managed content repository using Microsoft SharePoint, a system that users are already comfortable with,” said Mike Alsup, Founder and Senior VP of Gimmal.
NextDocs and Gimmal will be exhibiting and presenting at the Microsoft Partner Pavilion at the Document Strategy Forum in Chicago Illinois on November 1-3.
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About GimmalSoft

GimmalSoft, a division of Gimmal, delivers market leading content governance and compliant records solutions built on SharePoint. GimmalSoft solutions drive user adoption and simplify information access by making  information lifecycle management of content simple and transparent, ensuring consistent compliance and proactive litigation readiness enterprise-wide while lowering costs.  GimmalSoft solutions benefit leading companies and government agencies who want to improve the effectiveness of information management for all of their users. For more information, visit www.gimmalsoft.com.

About NextDocs

NextDocs is the global leader in providing Microsoft SharePoint-based document management and quality management solutions to life sciences organizations. Our solutions enable businesses in regulated industries to achieve compliance with FDA and other agencies while automating processes, improving efficiency and dramatically reducing costs. NextDocs customers include Pharmaceutical companies, Bio-Techs, Medical Device companies and CROs. For more information on NextDocs Corporation and the software solutions visit www.nextdocs.com.

Media Contact – Gimmal

Shanthi Subramanian

Media Contact – NextDocs

Erik Smith

Acronis announces new training programs

by OpenView

Disaster recovery and data protection vendor, Acronis, has introduced new education programs designed to strengthen its channel partner network.

It is an extension of the courses currently provided under Acronis Academy, Acronis Sales Professional (ASP) Certification is first of the new initiatives and provides resellers with advice on how to sell Acronis products for more revenue, ways to transform leads into deals, and details about pricing, maintenance and renewal. The Acronis Certified Engineers (ACE) in-depth technical training and certification program has also been updated, with the two-day onsite training class now covering the Acronis Backup and Recovery 11 range and providing guidance on project implementation, roll out and troubleshooting.

Distributors can also benefit from having a qualified trainer and run Acronis Academy courses following certification with the Acronis Certified Trainer (ACT) course.

Compared to past education programs that were run more informally, Acronis Pacific general manager, Karl Sice, hopes that the more formalized structure of these activities will enable the vendor to provide a higher level of support to partners in the channel.

“There’s a lot of opportunity and appetite for information about how to backup, the whole notion of storage and the skills of how to operate in this environment,” Sice said.

“There is an opportunity to increase that knowledge in the channel and we’re looking to take advantage of this program investment by pursuing those opportunities.”

Acronis recently initiated a channel partner campaign to enable its resellers to penetrate the small business virtualization market.

Infographic: Monetate Explains Why Tablet Buyers Are the Ones to Watch

by OpenView

According to new research compiled by Monetate, tablet buyers are more frequent purchasers than those with smartphones.

The message, according to the firm, is a simple one: cater to those who are most likely to buy from your site, with both special offers and either an app or a specially-formatted mobile site.

In one anecdote, Mary Meeker, a Kleiner Perkins analyst, revealed recently that she browsed One Kings Lane on a daily basis, reserving a few moments out of her day to shop. That’s precisely the buyer that a merchant should be addressing, according to Monetate, whose research also shows that tablet buyers are more likely (10 percent to 6 percent) to browse and buy on a daily basis. Smartphone buyers are more infrequent shoppers, outpacing tablet buyers when they shop less than once a month.

Meeker also revealed that the number of smartphones and tablets combined now outpace the combined total of desktop and mobile PCs. Although the iPad controls a dominant 67 percent share of the overall tablet market, the typical tablet owner is wealthy: 53 percent of the tablet owners average an annual household income of $75,000 or more, versus 28 percent of all Americans who make that level of income. About 62 percent have full-time jobs, Pew found.

Two weeks ago, payment processor eBay and its PayPal division also marked the changes in mobile commerce. As Monetate notes, the average consumer is typically turning to the smartphone (or tablet) to research a purchase and find the best price, whether that be online or in a nearby physical store.

“I see an enormous acceleration of the pace and change of innovation. I think it’s more than that. I think we’re at an inflection point,” where shopping will change, said John Donahoe, chief executive of eBay. Donahoe predicted that the world will see the way consumers shop and pay over the next three years change more drastically than over the last fifteen.

“The line between online and offline is blurring, and they’re blurring dater than anything you’d imagine 12 months ago,” Donahoe said.

Today, in almost half of all retail transactions, a consumer accessed the Web, Donohoe said. By 2013, about $10 trillion of transactions will be completed, according to Forrester data Donohoe cited, with the Web influencing virtually ever transaction.

Skytap Names Brett Goodwin as Vice President of Marketing and Business Development

by OpenView

Skytap Inc., the leading provider of self-service cloud automation solutions, today announced that Brett Goodwin, formerly of Isilon Systems and RealNetworks, has joined the company as vice president of marketing and business development.

In his role, Goodwin will spearhead Skytap’s overall marketing strategy and execution, as well as the development of key business partnerships.

“The cloud is easily the most disruptive change in enterprise technology in more than a decade,” said Goodwin. “Skytap gives businesses a secure and simple way to use the cloud for complex computing environments. We have over 175 enterprise customers already using our innovative Skytap Cloud solution, and have only scratched the surface of the cloud’s tremendous market opportunity.”

Goodwin was employee 15 at Isilon Systems where he served as vice president of marketing and business development for over six years. At Isilon, Goodwin helped lead the networked storage company from pre-revenue to more than $100 million in annual revenue, and through a successful IPO in December 2006. EMC acquired Isilon for $2.25 billion in December 2010.

Before Isilon, Goodwin led product management, enterprise products and corporate development at RealNetworks during a six year period of rapid growth and through the IPO in November 1997. Brett also held product management and marketing roles at McCaw Cellular when the first digital and nationwide cellular network was becoming operational in North America.

“Brett’s experience in transforming emerging companies into market leaders will be an asset for Skytap as we continue on our trajectory of rapid growth,” said Scott Roza, CEO of Skytap. “He’s an expert at helping companies with disruptive technologies, like Skytap, capitalize on broader market shifts and a welcome addition to our strong leadership team.”

Brett holds a B.A. in Economics from Pomona College, an MBA from Stanford Business School, and has studied the history of economics at Oxford University in England.

About Skytap, Inc.

Skytap is the leading provider of self-service cloud automation solutions for dynamic workloads. Skytap enables users to run enterprise applications unchanged in the cloud, collaborate securely with global teams, and gain unparalleled business productivity. Additionally, IT organizations can gain visibility and control over cloud projects, align capacity with demand, and reduce costs by 70% or more. Enterprises can securely connect Skytap to their data centers and create virtual private clouds. Skytap is ideal for any dynamic workload including application development, testing, virtual training, application migration and sales demonstration projects. To buy or learn more, visit www.skytap.com.

 

Contact Information

  • Contact:
    Lindsey Emert
    Barokas Public Relations
    Email Contact
    (206) 264-8220

Acronis Recognized as a Fastest Growing Company in North America on Deloitte's 2011 Technology Fast 500(TM) for Third Consecutive Year

by OpenView

 Acronis, a leading provider of data protection and disaster recovery solutions for physical, virtual and cloud environments, today announced it has been included in the Technology Fast 500™ ranking of the 500 fastest growing technology, media, telecommunications, life sciences and clean technology companies in North America.

This is the third consecutive year Acronis has been recognized on the Technology Fast 500 list, having been first named as a Rising Star in 2008. Rankings are based on percentage of fiscal year revenue growth during the period from 2006 to 2010.

“As the only privately held data protection and disaster recovery provider to have been included in this year’s rankings, we are proud to have once more made this list,” commented Jason Donahue, CEO at Acronis. “We hear from industry analysts that virtualization ‘first’ as an IT cost reduction strategy continues to gain momentum amongst the small and medium businesses at the heart of the US economy. We offer those businesses simple, affordable solutions to protect their critical data, whether that data resides on a physical server, a virtual machine or is stored in the cloud.”

Re-Tweet this: @Acronis Included for 3rd consecutive year on DT Technology Fast 500. http://tinyurl.com/4yx92uy

About Deloitte’s 2011 Technology Fast 500™


Technology Fast 500, which was conducted by Deloitte & Touche LLP, a subsidiary of Deloitte LLP, provides a ranking of the fastest growing technology, media, telecommunications, life sciences and clean technology companies — both public and private — in North America. Technology Fast 500 award winners are selected based on percentage fiscal year revenue growth from 2006 to 2010. In order to be eligible for Technology Fast 500 recognition, companies must own proprietary intellectual property or technology that is sold to customers in products that contribute to a majority of the company’s operating revenues. Companies must have base-year operating revenues of at least $50,000 USD or CD, and current-year operating revenues of at least $5 million USD or CD. Additionally, companies must be in business for a minimum of five years, and be headquartered within North America.

About Acronis

Acronis is a leading provider of easy-to-use disaster recovery and data protection solutions for physical, virtual and cloud environments. Its patented disk imaging technology enables corporations, SMBs and consumers to protect their digital assets. With Acronis’ disaster recovery, deployment and migration software, users protect their digital information, maintain business continuity and reduce downtime. Acronis software is sold in more than 90 countries and available in up to 14 languages. For additional information, please visit www.acronis.com. Follow Acronis on Twitter: http://twitter.com/acronis.

National Restaurant Chain Launches New Entrée with Campaign on Mobile, Email, Social Media

by OpenView

A new campaign by Pei Wei Asian Diner, the fast-casual restaurant chain owned by P.F. Chang’s China Bistro, introduced its newest entrée by connecting with customers through Facebook, mobile, Twitter and email, making the new dish one of its best-selling features.

“Pei Wei’s success using multiple interactive channels to drive engagement underscores the tremendous opportunity brands have to connect with consumers in store, via Twitter and Facebook and through email to build life-time customer value.”

Powered by global interactive marketing provider ExactTarget, Pei Wei introduced its new Caramel Chicken entrée with in-store signs and online promotions inviting guests to join the restaurant’s email list via text, web, Twitter or Facebook to receive a buy-one, get-one free coupon, resulting in nearly 20,000 new email subscribers in just two weeks.

“Given the large volume of guests carrying their mobile phones into the restaurants, adding an SMS element to our social media, web and email channels made perfect sense,” said Jason Miller, digital content and community manager for P.F. Chang’s. “Texting doesn’t just allow us to engage with customers while they’re in the restaurant, it enables us to expand our email and social media strategy so we can continue creating relevant and effective customer experiences even after they leave.”

With nearly a third of all new email registrations coming from text, the multi-channel campaign at Pei Wei’s 173 locations posted coupon redemption rates near 20 percent, and was the restaurant’s most successful new email list growth effort to date, Miller said.

“Effective marketing requires brands rapidly embrace the new reality of cross-channel marketing and create opportunities to engage with consumers in real time to deliver true customer value,” said Tim Kopp, ExactTarget chief marketing officer. “Pei Wei’s success using multiple interactive channels to drive engagement underscores the tremendous opportunity brands have to connect with consumers in store, via Twitter and Facebook and through email to build life-time customer value.”

According to the National Restaurant Association, restaurant industry sales are projected to total $604 billion in 2011, equaling 4 percent of the U.S. gross domestic product. A 2010 ExactTarget study entitled The Collaborative Future found consumers are more inclined to purchase after subscribing to email messages. Part of the Subscribers, Fans, Followers research series, the study of more than 1,500 U.S. consumers found 27 percent of consumers said they are more likely to purchase from a brand after subscribing to email, and 17 percent of consumers are more likely to purchase after liking a brand on Facebook.

Pei Wei’s cross-channel marketing success follows the launch of the Forrester Consulting study commissioned by ExactTarget that found 48 percent of interactive marketing executives rank understanding customers’ cross-channel interactions as one of the top challenges facing marketing today. Entitled “The New Campaign Management Mandate,” the June 2011 study found marketers’ lack of cross-channel insights result in brands interacting through disconnected channels that fail to deliver seamless brand experiences and the real-time, relevant dialog consumers expect. To download the free report, visit www.ExactTarget.com/mandate.

About ExactTarget

ExactTarget is a leading global provider of on-demand email marketing and interactive marketing solutions. The company’s Interactive Marketing Hub technology provides organizations a single solution to connect with customers via email, integrated text messaging, landing pages and social media. Supported by collaborative global services teams, ExactTarget’s technology integrates with more sales and marketing information systems than any other in the industry, including Salesforce.com, Microsoft Dynamics CRM, Omniture and Webtrends among many others. ExactTarget powers permission-based multichannel communications for thousands of organizations around the world. For more information, visit www.ExactTarget.com.

Contacts

ExactTarget
Charlie McAtee, 317-524-2861
[email protected]

Mashery Non-Cloud Option Could Mean Even More APIs

by OpenView

Mashery has expanded its API management solution to operate on-premise, within your company’s firewall, with a new offering dubbed Mashery Local.

Until recently, providers could only deploy Mashery’s API traffic management tools in the cloud.  With the new Mashery Local customers has more flexibility, which could see more APIs from larger enterprises.

Some APIs are better routed in the cloud for speed and distribution, while other APIs may come with greater security concerns, or maybe IT departments just aren’t comfortable letting sensitive corporate data out of the firewall just yet, but could really use better traffic control and reporting. Either way, Mashery (a ProgrammableWeb sponsor) lets these companies choose exactly where and how to deploy its API management.

Even though your data can flow behind your firewall or in the cloud using Mashery Local and Mashery Cloud, both are configured and managed through a single dashboard called Mashery API Control Center. Mashery API Control Center lets you manage all your APIs from one place allowing you to set rate limits, quotas, define partner access levels and deliver APIs in the way you define. Having all control in one dashboard allows you to provision and scale as needed, while providing insight and reporting into all aspects of your API operations, behind the firewall and in the cloud.

“With Mashery API Control Center, businesses can govern access policies, measure results, and optimize performance—all from one, simple-to-use interface that lets them maximize the benefits of both Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) and traditional installed software,” Mashery CEO Oren Michels said.

In addition to on-premise and cloud support for API traffic management, Mashery provides its distribution network for scaling and distributing your API across its global PCI-Compliant platform, reporting and analytics delivering insight into operations, and a partner portal for on-boarding developers and managing a community around each API.

Mashery is clearly responding to market pressure from corporate and enterprise IT allowing companies to securely manage their APIs within the firewall, while also making sure Mashery sizes up to its primary competitor Apigee, who has had an on-premise solution for some time now.

While the cloud is the obvious, hip choice with startups, many established enterprises prefer to keep it local. With options to go on-premise, these companies are more likely to open their APIs because they’ll have some control over the data that is shared. The era of more traditional companies sharing APIs is certainly on its way, with non-cloud solutions being one of the factors that will help drive the growth.

Acronis Backup and Disaster Recovery Solutions Now Available in Brazil Through ESYWorld, a Distributor of IT Solutions for Business and Home

by OpenView

Acronis, a leading provider of data protection and disaster recovery solutions for physical, virtual and cloud environments, today announced it has entered a distribution relationship with ESYworld, a distributor specializing in computing solutions for business customers and home users in Brazil.

ESYWorld will now sell, market and support Acronis’ product suite of data backup and recovery solutions to resellers and managed service providers (MSPs) throughout Brazil, including its flagship product Acronis Backup & Recovery® 11 and the recently announced Acronis®vmProtect™ 6. Under the new agreement, ESYWorld channel partners will have access to the full range of Acronis solutions for data protection and disaster recovery for business and home.

“By adding Acronis to our portfolio, we are giving our customers access to a powerful and easy-to-use, yet affordable solution,” said Luis Moraes, CEO for ESYWorld. “We wanted to expand our portfolio of products to include backup and disaster recovery as a complement to the security solutions. Acronis’ backup, recovery and virtualization solutions offer the features and capabilities our customers are looking for when it comes to data protection and disaster recovery.”

“We are pleased to have extended our agreement with the one of the country’s leading distributors to develop a new sales channel for our market-leading solutions,” said Xavier Aguirre, director for Acronis Latin America. “We look forward to working with the ESYWorld team to provide our family of data protection and disaster recovery solutions throughout Brazil.”

About Acronis

Acronis is a leading provider of easy-to-use disaster recovery and data protection solutions for physical, virtual and cloud environments. Its patented disk imaging technology enables corporations, SMBs and consumers to protect their digital assets. With Acronis’ disaster recovery, deployment and migration software, users protect their digital information, maintain business continuity and reduce downtime. Acronis software is sold in more than 90 countries and available in up to 14 languages. For additional information, please visit www.acronis.com. Follow Acronis on Twitter: http://twitter.com/acronis_LATAM.