Sage Gets Some Corum Functionality

Sage Software announced today that it had strengthened its already close relationship with Corum, acquiring Corum Mobile Division. This move marks a step toward further integration between Corum's mobile functionality and Sage's CRM solutions. Corum's technology has already been integrated with and made available for Sage CRM and SalesLogix, but with the acquisition Sage announced plans to make mobile functionality available for its entire CRM product line. The announcement puts Sage into the elite category of CRM vendors that have an information access provider partner, a CRM solution, and a native mobile device integrated in one complete package--only Saratoga Systems and Salesforce.com can share in this claim. "The mobile landscape is starting to heat up and shake up," says Leslie Ament, director of customer intelligence research practice at Aberdeen Group. Ament says that Aberdeen sees an astounding 79 percent of users in a decision-making cycle right now when it comes to CRM with mobile functionality. She explains that having a native mobile device is a selling point for companies looking to invest in a product. "It makes life easier for end users. It takes some of the challenges out of implementation and deployment, and certainly shortens the deployment time." A shortened deployment time can not only save an organization time and money, but also helps it see a return on its investment more quickly. The Corum Mobile Platform supports a number of handheld technologies including BlackBerry, Microsoft Windows Mobile, and Palm using the Windows Mobile operating systems. This will eventually allow all Sage users to access the data in their enterprise systems from anywhere in the world. Sage has announced plans to integrate this functionality across its entire product line as well as globally, across all continents. This mobile functionality is being deployed in North America, Europe, and Sage's Southern Hemisphere division, but will roll out eventually worldwide. "This will really help our existing SalesLogix customers, because they are already operating internationally and they want these solutions in all markets that they're in," says Dave Batt, senior vice president and general manager of global CRM for the Sage Group. Ament believes that a strong mobile offering is a crucial piece of functionality for vendors to have right now, as the desire for current data to be available anywhere, anytime grows increasingly stronger. Ament says that it would be a good idea for other CRM vendors to look into adopting mobile solutions in order to more closely integrate them with their own products. "If I were them I'd be thinking about it. If I'm a company and I don't have to worry about this being compatible, that just makes my selection easier. Anything that makes it easier for the end user to choose your solution is a good strategy." Related articles: Sage Hopes Seven Will Be Lucky for SalesLogix Sage Livens up the ACT! for 2007 Mobile CRM Is Warming Up for Spring