2009 WizKids Report
We are pleased to announce the 2009 WizKids Report which is available here for free down load. This year we honor seven companies for their innovations and contributions to the front office. This year’s WizKids all exemplify the importance of operational excellence. Just to be different, here they are in reverse alphabetic order.
Zuora
Prior to Zuora and a few other companies, on-demand companies used billing systems originally intended for conventional product sales. But on-demand vendors have a host of billing needs that product companies do not. Customers are free to re-configure their services frequently and many do. Accommodating these changes can be a massive undertaking and, due to the nature of on-demand computing in which users can simply quit, every customer touch has to be accurate. Zuora has taken much of the effort out of producing accurate bills (monthly, quarterly or other periods) for on-demand companies thereby simplifying operations. Zuora represents the leading edge of a new category that we call Internet Infrastructure because it supplies the unique billing and payments needs of on-demand companies and their customers. By doing this Zuora has helped to make any of its client companies easier to do business with.
Xactly
Like Right90, Xactly has a solution that makes a company easier for its employees to work with. Compensation management had been a backwater application area prior to on-demand computing because few companies could afford to purchase systems. As a result, the bulk of sales departments tracked commissions in labor-intensive spreadsheets. Xactly and several other companies changed that but Xactly appears to have taken the idea furthest. A database, document management and analytics enable managers to build and distribute sales plans, review and accurately reward performance and customize plans to reflect the realities of markets and personnel. With Xactly, companies have a better way to address the needs of one of their most important constituencies — sales people.
Unisfair
Companies face pressures to be more cost effective, for example, in generating leads and better managing travel expenses. And increasingly, companies need to manage their carbon footprints. Unisfair has developed a solution that contributes solutions to all of these needs. On-demand trade show management is a relatively new segment and Unisfair provides a graphic example of how companies can reach their target audiences with trade show content while developing qualified leads at a fraction of the cost usually associated with shows. Virtual shows may not be ready to replace conventional live meetings in all cases but we believe that they will be an important part of any company’s green strategy now and in the future. Companies adopting virtual trade show strategies, at least in part, will discover they can hold more events on smaller budgets and greatly reduce the expense of travel for themselves and their customers. In the process they will be making their companies easier to do business with.
TimeTrade
Delivering services often requires more than a simple appointment between a provider and a customer. In addition to skilled personnel, services require rooms, equipment and possibly one or more assistants. All must be scheduled together if an appointment is to work out. Walk-in service may work in many cases but long wait times can drive away business. Alternatively, over staffing to accommodate possible walk-ins can be ruinously expensive. TimeTrade has developed sophisticated self-service appointment scheduling that can help vendors better manage their assets and customers manage their time. Appointment scheduling can help any business become easier to do business with simply by smoothing out demand and making it more predictable thus benefitting both customer and vendor.
Right90
Operational excellence or making a company easier to work with does not only extend to the customer. Improving internal business processes is frequently prized but the idea has always had a back office orientation. Right90 provides a good example of improving operations in the front office. Forecasting business is far from an exact science but it can have profound consequences especially in manufacturing. Too often the sales forecast acts as a surrogate for a true business forecast with dreadful results for manufacturers. Right90’s approach to business forecasting combines technology (database and analytics) plus a good dose of common sense. The result is better forecasting and smoother operations that benefit companies and their customers.
Manticor
On-demand marketing automation and lead nurturing have been available from multiple vendors — and some have previously won WizKids awards — but Manticor has played a significant role in making this software as a service accessible to even small companies. Moreover, as the case study shows, Intellitactics used Manticore in a creative approach to re-engaging with prospects that had previously made the dreaded “no-decision” decision. Manticore made it easy for customers to re-engage and thus easy for them to work with Intellitactics.
EchoSign
The contract life cycle had not been explored rigorously for automation purposes until EchoSign did that work and discovered important ways to improve turnaround time and greatly reduce the cost of accessing the documents during the lifetime of the agreements. EchoSign’s timing has been exceptional and the company has found a home with vendors of on-demand products and services. On-demand solutions can be inexpensive which is great for customers but conversely vendors must have many contracts in force at any time to be profitable. Consequently, the high volumes of agreements and relatively low dollar values mean vendors have to rely on automation to address the contract life cycle. EchoSign might still face some acceptance issues typical of almost any on-demand service but the direction of the market seems clear.
1 response so far ↓
zappy01 // April 28, 2009 at 7:38 am |
I am enjoying the blog while the new website is being built. Will Beagle Research have a 2009 WizKids award?
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