NetSuite Makes Vertical Customization Easier

Business management software provider NetSuite is unveiling a new component to their application development and integration platform, SuiteFlex, in an effort to create more customization and ease for their customers.Launched today during the company's fifth annual partner conference, NetSuite Revolution 2007, the SuiteBundler component will allow value-added resellers to "bundle" together vertical systems, add-on applications, and end-to-end business process customizations developed with the other components of SuiteFlex -- SuiteBuilder, SuiteScript and SuiteTalk. The technology also includes a host of new micro-vertical capabilities spanning a variety of markets such as software, agriculture equipment dealerships, seaport marina management, point-of-sale retail, shipping materials franchises, electronics wholesale, distribution, pharmaceutical distribution, and human resources."What we've done," said Craig Sullivan, NetSuite vice president of product management, "is allowed these VARs with vertical expertise to take the NetSuite application and to deploy within it, using these technologies, their best practices, their expertise for specific target business, and then resell the application and expertise over and over again."Historically, Sullivan said, many VARs have worked with traditional software vendors that have enabled them to tailor systems to certain markets, but at a high price both for them and their customers."When they move from a traditional software model to the NetSuite application and understand the power of our capabilities," Sullivan explained, "They said, 'Well, hey, I want to be able to deploy this to this next customer of mine and why should I have to re-implement it?' We built this SuiteBundler capability specifically to allow them to very quickly and easily deploy those configurations and customizations out to target customers. Once they've replicated their bundle out to another customer, they can go and work with that customer to further tailor and configure it for their specific needs. We've taken away a lot of the heavy lifting, so to speak."SuiteBundler includes a three-step graphical assistant to help with the bundle-able components such as user roles, dashboards, custom tabs, lists and forms; a choice of three accessibility modes when making these bundles available to customers, including options for shared, private and an open-source community; a bundle repository where partners can go during their development process to save the customer-installation-ready version of their SuiteBundle, while continuing to work on the next iteration of their system in their NetSuite developer account; and installation process assistance."We see this as a revolution for VARs," Sullivan said. "They've long been concerned that [software as a service] would be a threat to their business, given that implementation times are relatively shorter. There is the perception that SaaS or on-demand applications are less customizable than traditional software. I think SaaS, at least in the way that NetSuite is moving forward with it, is actually an enormous enabler for these VARs to take their business to the next level and offer solutions to their customers that they could only dream about previously."For more information about SuiteBundler, visit www.netsuite.com.