More Wheeling And Dealing By Intuit: The developer of QuickBooks has acquired Management Reports Inc., a provider of business management software solutions for commercial and residential property managers. Intuit called its fourth key acquisition of fiscal 2002 another step in its Right for My Business strategy.
In a separate matter, Intuit sold its Quicken Loans mortgage business to the business’s founder and chairman, Dan Gilbert, and a group of local investors. "With Intuit’s business strategy focused more on the growing tax and small business markets, Quicken Loans was no longer a good strategic fit," said Steve Bennett, Intuit president and chief executive officer.
Bennett also said the Management Reports deal "fits all three elements of our strategy - serving larger and more complex businesses, providing solutions beyond accounting and providing industry-specific solutions."
Netledger Adding CRM: As part of its ongoing strategy to position its Internet-based Oracle Small Business Suite of applications software against better-known middle-market applications,
NetLedger Inc. is developing customer relationship management functions for the suite.
NetLedger, which co-markets the suite with Oracle Corp., announced the upcoming addition of NetCRM, which includes the following CRM functions: sales force and marketing automation; and customer support and sales order management - all integrated with corresponding management systems in the suite. The new system is scheduled for release in October at a base price of $600 per user.
"NetCRM provides small to midsized enterprises with complete customer life-cycle management and the flexibility to tailor these capabilities to the way they do business," NetLedger said. Features include configurable user security levels, document management functionality, intranet content publishing capability and the ability for users’ customers to search users’ online "knowledge bases" to find answers to their questions, without calling customer support.
Softline Accountmate Adds Chicago Reseller: The accounting software developer has added Chicago-based, Wensa Corp., which also handles Everest Manufacturing software - a product developed by a company led by David Bilbrey, president of another Softline AccountMate reseller, DBC Systems.
Softline AccountMate president Murray Aston said that Wensa’s working relationship with Everest makes it "an ideal candidate" to help his company expand in the manufacturing market. The company, created when South African-based Softline Ltd. acquired the former AccountMate in 2001, has 1,440 resellers in North America and 680 overseas.
Accounting Software Advisor Moves Into CPE: Accounting Software Advisor, the accounting software information clearinghouse and advisory founded by former K2Enterprises executive Carlton Collins, has launched a new division to provide continuing professional education courses for CPAs.
AdvisorCPE offers a variety of accounting software review courses including overviews of the top products. It also has arrangements with some of accounting software’s leading authorities, including vendor executives, to participate in conferences. For details, visit
Reseller Net@Work Expands Accpac Talent Base: Net@Work, a leading New York-based reseller for Accpac International, has increased its expertise in that vendor’s product line by hiring Philip Goldberg from Prelude Consulting, another Accpac reseller from nearby Rye, N.Y.
Goldberg was named director of business development, responsible for strategic positioning of Net@Work in the consulting community, product management and the establishment of alliances.
Banks Heading Online To Deal With Small Biz: Seventy-five percent of commercial banks in the United States will be offering transactional Web-based banking services to small businesses by 2005, predicts financial services industry technology analysts Meridien Research of Newton, Mass.
A vast majority of commercial banks will or already are investing "in next generation Internet banking systems" in order to attract this fast-growing small business segment, Meridien said its report, "Closing the Gap: Small Business Banking Solutions." The report said that, as many banks’ contracts with retail banking and cash management software vendors expire in the near future, the banks would move to Internet-based platforms for those services.
