Boston October 2, 2002 In a flurry of announcements, Best Software this week presented its strategy to enhance customer interaction and partner programs across its portfolio of business-management solutions for small-to-mid-sized organizations, including ACT!, Abra, CPASoftware, FAS, MAS 90, MIP, Peachtree and SalesLogix, among others. Chief Executive Officer Ron Verni addressed Best's evolving business plans at its first-ever media event that brought together corporate strategists from across the company.
Best Software announced several new programs designed to offer, according to the company, consistent support and easy migration and integration among some of the industry's most widely used business management solutions. Best said this comes in response to IDC research that states mid-sized and smaller enterprises want, and will actually use more fully, the integrated front-office/back-office/virtual enterprise application functionality that has been promised to larger enterprises for some time.
Dennis Byron, vice president, enterprise resource planning (ERP) and Industry Applications Research, IDC, said, "Our research also confirms the importance of adding industry-specific functionality to an enterprise application offering. Best Software's move to better provide the benefits of that integration to its large customer base in North America in an industry context will pay off for both the company and its clients over the rest of the decade."
Among the programs is the creation of a new migration center, which Best said will facilitate migrating customers within its diverse product portfolio as their businesses grow. Also, Best has added another division, consolidating its several existing accountant programs under the new Best Software Accountants Network to provide CPAs with access to its entire portfolio of solutions and support to better serve their clients. The company also announced the formation of "Best Software Partner Advantage," a program that the company said will provide an array of benefits to Best Software resellers, including training, financing, lead generation and alliances with resellers carrying other Best Software products.
"It's no longer enough to just develop great new products to bring new customers on board," said CEO Verni. "We're committed to working even harder to optimize both satisfaction for our 1.6 million customers and support for our 6,600 key business partners so that we can keep them with us for the life of their business."
