Last week, Merkle, part of dentsu and Celebrus, combined forces to launch CXM Signals, a first-party, privacy-first, sustainable, omnichannel solution that facilitates growth audience insights, customer identification, and accurate measurement. Celebrus also revealed recent expansion and new offices in both the UK and India.
Mission Control released version 1.68 of its PSA solution. Acquia, an open digital experience software provider, has added WCAG 2.2 to its Monsido web optimisation platform. Saks, a luxury eCommerce platform, has launched the Saks Media Network.
Agiloft announced the latest release of its contract lifecycle management (CLM) platform adding new generative AI capabilities. Similarweb has launched an open beta release of SAM, an AI-powered sales assistant that brings digital intelligence insights into the salesperson’s daily workflow.
Cashflows announced a major update to its Developer Portal. Drop, an Italian technology company has signed up with Avalara’s core software solutions for tax calculations and returns. Azul, the Java platform provider for the modern cloud enterprise, announced an update to the Azul Intelligence Cloud.
Rootstock has appointed Richard (Rick) Berger as its new Chief Executive Officer.
Epicor has announced the acquisition of Smart Software, an existing Epicor ISV partner and a SaaS vendor that provides AI-driven inventory planning and optimisation (IP&O) applications. Valtech, the experience innovation company, announced the acquisition of Kin + Carta, the global digital transformation company.
Inhabitr has raised $27 million in a Series B funding round led by Hamilton Ventures.
Newgen Software Technologies has announced strong growth for its full fiscal 2024, publishing Q4 and full-year results.
Certinia published a report that looks at the opportunities and challenges facing professional services organisations (PSOs) in 2024. Cantaloupe, a provider of end-to-end technology solutions for self-service commerce, has released its Cantaloupe 2024 Micropayment Trends Report.
ASUS
ASUS announced the ASUS Chromebook CZ series of laptops tailored for K12 students, which offer a portable and durable design for enduring value and empower engaged learning anywhere. The CZ laptops feature a 180° lay-flat or 360°-flippable design and an 11.6-inch (CZ1104C/F) or 12.2-inch (CZ1204C/F) 16:10 WUXGA display or touchscreen with TÜV-certified eye-care technology. The series not only enhances the visual experience but also prioritizes eye protection. They include Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) and optional 4G LTE connectivity, along with 8 GB LPDDR4X Memory and 128 GB eMMC storage.
ASUS and its subsidiary Taiwan Web Service Corporation (TWSC) announced the GenAI POD solution, a holistic approach to AI supercomputing. The NVIDIA MGX-powered AI servers include both ESC NM1-E1 and ESR1-511N-M1, as well as the ESC N8A-E12 and RS720QN-E11-RS24U HGX GPU servers. These solutions are bolstered by TWSC’s exclusive resource management platform and software stacks, enabling them to tackle diverse generative AI and large language model (LLM) training workloads easily.
Deltek
Optiv + ClearShark, a cybersecurity and IT solutions provider focused exclusively on serving the US federal government has selected Deltek’s Costpoint GCCM. The solution will provide accounting, contract management and compliance solutions for its federal business. It will help streamline operations across the project lifecycle of its work with government agencies.
Andre Van der Post, Vice President of Operations for Optiv + ClearShark, commented, “We look forward to leveraging Deltek Costpoint’s capabilities within Optiv + ClearShark. Costpoint’s cloud-based solution allows us to utilize cutting-edge technology to meet the unique needs of our clients and the business.”
Deltek revealed how New Millennium Contractors Inc. (NMC) has leveraged Deltek ComputerEase, the construction accounting software, to grow its business.
John Leonard, Owner and CEO at NMC, explained, “After being in business for twenty-plus years using Quickbooks, I heard of ComputerEase from another contractor and checked into it a little over two years ago. I love how easy it is to learn and the controls it has to help my business run smoother. Quickbooks was not set up for our type of construction company like ComputerEase is. Our accounting is a lot better, and accounts payable and accounts receivable balance every month.”
Barker Rinker and Seacat have transformed their financial reporting with the help of Deltek Ajera. With the loss of a project accountant it then decided to outsource the function to the Deltek Pros for Ajera from Stambaugh Ness.
Keith Hayes, Principal & Business Partner, commented, “Instead of having two full-time project accountants on staff, our Deltek Pro is providing the service we need for less than the cost of a single full-time employee.
“It’s been a great experience working with them, they really know what they are doing. We encourage people who are considering outsourcing accounting services to look at Deltek products and more importantly, find Deltek Pros for these services to optimize architectural firm operations.”
Infor
Central Highlands Water in Australia will update five existing solutions to Infor CloudSuite Public Sector. This will transform it into an agile, data-driven digital utility with streamlined budgeting and reporting. The two-year program will form part of the foundational technologies for Central Highlands Water’s More than Water 2040 Strategy. It will play a key role in its digital transformation journey alongside the Digital Water Metering project.
Jeff Haydon, Managing Director, of Central Highlands Water, commented, “One of the major projects we will be focusing on is the ICT&D Business Solutions and Digital Enhancements project, to ensure we continue to provide the best digital solutions and experiences for our customers. Our partnership with Infor is important to achieving this vision, and we’re pleased to continue our relationship.”
Rimini Street
Rimini Street published its first quarter results for the period ending March 31st 2024. Key figures were:
- Revenue was $106.7 million, up 1.2% compared to $105.5 million for the same period last year.
- US revenue was $53.8 million, up 0.7% compared to $53.4 million for the same period last year.
- International revenue was $52.9 million, up 1.6% compared to $52.1 million for the same period last year.
- Annualized Recurring Revenue was $415.8 million, up1.8% compared to $408.3 million for the same period last year.
- Active Clients as of March 31, 2024, were 3,040, up 1.1% compared to 3,007 Active Clients as of March 31, 2023.
Does slowing growth for Rimini Street indicate any issues? It is too early to say. However, the company has not split revenues by segment. Is the growth of the Salesforce business hiding falls for SAP and Oracle maintenance businesses?
TSIA
TSIA published several reports and frameworks last week, many of which required subscriptions to access.
- Multi-Year Subscriptions Research Report: Profitable Business for Life, or a Slow March to Mediocrity (Subscription required)
- Content Development and abridged Report that revealed the three key pillars of content development (Registration required)
- Getting the Offer Right with Generative AI, an abridged report that highlights the transformational impact of Generative AI (Registration required)
- AI Base Campers and Mountaineers for Hardware, a framework for scaling the artificial intelligence landscape (Subscription required)
- AI Offering Management Maturity Framework (Subscription required)
- The AI Advantage for Industrial Equipment Companies, an article unlocking insights and efficiency and customer value of AI (Subscription required)
Zoho
Zoho published details of its update to Zoho Payroll for Q1 2024. Included in this update are several enhancements, including:
- Zoho Payroll-Zoho SalesIQ integration
- Ohio State support (US edition)
- A new ability to edit the FUTA rate in Zoho Payroll, for US customers
- Administrators can import employee preferences for old and new regimes using a CSV or XLS file
- Employees can now see pre-tax deductions and benefits in the employee portal
- New advanced filters for the Employee module
- CTC projections are now visible in the employee portal
- Petty cash enabled through Zoho Books – Zoho Payroll integration
- Deduct employee payments for stock from Payroll
- Customizable headers and footers for payslips
