Today there are many different definitions in circulation of business software that you can consume via the internet; ‘cloud computing’, ‘SaaS’ (Software as a Service)’, ‘online’, ‘ASP’, etc.. Very confusing. Here we are as a software industry to blame. With the aim to distinguish ourselves, we rapidly introduced new terms for the same phenomenon, perhaps not technologically the same, but in the eyes of the customers they’re identical…, namely the provision of business software over the internet. Let us speak for ease of reading of SaaS.

Initially all these terms referred to the variants of technology through which business software could be made available, the internet. At a later stage, when the software technology really could be consumed ‘as a service’, as we have been accustomed to such as Hotmail, multiple companies could simultaneously make use of the same facilities (“multi-tenant”), so economies of scale were applicable for both the software industry and our customers. Thus the term Software as a Service is born. This term is now the standard for all business software solutions that can be accessed via the internet and for which you pay a monthly fee.
 
The blur caused by the introduction of the above terms is due to the me-too behavior within the software industry (‘who doesn’t do SaaS, is not part of the group’), but is also related to the fact that at last the conviction seems to emerge that technology is not leading, but the solutions one can create with technology and the extent to which these solutions fit the needs of the market. And SaaS is a very interesting phenomenon. With the SaaS model, you have the technical management taken care of, business information is available independent of place and time, you are quickly up and running and with a subscription structure there is a periodic, staggered payment for use.
 
And what does SaaS mean for Exact Globe? Of course you can use Exact Globe both implemented locally as well as via the internet. But in addition we offer various services in Exact Globe for which you only need an internet connection. You will not notice the difference, that speaks for itself. But the big advantage is that we can quickly and easily enrich Exact Globe with valuable features that can make your life easier as an entrepreneur. Thus we introduce in early 2011 as the first in the Netherlands, Rabobank Online. This service, which in the background uses our technology platform Exact Online, provides automatic exchange of payment instructions and statements with Rabobank. Soon the ABN AMRO and ING will follow!
 
With electronic invoicing, a service that the government explicitly sponsors, we offer a similar service. Electronic invoicing is more than an invoice in PDF format. By using a post office box and unique addresses you will be able to fully digitally automated exchange invoices with customers and suppliers via the internet, including the journal entry in your administration. With the prospective interface with Digipoort Exact is the leader also in this field. And this service also uses our technology platform Exact Online in the background. Your mailbox ‘hangs’ in the internet and there you can manage your settings for exchanging invoice information!
 
In the near future you can expect multiple developments that will introduce SaaS in an even more tangible and value-added way. On you the noble task of telling us the solutions we should build; on us which technology to use to provide you with convenience and future proof solutions.

Since the start of 2010 we have developed both Exact Globe and Exact Synergy with the help of the Scrum methodology. Scrum is an iterative, incremental framework for agile software development.

Mmm, are you lost? Do you understand what this is about? Maybe you do, but let me explain how we and our customers benefit from Scrum. The power of Scrum is continuously focus on quick delivery of maximized business value.
Through early feedback we can react faster so quality, understandability and predictability of software development can improve. This will give us an agile development process in which we can deliver better products in a shorter time frame.

How?
Scrum contains sets of practices and predefined roles. The main roles in Scrum are:

1. the “Scrum Master”, the facilitator. A key part of the Scrum Master’s role is to protect the team and keep them focused on the tasks in hand.
2. the “Product Owner”, who represents the voice of the customer. He/she ensures that the Scrum Team works on the “right things” from a business perspective.
3. the “Team” has the responsibility to deliver the product. A team is made up of 5–9 people with cross-functional skills who do the actual work (design, develop, test, technical communication, etc.).

During each “sprint”, in Exact a two-week period, the team creates a shippable product enhancement (for example, working and tested software). The set of features that go into a sprint come from the product “backlog”, which is a prioritized set of high level requirements of work to be done. Which backlog items go into the sprint is determined during the sprint planning meeting. During this meeting, the Product Owner informs the team of the items in the product backlog that he or she wants completed. The team then determines how much of this they can commit to complete during the next sprint. During a sprint, no one is allowed to change the sprint backlog, which means that the requirements are frozen for that sprint. After a sprint is completed, the team demonstrates how to use the software.

Benefits!
An important advantage of the Scrum approach is that planning is a continuous repetitive activity. Scrum does not try to predict the future at the start of a project, but aims at continuously improving the estimates based on experience. Each sprint the productivity of the team is determined and this knowledge is used to make a more accurate estimate for the next sprint. Furthermore estimating tasks are being performed by the team itself, and the whole team is doing it. This has two major advantages. First, the estimate are based on the knowledge and vision of all team members and therefore more realistic. Second, everyone is committed to the estimate, because everyone must agree on an estimate during planning. Another important advantage of Scrum is it always serves the business. A Scrum team is always working for the actual most important business goals, and the business may if necessary adjust quickly. And because a Scrum project should yield operating software on a regular basis, and the product owner determines what functionality should be delivered, it is not possible to pass difficult problems to the back. Finally, the Scrum approach has some financial benefits. With Scrum key functionality can be taken in production as soon as possible. The return on investment is higher, and the financial impact of any delay is smaller.

Please share your experience and ideas via a comment to this article  and use the ‘share and enjoy’ buttons!

Our corporate center of learning, Exademy, has released a series of excellent highlight videos about the latest update of Exact Globe.

Well, this is not that much of a news, since Exademy prepares such videos for every single product update for both Synergy Enterprise and Globe, and they have always been of notable quality.

However, there are two major differences this time.

First, Exademy filmed the new videos with our customers in mind and made them available to everyone. If you have already read about Globe product update 397, do watch the videos, because they are good and they tell a lot of interesting details. Since the videos are in now public domain, we encourage you to share them with customers, prospects and anyone else who is interested.

Second, Exademy produced the videos in such way that soon subtitles can be added easily to complement the soundtrack in English. This means that if you would like to share these videos with someone else, but you need to have them in a language different from English, there will be an option. You can get the subtitles files from Exademy, translate the texts yourself, and get a copy of videos with subtitles in your own language. We will keep you updated on the launch of this brand new service we will be providing.

Enjoy!

Exact Globe’s April update has moved into the controlled release phase.  As always and even more during this crucial phase your feedback is much appreciated and of great importance in order to make this update successfully commercially available by the end of April. We daily experience your eagerness to improve the way you run your businesses with the help of our latest solutions!

In April´s product update we will present you:

• Improved roles & rights in the area of credit limit check, bank and cash journals and accounts receivable & accounts payable.
• Product update notification: Globe´s menu-homepage will automatically show a notification that there is a new product update available. This notification will direct you to all relevant information on this product update.
• International bank formats: we will introduce more than 14 (!) new and optimized international bank formats
• Exact Globe will support Windows Server 2008 R2, for more information, see Windows Server 2008 R2 Product Information
• Electronic consolidated Value Added Tax (VAT) returns for German Legislation
• WIP cost and revenue: a method enabling you to make a distinction in WIP costs and revenue
• Importer Security Filing (ISF) is the additional shipping requirement by the United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) department. In his product update the ISF shipping requirement is extended to sales transactions
• A variety of international legislative enhancements
• A variety of ´tricks´ in order to align Globe even better to your daily business activities
• And lots more..!

Furthermore, we are in the process of doing research on improving your (user)interface and (user)experience with Exact Globe. I will keep you updated with our insights and findings, but please feel free to respond and inform me on your experience!

Please keep an eye on this blog for more information on product update 397 and complementary information on our product plans and product strategy.

Photo credit: Zarko Drincic

Being Exact´s new Corporate Product Line Manager for Globe I am proud to announce ´my first product update´ in April. Let me first introduce myself:

Nice to meet you; my name is Bert Siekmann and at Exact I am Ronald Voets´ successor, who is now Corporate Product Line Manager for Exact Synergy. I am 36 years old, married and I live in The Hague. After my studies in Business Economics and Marketing, I started my professional career in 1997 as Manager Finance & Administration at Mades Cosmetics. In this role, I was responsible for all financial and logistical activities at the company. In 1999 I joined Unit4 as senior project manager. In the 9 years that I worked for Unit4, I held several positions. In my last job at Unit4´s I was responsible for the product, service and product marketing strategy of Unit4 Enterprise Solutions. Finally, before I started working for Exact I worked as Marketing Manager at Paralax: a software vendor creating workforce planning solutions. At Paralax I was responsible for marketing, partner management, product management and the Paralax Academy.

My first three months working for Exact have been excellent and I am confident we will keep on fulfilling your needs today and your ambitions tomorrow!

Photo credit: Squacco