It may be summer, but that doesn’t mean there’s not news
being made in the IT channel. Here’s this week’s edition of
CDN’s
news that didn’t quite fit to print:
*Distributor Tech Data Canada has announced the
implementation of a new case management software tool to administer HP Server
and Storage Configure to Order (CTO) requests. The communication tool called
“i-Sight” is a commercially available case management solution that Tech Data
has customized to manage its CTO business. It will streamline the entire
process by using a case number to centralize all updates associated with each
CTO request and by allowing resellers to track progress online. Designed to
function as a completely self-driven tool, resellers can now enter their
requests online. i-Sight also prompts users with relevant questions so that all
of the necessary details are captured and requests are responded to
efficiently. Once submitted, resellers can track their request – from creation
to invoicing – through a link on Tech Data’s web site. i-Sight will also handle
all incoming HP National Master Standing
Order (NMSO) requests for servers and storage products, including all CTO,
custom Build to Order (BTO) and Enterprise Storage requests.
*Hitachi Data Systems announced that Canadian channel
partners ESI Technologies, FlexITy Solutions, HighVail Systems, and TeraMach
Technologies received awards from HDS Canada to acknowledge their achievements
in promoting and selling HDS products and solutions in fiscal 2009. “These
Canadian solution providers exemplify the word 'partner' and consistently show
their extensive knowledge of and commitment to HDS products and solutions,”
said Barry Morrison, regional VP, HDS Canada. “They understand the value HDS
solutions bring to organizations and share our goal of providing industry-leading
storage solutions that deliver superior ROI and maximize our customers'
existing infrastructure investments. They were great partners for a great
year.” The awards were given out at HDS
Canada's annual channel conference, which was held this year in Montreal on June
2nd.
*A recent survey by the Association for Information
and Image Management has found that less than 50 per cent of SharePoint
implementations were subject to a formal business case, and only half of those
required a financial justification. As a result, most did not have a management
plan as to which of SharePoint’s many features were to be used, and where.
Meanwhile, SharePoint deployment is proceeding rapidly, with 22 per cent of
respondents reporting it to be in use by 100 per cent of staff. This adoption
rate is set to double by this time next year. Half of the smaller businesses
implementing SharePoint are addressing the issues of information management for
the first time. Even in the largest organizations, a quarter have no previous
experience with Enterprise Content Management or Document Management systems. The report is free to download from the
AIIM Web site.
*Dell is partnering with community-based design
website Threadless to offer 11 new uniquely crafted lid choices for its Studio
laptops. People can choose from a diverse collection of original graphic
creations to customize the look of their laptop. The Threadless Collection adds
11 inspired designs, each uniquely crafted by individual members of the
Threadless community to the more than 200 lid choices from Dell’s Design
Studio. Art titles include, Daisy by Bryan Ische, Stone Jungle by André da
Silva Cruz, and Grandma’s Hot Air Balloon by featured student artist Brent
Schoepf. The Design Studio will regularly refresh its Threadless Collection
with the best and newest selections from the Threadless community.
*NetSuite Inc., a provider of cloud-based
enterprise resource planning/financial suites, and Zuora Inc., a provider of
cloud subscription billing solutions, announced a partnership to jointly
develop and offer combined solutions to companies that need to meter, price and
bill for subscription- and usage-based products. The companies plan to
integrate Zuora’s Z-Commerce Platform with NetSuite and NetSuite’s native
cloud-based billing engine. The solution will support any subscription pricing
model including one-time, recurring, usage and metering charges, and volume
tier pricing, and enables companies to tailor products and pricing to specific
market segments. Current NetSuite customers will be able to leverage the
integrated capabilities to rapidly enable and expand subscription-based
products and services, and automatically meter and bill customers through
Zuora's Z-Billing capabilities.