solutions for the enterprise

1. An innovative range of integrated software for elevating and transforming the way you do business. Bringing together the most important assets in your organisation. solutions for the enterprise relationship management workflow management people management enterprise resource planning ebusiness

2. Agenda • Introductions and objectives • About Ascent Solutions • 21st century market drivers • Introducing Ascent • The experts view

3. about ascent solutions

4. Our Belief We are the natural partner, providing best of class solutions integrating both business processes and leading technology, combined with exceptional service delivering competitive edge to our customers.

5. Ascent Solutions – Brief History • Founded 1982 • Premier UK Sage Tetra reseller last 9 years • Premier UK SAP reseller last 3 years • Acquired 4 other Sage Tetra resellers • Acquired another leading SAP reseller • Launched own CRM package 1995 • Launched own Workflow package 2000

6. Ascent Technology Limited • Ascent Products: - • Product Development and • Channel Sales • Ascent CRM • Ascent Workflow • Ascent Web Content • Ascent eMarketing • Ascent People Management • Ascent Solutions: - • Business Solutions • Ascent products • Sage Enterprise • SAP • eCommerce • Systems Integration Infrastructure Services Marketing

7. Ascent Solutions - Today • £26m turnover • 250 staff • Solutions business focus on integration of CRM / e Commerce with ERP applications • Own brand product business focus on development of best in class applications • Continued development of high quality business, implementation and support services • Microsoft Gold Partner

8. market drivers

9. Market Drivers in 21st Century • Loyal customers will defect • Product differentiation is being eroded • Competition increases • Channels multiply • Demands to increase shareholder returns • Resources are scarce • In most businesses ERP is operated to near maximum efficiency so where do organisations look next ? • What should people spend post Y2K budget on ?

10. How should organisation respond? • Ignore and hope the issues will go away • Accept the issues as reality and adapt to cope

11. What will happen to them? Those pursuing the first strategy will loose their customer base. Those with a positive, proactive approach should enjoy longer, more profitable customer relationships. Over the next 5 years, 45% of business expect to become orientated around the customer compared to just 18% which are currently customer orientated. (KPMG Consulting)

12. What does it mean? Joined up business can only be achieved by deploying an Enterprise Wide Relationship Management Strategy

13. eCRM today Applications today must support multi channel business strategies that enable companies to manage all touch points including the Web, call centre, kiosk, credit control, marketing, field sales, customer services, resellers and partners of all description. All touch points must be integrated such that each and every partner dialogue is consistent, personalised, appropriate, and accurate. Instead of hoarding information at the centre of the organisation, competitive advantage will be gained by distributing it across the enterprise.

14. introducing ascent

15. Introducing Ascent … • 3rd generation CRM product • WINit – low cost SFA system – MS Access and VB • WINit 2 – migrated to SQL 6.5 – C++ • Ascent – brand new, ground level-up construction • 35 man year development • Launched with Microsoft – March 2000 • First W2K Accredited CRM Product in the World • Move in to the scalable mid market (RDBMS) – SQL 7 • 100% Microsoft-centric e.g.. • Windows 2000 • COM/ActiveX • SQL 7 • Embedded VBA • API’s to Microsoft Front Office

16. Base Line Functionality • Marketing campaign management • Account planning and management • Relationship management • Activity planning • Sales opportunity management • Sales process management • Qualification techniques • Forecasting and performance analysis • Quotation management • Integration with other front and back office systems.

17. ascent and integration

18. Ascent and Integration • Integration with finance • Integration with production • Integration with the web • Integration with customer support • Integration with office automation • Integration with anything via open API architecture

19. Navigator – Inc. ERP & Web Data Use of Filters to see Overdue Debt Web Open Item Data Graphical Analysis of Sales Orders

20. Web Enquiry to Salesman CRM to capture ALL contacts

21. Order created directly in ERP ERP Order Number

22. Ascent view of order

23. Customer View Account Number ERP Debt, Sales Analysis etc ERP Orders

24. Front and Back Office Integration ..front and back office processes and technologies must work in tandem to provide a unified customer interface. With many methods of customer interaction, companies are faced with the challenge of providing a unified customer view to ensure the quality of each interaction. Without proper integration, companies can end up with fragmented customer data, duplicated sales effort, uncoordinated campaigns, and unorganised sales and service delivery. The result is customer dissatisfaction, customer attrition, lost time to market, and lower customer acquisition rates. META GroupMarch 2001

25. Market Comment Mega-CRM vendors coveting mid-sized enterprise customers are often a poor choice because of high price, functional complexity, and mismatched post-sale support. Additionally, mid-tier solutions frequently lack integration with legacy systems or major ERP solutions. CRM decision makers must examine prerequisites such as degree of integration with back office against CRM functionality, while evaluating business risks of smallish vendors. META Group April 2001

26. what the experts think

27. Butler Technology • “Butler Group considers that Ascentoffers an excellent range of functionality for a midrange product, plus the opportunity to grow into something much more integrated, substantial and enterprise-wide, as customers realise the full potential of using software to support relationships with their customers”. • Susan Clarke, Butler Technology

28. Microsoft

29. Best of Breed remains Best Practice “Through till 2004 aggressive and moderate enterprise should not focus on trying to buy one application to meet all of their selling, marketing, and servicing needs, instead users should put together a strategy for combining products from several best of breed vendors ……….. ……and integrating underlying database or workflow technologies”. Gartner, June 2000

30. Enterprise and Ascent Customers

31. key benefits

32. Ascent Solutions – Key strengths • Completeness of integrated solution • Complex Relationships Management • Finance, distribution and project accounting • Manufacturing and logistics • eCommerce • Workflow business process management • Ability to execute • 19 year track record in… • Back office implementation expertise • CRM implementation expertise • eCommerce implementation expertise • Systems integration expertise • Common technology platforms • Microsoft NT and SQL Server • Future proof