Technology frees up Friday afternoons

Media Statement 21 March 2007

Technology frees up Friday afternoons

A Formula One racing car doesn’t perform well on a trip to the supermarket, a massive Mack truck fails the grade on a grand prix circuit and a data management system built to handle computer use even a few years back is just as out of place in meeting today’s demands.

Realising the constraints of older data management systems and the problems created when they are tinkered with during upgrades, a group of Auckland technologists shut themselves away for two years to build a product that would rival those of software giants Oracle and Microsoft.

The team at Simplicity Technologies Ltd has already won several marketing industry awards and the company has just secured another term of Toyota New Zealand’s business against two of the world’s leading software players.

“It shows New Zealand can build world class technology and that this level of technical research can be done in New Zealand just as easily as anywhere else in the world,” says Simplicity CEO Andrew Segar.

The Simplicity customer relationships management (CRM) integrated software wraps into one simple system the ability to record customer information, such as sales data, manage loyalty programmes, handle online transactions, competitions and reservations, perform direct marketing tasks, provide analysis and generally solve a raft of customer interaction requirements.

Weighing in behind the Simplicity development project is the Foundation for Research, Science and Technology, which has invested in the company through its Grants for Private Sector Research and Development (GPSRD) and Technology for Business Growth (TBG) schemes. Mr Segar says this investment allowed Simplicity’s researchers to focus solely on building a whole new piece of technology.

Mr Segar estimates the Simplicity technology has cost around $4 million to develop, and says the company could not have achieved the same result without the Foundation investment, even though it covered a fraction of the total cost.

“There is no way we could do this without the Foundation support. We would have ended up with a ‘me-too’ product.

“It wasn’t just the money. It meant we could focus on research without having to be chasing new business at the same time. We could put our best people on technology development, taking pressure off daily revenue demands,” he says.

Simplicity was formed after the sale of a predecessor product, Brains, which provided technology that was used in the Sydney Olympics call centre. This track record put Simplicity in a strong position when applying for Foundation assistance.

“Simplicity had a solid track record and the skills to deliver a product that could be commercialised for the international market,” says Foundation Senior Business Manager Tom McLeod.

“The technical challenges were high but, if achieved, the return on investment in terms of increased skill capability within the Simplicity team, international acknowledgement that New Zealanders can produce internationally competitive technology and export earnings would also be high,” he says.

Simplicity shareholders are Andrew Segar, Christine Segar, Paul Boyes, Geoff Pryor and Paul Bohm. Clients include Toyota, PlaceMakers, E-Bay.com, Nestle New Zealand, and Circuit Travel in Australia which has 4,000 outlets. Simplicity employs 16 staff.

The Simplicity system has good security features and allows the company to support client sites from New Zealand, interacting with all customer data in real time using mobile 3G phones and internet sites.

Mr Segar says the coolest part is the 3G integration of technology and the interaction using a 3G phone. All business management can be conducted using the phone linked to Simplicity’s system, from time management and project work to assigning jobs and preparing quotes.

Examples of the way it is being used include having a building products salesperson access company information via the phone to alert builders or trade clients of site visits, to prepare, change and finalise quotes on site without returning to the office or make customer file notes. Another company might use the Simplicity system to enable customers to log onto the company’s website site for an update on loyalty points or to buy online.

“On a Friday afternoon staff can go off to the pub early because there are no reports to write up, you can log time against calls, make notes, just take the phone and it has everything all in one place.

“Technology has made my life easier. I can work with clients anywhere in the world without having to get on a plane and go there.

“I’ve got at least two more hours in the day. I can do my email, timesheets, reminders, make notes, assign work and do all that while I’m stopped in the traffic on my way to and from work,” says Mr Segar.

ENDS

www.frst.govt.nz
www.simplicityCRM.com

About the Foundation

The Foundation for Research, Science and Technology invests over $460 million a year on behalf of the New Zealand Government, in research, science and technology. These investments are made to enhance the wealth and well being of New Zealanders.

Through its Technology New Zealand suite of schemes, the Foundation assists companies to undertake research and development projects that result in new, export-focussed products, processes or services. Investment from the Foundation is directed at supporting technical risk and the building of technical skills and expertise in companies.