Activate Technologies’ Export Strategy Paying Off

Activate Technologies’ Export Strategy Paying Off

Press Release: 11-August-09, Activate Technologies, Auckland, New Zealand: Activate Technologies is bucking the economic climate and reaping international success with its unique 'Activate' business IT automation software.

With large corporate implementations in NZ, Australia and now the US, Activate Technologies is doubling its revenue year on year and accumulating an impressive list of corporate clients using their Activate self-provisioning software.

The company, started just four years ago, is already proving an international success. Revenue earnings have doubled year-on-year since 2007, and turnover is projected to exceed NZ$2m this year.

Activate is unique in that it makes clever use of the Microsoft Active Directory and SQL Server to automate traditional IT helpdesk requests, such as access to folders or distribution lists, requests for new software and allowing users to perform tasks that they would normally have to rely on (and wait for) IT support to do for them.

Shaun Blackmore, CEO of Activate Technologies says, “The software essentially helps network managers and IT staff, who are drowning under the weight of mundane support administration, by automating the workload so they get on with more pressing and rewarding jobs. Large resource efficient corporations especially see Activate as a huge benefit.”

In New Zealand Activate has already made significant differences with the likes of ASB Bank, Fonterra, Telecom, PGG Wrightson, TVNZ, ACC, Works Infrastructure, Warehouse Stationery, Otago Polytechnic, Fulton Hogan and the Auckland and Waikato District Health Boards. And in Australia Simplot and Australian Air Express are also using Activate.

With sights firmly set on international expansion, Blackmore set up a San Francisco sales office last year to facilitate the move into the US and extended the North American sales team with the addition of three territory managers.

Blackmore attributes Activate’s success to establishing key international reseller relationships. The company has signed a ‘global’ partnership with South Africa headquartered Dimension Data (a $4.5 B USD global provider of IT infrastructure services and solutions with a presence in over 40 countries). This is already proving to be a shrewd move with UK deals already on the table.

"Without a doubt we are gaining strong ground through Dimension Data as well as through our Direct Sales Team,” says Blackmore. “We’ve been marketing aggressively in the US for the last 12 months and our efforts are certainly paying off. With recent implementations in a large US automotive company and a US headquartered global decision management solutions company, and with numerous US deals on the table, we anticipate that US sales will easily overtake NZ revenue by 2011.”

“The UK is a market that we will also focus strongly on in the next 6 months, and our newest relationship with Dimension Data has already provided us with two strong leads there.” continues Blackmore. “With export significantly fuelling our performance, we expect to sustain our current growth rate of 200% per annum, with projected revenue for 2009 at more than $2m NZD. Though we have been able to part fund our international expansion organically, we wouldn’t have been able to take that crucial first step into the US market without NZ Trade and Enterprise funding.”

Activate software is built on the Microsoft platform and part of its rapid success is due to its modular format, which allows customers to purchase only what they need. It also boasts the lowest organisational impact and time to implement – clients can roll out a highly customised solution within days and typically see a return on investment in less than six months.

"Skilled IT professionals can spend as much as 70% of their time on mundane tasks like resetting passwords, which is a huge waste of a valuable resource,” says Blackmore. “It’s like paying a lawyer to do the photocopying! By automating common IT tasks and allowing them to be carried out by business users themselves, Activate frees up valuable IT resource so they can focus on more important projects. Better yet, staff no longer have to experience frustrations over delays in receiving IT service. Activate is a win win solution all round."

About Activate Technologies (www.activatelive.com)

Activate Technologies Ltd, established in New Zealand in 2006, has offices in Auckland, New Zealand and San Francisco, USA. The company is an Independent software vendor (ISV) focusing on automating and delegating IT processes to the business.

Activate is being used by organisations ranging from 500 through to 23,000 users and in industries including Financial, Healthcare, Government, Telecommunications, Manufacturing and Retail. Organisations can expect to drastically improve service and reduce costs while improving security and compliance.

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