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Centra (NASDAQ: CTRA), provider of specialized application software and services for online business collaboration, today launched a series of solutions, comprised of a proven technology platform, an integrated learning content management system, business workflow tools, third-party software integration and professional services, that enable groups of people to work faster, smarter and more efficiently by automating mission-critical projects online. Based on best practices gained while working with more than 1,200 leading organizations worldwide, the Company is introducing four solution areas - Centra for Enterprise Application Rollouts, Centra for Sales Effectiveness, Centra for Collaborative Learning, and Centra for Customer Acquisition - that automate and facilitate the planning, execution and evaluation phases of mission-critical online business initiatives. By adopting these solutions, leading organizations around the globe have significantly lowered costs and increased productivity and revenue.
"No one doubts the need for solutions that improve the effectiveness of business processes and give organizations the ability to collaborate online. Based on input from hundreds of forward-thinking companies who use Centra every day, we have packaged tailored solutions that have delivered significantly higher adoption rates of enterprise applications, dramatically improved sales operations, appreciably enhanced blended learning and notably delivered more efficient marketing programs," said Paul R. Gudonis, CEO of Centra. "Each solution that we're introducing today offers integrated collaboration solutions that are based on actual customer implementations of Centra's technology and service capabilities."
Plan, Execute, Evaluate - Three Steps to Successful Online Business Initiatives
Centra has leveraged its experience by compiling best practices from its customers and integrating business workflows with a complete technology platform that delivers end-to-end online management solutions and addresses the three key phases of any online business initiative: planning, execution and evaluation. Specifically tailored for deploying enterprise applications, increasing sales effectiveness, effectively transferring knowledge throughout an organization's extended supply chain, and enhancing customer acquisition programs, Centra facilitates online collaboration that delivers increased business value and ROI.
"Centra is helping our organization address many important business issues - from sales readiness and cost reduction to change management associated with our proprietary applications; all critical initiatives that impact how our employees work and learn," said Ron Calderone, CIO of Reliant Pharmaceuticals. "Input from customers like us and eight years of in-market experience has resulted in a comprehensive suite of online productivity applications that benefit everyone - IT, business departments, and end-users, and this significantly contributes to an organization's bottom line regardless of industry or market sector."
Coordination, planning, content creation, management and archiving, ensuring user acceptance, effectively tracking progress and easily reporting results are all key steps that, if not done properly, can make or break the success of any online project. Centra's online business collaboration solutions include:
- Centra for Enterprise Application Rollouts - Created for the VP or Director of Change Management or IT Project Managers, this solution is designed to save organizations millions of dollars on a recurring basis by shortening application rollout cycles and drastically lowering travel, facilities and telecom costs associated with traditional rollout methods. Organizations maximize their enterprise application investment by increasing employee productivity through more targeted training, less time out of the office, increased proficiency and end-user adoption of the new business processes. This solution enables customers to engage stakeholders during the design phase, conduct project team meetings online, communicate executive support and project updates, rollout personalized training to thousands of employees through a combination of self-service and live online learning, and automate the gathering and reporting of key rollout progress and effectiveness metrics.
- Centra for Sales Effectiveness - Created for the VP of Sales or Sales Operations, this solution is designed to assist sales forces and channel partners to win more opportunities through greater productivity and marketing intelligence. This solution provides a unique competitive advantage by marshalling corporate knowledge, best practices and resources along every step of the sales cycle. This solution enables organizations to accelerate field readiness when launching new products or responding to competitive actions, deliver product and sales methodology training, assess and track sales rep product knowledge and competency, conduct online sales presentations and meetings, provide individualized coaching sessions, launch products, gain channel mind share and establish continuity by creating a channel knowledge center and measuring channel partner effectiveness.
- Centra for Collaborative Learning - Created for the VP of Human Resources, Chief Learning Officer or Director of Training, this is designed as a complete eLearning delivery solution for continuous individual development and accelerated knowledge transfer. Centra's Collaborative Learning solution provides capabilities that capture, share and manage information and skills in a variety of formats to meet the requirements of specific learners or job tasks. Centra enables customers to gain knowledge of new products and services and solves critical collaboration requirements around corporate eLearning programs, corporate universities, new employee orientation, soft skills training, executive education and HR benefits and policy updates.
- Centra for Customer Acquisition - Created for the VP of Marketing or Director of Marketing Programs, this solution will revolutionize the notion of "Web Marketing" with effective, easy-to-use products and services that address every aspect of educating prospects and acquiring new customers. Centra's reliable and effective customer acquisition solution automates high touch events, extends marketing messages to prospective buyers and captures sales leads. This solution delivers Webinars and eConferences, facilitates online product launches, announcements and demos, and broadcasts communications events and cost-effective online user conferences.
"Our research shows that more than 40 percent of enterprise application implementations experience user adoption issues because of change management hurdles and poor implementation planning," said Bruce Richardson, Senior Vice President of Research for AMR Research, an independent research firm that provides analysis on the enterprise software sector. "The successful rollout of a large-scale enterprise application such as PeopleSoft, SAP, Oracle or Siebel needs to address more than just training. Centra's new solutions are offering customers a significant enhancement to Web conferencing tools by seamlessly integrating the collaborative processes that are critical to the success of their application rollout."
With Centra's four solution sets, the Company has delivered all of the necessary components - a proven collaboration platform, customized workflow tools, an integrated learning content management system, third-party integration capabilities and professional services- for completing the steps necessary for successful online collaboration projects. All solutions include Centra's hallmark Voice-over-IP (VoIP) technology to realize significant savings over traditional teleconferencing services. In addition, Centra's solutions can be installed as a behind-the-firewall packaged application or accessed through Centra's secure ASP network. Key components of Centra's solutions include:
- Proven Enterprise Technology Platform - Centra is designed to meet increasing enterprise requirements for scalability, performance and reliability through an enhanced server architecture that supports load balancing, fail-over and recoverability, and supports the growing need for company-wide collaboration by delivering enterprise-class security, including sophisticated features for system and user account administration.
- An Integrated Learning Content Management System - A key element of Centra's solutions is the Centra Knowledge Center, a highly customizable learning content management system. The knowledge center offers 24x7 access to a searchable database of customized and third-party content, including initiative and project requirements and plans, tutorials, recorded training sessions and best practice FAQs to enable users to quickly search, store, manage and deliver information in a readily accessible, centralized location that can integrate with any SCORM or AICC compliant library.
- Business Workflow Tools - Workflow tools automate the tasks that occur before, during and after live online events, including centralized user and event administration, creation wizards for easy event set up, registration, promotion, and management, and detailed event system and user report generation. Centra makes it easy for users to incorporate online collaboration into their workday through the integration with today's most popular office applications, including Instant Messenger, MS Office and Lotus Notes.
- Third Party Integration - Through Centra's API and Web services toolkit, Centra's solutions integrate with database, security and directory services, Learning Management Systems and other enterprise applications.
- Professional Services - Centra provides experienced professional service capabilities for each of the key solution areas. Centra's professional services are available to assist in implementation, customization and change management consulting; content development; event management services; in-person and online training; system integration and customization; infrastructure and success audits; third-party application integration; content adaptation; education and training and 24x7 phone technical support.
07.04.2004, Centra Software, Inc.
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