Stories by Marc L. Songini

Voice-recognition abilities added to new CRM system

Customer relationship management (CRM) software vendor Aspect Communications Corp. last week added voice-recognition technology to a self-service application that lets customers process transactions by telephone.

New applications aimed at managing complex orders


FRAMINGHAM (10/12/2001) - Supply chain software vendors i2 Technologies Inc. and Yantra Corp. are preparing to roll out rival order management applications designed for users who need to automate complex order fulfillment processes involving multiple business units or suppliers.

Demographic Segmentation

To gain an edge in nabbing profitable clients, savvy companies often use segmentation techniques to slice and dice customer data in an effort to match the best sales prospects to specific products and services.

Oracle, user group unsettled on events

The Oracle Applications Users Group (OAUG) and Oracle Corp. remain divided over who should control the conferences aimed at users of the company's business applications, nearly three months after talks for resolving the feud took place.

Oracle users: more time on old software

Looking to delay a big systems upgrade, a group of more than 50 companies that use Oracle Corp.'s business applications is calling on the vendor to drop its plans to stop supporting a still widely installed software release at the end of next year.

Wyly details plans for CA as part of proxy fight

Entrepreneur Sam Wyly today announced the details of what he plans to do with Computer Associates International Inc. if he succeeds in taking over management control of the software vendor, claiming CA users will be better off if the company is split into four independent pieces.

Delta augments ERP system with spare parts software

Like several other companies in the aviation industry, Delta Air Lines Inc. has come to the realization that it needs to install third-party spare parts management software to fill in functional gaps in its enterprise resource planning (ERP) and supply chain management system.

CA cleans up product line jumble

Computer Associates International Inc.'s customers say the firm is making strides to improve its services and articulate its product messages more clearly but still has a long way to go.

CA users seem more interested in products

Despite challenges, including a proxy fight that Computer Associates International Inc. faces, a number of its users are upbeat about the company's future and say they believe in its product direction.

CA fights back

As expected, the board and management team at Computer Associates International Inc. are showing stiff resistance to Texas entrepreneur Sam Wyly's bid to oust them.

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