SouthWare Brochure - Advanced Systems Group

Executive Briefing Strategy
The Next Generation of Business Management Software
Today’s Challenge
As the pace of change increases, both employees and managers are required to control every aspect of the
organization. Timely and accurate information can effectively increase a company’s performance. SouthWare
customers have enjoyed the deep functionality of SouthWare product provided by a dedicated, strong and unique
partner (reseller channel). We are excited to have SouthWare in the Open Systems family. We are committed to the
continued research and development investment in the SouthWare product line, not only to protect your investment,
but to keep your organization competitive. This product has been around for many years and provides deep
functionality, but the technology platform provides challenges for today’s increasing need for newer technology.
I would also like to introduce you to TRAVERSE ERP. TRAVERSE ERP is our flagship solution that uses the latest
Microsoft technology. The SouthWare product line will have much of its functionality migrated to the TRAVERSE
technology platform, which will be known as TRAVERSE SouthWare. TRAVERSE solutions are flexible, easy to use,
scalable, and adaptable to respond rapidly to the organization’s internal and external changing needs. Traditional
accounting/ERP systems were designed for the challenges of the past, cannot effectively respond to today’s demands,
are monolithic, complex to configure, hard to use, costly to maintain, incompatible with other software, difficult to
upgrade, and outdated.
Today’s businesses need a powerful, next-generation solution that provides the timely information needed to make
accurate decisions. TRAVERSE® is the next generation of business software that helps organizations meet their
objectives. TRAVERSE helps organizations respond to environmental changes, become more agile, and capitalize on
opportunities during good and difficult times. We hope that you find the following information useful, and we look
forward to being a strategic partner in your future success.
In the near future, you will have two choices; keep enhancing your SouthWare software, or upgrade to TRAVERSE
SouthWare. This document highlights the benefits of each option.
I look forward to meeting you sometime soon.
Dr. Michael Bertini, CEO
Open Systems, Inc.
Table of Contents
About Open Systems1
Streamline your Business
17
A One-Stop Solution4
TRAVERSE: The Next Generation
18
Financial and Distribution Systems
5
TRAVERSE’s Levels of Adaptability
19
Service Tracking Software
7
Turn Data Into Information 21
E-Commerce and Browser Portals
8
Improve Collaboration23
Customer Relationship Management 9
Information Delivery25
Business Reporting Software
Mobile Alerts & Email
26
Interfaces10
TRAVERSE Is Built For Change 27
System Management & Customization 11
Solid Return On Investment
29
SouthWare Revision 16 Platform
11
Built with Trusted Technology
31
TaskWise Internal Conversations
12
The Open Systems Difference 33
Software Maintenance 14
9
TRAVERSE SouthWare15
About Open Systems, Inc.
Open Systems was founded in 1976 to deliver powerful business accounting software and complete ERP solutions and
services. Since CEO Dr. Michael Bertini purchased Open Systems in 1990, he has led the company’s commitment to
product development and customer satisfaction.
For nearly four decades, Open Systems has collaborated with customers, partners, consultants, and developers to deliver adaptable solutions. Together, our reselling partners, dedicated support staff, and enthusiastic employees stand
ready to help you achieve your goals.
We help innovative businesses succeed in their industry. Without a board of directors or a NASDAQ listing, we are free
to do what we do best; provide organizations like yours with complete ERP solutions and services to help you stay
competitive, become more effective, and transform for continued success.
With adaptable solutions, friendly service, extensive experience, and a constant eye on new technologies, Open Systems is ready to provide you with the best return on your technology investment.
2
A One-Stop Solution
SouthWare offers a complete line of products to give you a one-software business
solution
Growing a business requires software that can not only address today’s hurdles, but also meet tomorrow’s
opportunities. SouthWare’s complete line of business management and accounting software is your engine for
stability, depth, and agility.
SouthWare combines traditional accounting functions with innovative products and services to make work easier for
organizations of all sizes in many industries. Our family of integrated financial and management information software
is tailored for each client to meet specific business needs.
SouthWare products support multiple operating system combinations including Windows, UNIX, Linux and AIX.
Our software includes solutions for:
• Financial management
• Inventory and distribution
• Service dispatching and contracts
• eCommerce and browser portals
• Customer and Sales Relationship Management
• Reporting
• System Admin and customization tools
4
Financial Software Systems
Software for Integrated Financial Management
• SouthWare’s Financial Management Series fully integrates your accounting and related processes. This robust
system has been refined over many years to handle the most challenging needs of businesses of all sizes.
• Providing comprehensive visibility, you can combine key information from all financial areas such accounts
payables and receivables, general ledger, cash flow, and payroll. With the SouthWare Financial Management
Series, you are always up-to-speed on what’s impacting your finances.
List of Applications:
Accounts Payable | Cash Flow Ledger | Accounts Receivable | Invoicing Adapter | Collections Adapter | General
Ledger | International Transactions Software | Fixed Assets Software | Job Cost Software | Payroll Software
Distribution Inventory Management Software
Software for Sophisticated Distribution Methods
SouthWare produces a comprehensive line of applications for your inventory-related operations. This sophisticated
Inventory Control solution includes tracking numbers (serial/lot/etc.), various costing methods, multi-location flexibility, and many related capabilities to help you manage inventory levels and information. Purchasing features help you
buy what you need, when you need it, and at the right price.
With SouthWare, you can track the assembly of items from inventory, returns to vendors, and returns from customers.
Sales options include Point of Sale, Order Entry (and related shipping processes), and Rentals. Plus, powerful management tools ensure that you always know where you stand in reaching your goals for profitability and service.
Order Entry Portal
Point of Sale Portal
List of Applications
Inventory Control Software | Item Group Matrix Adapter | Order Processing Software | Point of Sale Fully
Integrated Customizable Software | Purchasing Software | Return Authorization Software Add-on | Assembly
Work Orders | Integrated Equipment Rental Management Software Add-on | Warehouse Tracking | VALOGIX®
Automated Inventory Forecasting, Planning and Optimization System
6
Service Tracking Software
Software for Your Service Management Business
SouthWare’s Service Management Series is a complete service management system with specialized service functions
and unique integration with accounting, inventory control, sales processing, and sales management software.
Combine the modules you need for seamless dispatching, scheduling, billing, contracts, equipment repair history,
warranty information, technician tracking, and other service functions. Mobile portals link your technicians directly to
the office via internet. With service this efficient, you will reduce service costs, increase revenue, and elevate customer
satisfaction.
Mobile Technician Service Orders
List of Applications
Service Invoicing Software | Service Orders Software | Service Schedule Dispatch Portal
| Contract Management Software | Equipment Servicing Software
E-Commerce and Browser Portals Software
NetLink™ for E-Commerce Software
SouthWare’s E-Commerce software is fully integrated with your business management system, providing you with a
powerful alternate sales and service channel for your customers. Whether you need browser-based access for your
internal team, a portal for customers or a full e-commerce shopping solution, NetLink™ provides the solution. This
completely integrated solution ensures that users or shoppers are always accessing up-to-the-minute accurate data.
You can spend thousands of dollars integrating an ecommerce site into your financial and inventory system, or you
can just add NetLink.™
Your remote employees and customers can now submit orders, quickly check account balances, check status of
orders, submit service requests, review product history, report changes of address, request product literature, and
many similar functions in a “self- serve” environment. This gives better service to your customers AND frees up your
team for other vital tasks.
Your employees can use NetLink to securely access portals via any browser and be productive while in the office or on
the road. And with built-in SouthWare NetFlow technology you can create your own custom versions of portals while
retaining compatibility with the standard SouthWare portals.
Access Portals via any browser
List of Software
SouthWare NetLink™ | SouthWare NetFlow
8
Financial Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
SouthWare’s CRM/TaskWise Business Management tools helps you build a smarter, more nimble company. It allows
you to quickly manage and track business operations online and offline–from the front-office to the back-office. To
develop and maintain relationships with customers you need up-to-the-minute information about what’s happened,
what’s going on now, what’s been said, and what’s been promised. With TaskWise CRM you’ll have all the information
at your fingertips so you can do a great job helping your customers.
Full access to accounts and activity
Business Reporting Software
Your system is only as good as the information you can get out of it. In addition to the hundreds of standard reports
and on-screen information queries, SouthWare offers two powerful reporting solutions to help you make the best
decisions with the information in your business management system.
ExecuMate II™ is an executive information system (EIS) that analyzes the financial data in the SouthWare Excellence
Series. You get many different types of tools so you can monitor and examine the various financial and other activities
of your business. The sophisticated analysis capabilities that were previously available only to large companies are
now available to companies of any size.
ReportMate™ provides access to the data in any major file in SouthWare to produce a report or an export file. Designed for the non-programmer, it’s very simple to use and you can lay out the data the way you want to see it! Create
lists, web pages, charts, reports, or send data to other tools and software. Create lists, web pages, charts, reports, or
send data to other tools and software.
FYI - Your Data, Your Way
Interfaces
SouthWare’s Interfaces
SouthWare provides interfaces to other software that allow you to incorporate other functions your business needs.
When you need credit card interfaces that match the requirements of your card processor or bank, shipping software
to automate your order processing, or electronic document interfaces for your trading partners, SouthWare provides
Interface solutions that support your business goals. These interfaces help you save time, simplify work, and integrate
with your software to minimize paperwork, securely exchange information, and streamline business operations.
List of Software
DocTransfer | Card Payment Manager | Shipping Interface Software
10
System Management and Customization Tools
Off-the-shelf business management software generally can’t meet 100% of your needs - but SouthWare can. One
of the most valuable benefits you get with SouthWare is the ability to tailor the features of your system to meet the
special needs of your business while remaining compatible with current and future versions.
Our powerful administration tools are flexible enough that you can easily change screens, customize forms, add new
data fields, design reports, and build in your own custom business rules and processes that make you unique. With
SouthWare you get the power of proven features plus built-in ability to modify the system to match your business.
List of Software:
SwiftMate™ | ImportMate II™ | SouthWare Forms™ | Extended Data | SouthWare WorkFlow™
Industries
• HVAC
• Industrial Equipment
• Overhead Doors
• Athletic Dealer Software
• Food Manufacturing
• Field Service
• Distribution
• Manufacturing
SouthWare Revision 16 Platform
Revision 16 is the latest advance in SouthWare’s continuing focus on improving features and technology.
• Certified to support Windows 10
• Speed performance enhancements in searches and ReportMate™ reports
• Key word indexes for customers and open service orders to allow search by name or address
• FAST Indexing for ReportMate that allows you to turn any field into a key field for faster ReportMate and
portal lists
• Product enhancements
• File structure improvements to enable future enhancements
TaskWise Internal Conversations (TWIC)- Internal Messaging and Discussions
TWIC* (TaskWise Internal Conversations), a technology add-on for SouthWare TaskWise™ that allows you to easily and
securely communicate with other SouthWare users in your company without relying on external texting, messaging,
or e-mail services.
Internal conversations are separated into the categories of messages and discussions:
Messages
Messages are ongoing conversations between you and one other person. They work similar to a texting system with
typical message features such as new message alerts, message status, and file attachments. But TWIC messaging
provides many unique benefits for internal communication such as:
• The ability to retract a sent message that hasn’t yet been read!
• Direct links to SouthWare data and documents
• Integration into SouthWare programs and portals
12
Discussions
Company Discussions
Company discussions are open forums for sharing info and input from everyone in the company. Within each discussion you may have messages, topics, and topic comments.
Group Discussions
Group discussions are private forums for sharing info and input with a selected team of other persons within the company. Within each discussion you may have messages, topics, and topic comments.
Topics
Topics are focused conversations within a discussion to solicit comments about a single topic or question. Within a
topic team members may make comments that are organized into a dialog about the subject.
*Rev 16 Platform and TWIC Messages and Discussions feature require a current SouthWare Software Maintenance
subscription.
Software Maintenance
Protecting your software investment
Software investment protection. Continuous improvement. Maintenance releases. Flexible delivery. Latest, greatest
features. Special promotional pricing. SouthWare Software Maintenance entitles you to major releases occurring
within your subscription period* and it also ensures continuous improvement of your SouthWare software. Because
technology is moving forward at an astounding rate, software that was purchased just a few years ago is now
obsolete and will not operate on the latest hardware. Newer versions of operating systems are not compatible with
some of the older releases of your software products. Software Maintenance can help to protect your software
investment. It allows you the option of when to upgrade. Your business can benefit from new features and capabilities
as they become available—on your schedule. If you stay current, it costs significantly less in time and money than
to let it lapse and have to pay to upgrade later. Most important, you’ll know your business is running with the
most current, feature-rich software available. You’ll have the best we have to offer at all times, and that means
optimum performance. Bottom line: You will save time and money by taking advantage of the SouthWare SoftWare
Maintenance. It gives you the greatest return on your software investment: guaranteed value you can count on.
In addition to essential and valuable product changes Software maintenance clients also get:
• An internal-use NetLink license for as long as your subscription is current. This allows employees to access
SouthWare internal web portals and dashboards from any browser using their normal SouthWare login license
seat.
• A NetFlow license for as long as your subscription is current. NetFlow allows you to customize most features of
SouthWare portals and web pages while maintaining compatibility with future standard releases.
• TaskWise Internal Conversations (TWIC) for Internal Messages and Discussions (available exclusively to current
software maintenance users ). TWIC is a technology add-on for SouthWare TaskWise™ that allows you to easily
and securely communicate with other SouthWare users in your company with unique features not available in
external texting, messaging, or e-mail services. (TaskWise application required)
*You must install the release during your subscription period.
14
TRAVERSE SouthWare
Many of our clients have asked us for a new technology platform, while leveraging SouthWare functionality. The
SouthWare product line will have much of its functionality migrated to the TRAVERSE technology platform, which will
be known as TRAVERSE SouthWare. This will give two options; either to stay with your existing SouthWare software if
you are happy with the existing technology, or a growth path to TRAVERSE SouthWare, which will be a new solution
leveraging today's technology.
TRAVERSE
TRAVERSE ERP is the foundation for TRAVERSE SouthWare. TRAVERSE includes design tools that allow you to add
custom fields, change the screen and report designs, and distribute unique functionality for people in each role
within your company. Of course, as with all of Open Systems' products, it is also possible to incorporate code-based
customizations into your environment. And, unlike older technologies, even customized sites can stay up to date with
automatic updates that are released every 4-6 weeks. The updates are cumulative and can be installed according to
your timeline, without affecting your design changes or customizations. You will never be version locked again, and
will always be running the latest software.
TRAVERSE addresses your needs for accounting, distribution, manufacturing, service, warehousing, multi-locations,
multi-currency, Point of Sale, CRM, and more. TRAVERSE also has portal applications for the cloud, mobile solutions
for the field, and business intelligence solutions to meet your specific needs. Basically, if you are a single-location,
the core functionality will help you to better manage your company. If you are a larger, multi-location company,
TRAVERSE will offer you a new paradigm for improving integration, productivity, efficiency and, of course, profits.
The following pages provide details of TRAVERSE SouthWare’s technology, framework, and adaptability.
Read on for more information about the next generation of business software
TRAVERSE Helps You Streamline Your Business
Today’s business environment changes rapidly as the
pace of business increases. Companies are continuously pressured to improve customer service, attract
new customers, improve business performance, and
overcome new challenges.
Businesses must transform their organizations to re-
Specifically, traditional systems
•
do not support transformation of the business
• cannot conform to the way employees need
to work todayforce employees to perform
cumbersome processes
• do not provide timely, accurate, and flexible
main effective, which means making the right changes
information needed by employees, vendors, and
at the right time. Making employees more productive
customers in the format they each require
and effective is crucial during times of transformation.
• impose large learning curves in which employees
waste
Business management software must support the way
a business needs to operate, not the other way around.
When the software conforms to an organization’s
processes, employees spend more time on productive
tasks that help the business grow.
• time trying to match business processes with
what the software can or cannot provide
All of this translates into significant increases in IT
spending and time wasted on managing unproductive
Traditional Solutions Slow the
Pace of Business
processes. As a result, the organization is unable to
While traditional accounting/ERP systems were
Adaptability is the Key to an
Efficient Organizationyour emps of th
designed to help companies manage their business,
they hinder the completion of critical tasks.
capitalize on its resources and opportunities.
With its four layers of adaptability, TRAVERSE allows
you to change the behavior of the software to suit your
processes, both today and in the future. TRAVERSE
was redeveloped using the very best of today’s technology—Microsoft .NET and SQL Server. Its adaptable
TRAVERSE is the Next Generation of Business Software
TRAVERSE was designed to empower employees and organizations to adapt the software to meet their specific changing needs, while minimizing the need for Information Technology resources. TRAVERSE is flexible, adaptable, and
leverages the rich information, processes, and competitive advantages that make your company unique.
TRAVERSE capitalizes on powerful Microsoft® technologies like .NET and SQL Server®. Using those technologies, TRAVERSE was redesigned to adopt a new approach to business software that
•
empowers you by putting you in control of your daily activities
•
is easily adaptable without the need for modifying source code
•
accomplishes more with existing resources
•
helps you interpret complex information for better decision making
•
gives you insight to capitalize on new opportunities
•
helps you become proactive, rather than reactive, to internal and external factors
• costs less to deploy and implement, adapt to your changing
• business needs, and maintain with future releases
• protects your investment because it is based on the TRAVERSE
• framework, which enables you to maintain customizations in future versions of the software without requiring
you to redo them
TRAVERSE offers award-winning ease-of-use. And while employees can become effective quickly, TRAVERSE’s feature
set is robust and will continue to meet your needs as you grow.
18
Take Control Using TRAVERSE’s Four Levels of Adaptability
The first level of TRAVERSE adaptability is Personalization,
The third level of TRAVERSE adaptability is Integration.
which allows employees to adjust the interface and re-
The TRAVERSE integration tools allow you to share data
porting tools, giving them mastery over how information
between TRAVERSE and other databases and appli-
is entered, retrieved, presented, and published.
cations you use in your business. Integrating to third
party applications and web sites and exchanging data
This capability empowers each employee to adapt
is now made easier, while protecting the integrity of
TRAVERSE to their daily tasks, with
your data.
• advanced inquiry and personal views to help them
find information quickly, present it in the most
useful format, and save the view for easy recall
The fourth level of TRAVERSE adaptability is Custom-
• functional preferences to maximize the efficiency of
their workstation
solution, the object-oriented framework of TRAVERSE
• editable help which allows them to note special
procedures within the help window
• favorites” menus to minimize time spent looking for
critical functions
• configurable task panes to provide immediate
access to associated relevant information
ization. If your organization needs a more extensive
allows you to program custom solutions without modifying the TRAVERSE source code.
Best of all, you will no longer be forced to choose between taking advantage of new versions and reinvesting in customization. Once you have tailored TRAVERSE
The second level of adaptability is Design. The TRAVERSE
to your specific needs using the four layers of adapt-
Design Studio allows you to adapt TRAVERSE to fit the
ability, your changes are protected and reused during
broader needs of your organization.
future service packs and upgrades to new versions of
TRAVERSE. Personalize
You can personalize TRAVERSE by adjusting the
menu organization and terms, changing the basic
form navigation, and by creating and saving
individualized ‘views’ of data for inquiry and
reporting.
Design
Use the TRAVERSE Design Studio to add custom
fields and change the layout of forms. You can also
build import and export definitions to provide
integration to other software or automation
equipment that you may use.
Integrate
TRAVERSE includes a set of data mapping and
scheduling tools to integrate your Web store,
trading partner, or other proprietary or third-party
application data with
TRAVERSE. Using these integration tools ensures
that data coming into TRAVERSE from these systems is passed through the same validations and
business rules as data you enter in TRAVERSE.
Customize
TRAVERSE is built on a complete framework designed
to help you customize TRAVERSE applications to fit
your needs. And just as in TRAVERSE itself, an extension or custom application you build on the TRAVERSE
framework automatically inherits TRAVERSE’s adaptability through the other layers.
20
Turn Data into Useful Information
Data is not information. Information is the key to
Further, traditional accounting/ERP systems do not
gaining the insight necessary to manage change and
adapt easily to the increasing needs of employees for
make the right decisions, and is critical to building
information. This forces employees to enter important
and growing a business. Turning data into actionable
business data into disparate databases or spread-
information is a daily challenge for most businesses.
sheets. Too often, employees rely on memory simply
because there is no place to store the data.
Today, businesses constantly collect all kinds of data
such as sales, inventory, purchasing, manufacturing,
When ERP data must be combined with data from
service, and so on. This large amount of complex data
these disparate systems, the task of retrieving informa-
is collected and used in the existing accounting/ERP
tion becomes even more difficult. Traditional account-
system, supported by spreadsheets and disparate
ing/ERP reporting tools often do not work with other
databases. These spreadsheets and disparate systems
applications.
were not designed to provide a framework that
shares information effectively. Its sheer volume can
Users of traditional accounting/ERP systems are forced
intimidate those who try to make sense of it.
to rely on information technology specialists to perform even simple queries. This reliance on information
Traditional Systems Are Information Traps
technology increases cost of ownership, hinders access
Traditional accounting/ERP systems fail to provide
and resources.
timely, meaningful, and integrated information.
The data is held hostage in complex, proprietary
systems that often require third-party applications
or expensive modifications to produce useful
information, such as changes to simple reports or
inquiry screens.
to timely information, and consumes valuable time
Retrieve the Information You Need Quickly and Easily with Adaptable
Inquiries and Reporting
TRAVERSE features adaptable inquiries, which allow
It uses the latest online analytical processing
you to format views of information by filtering out
(OLAP) technology to produce reports and
unnecessary data and by rearranging, adding, and
graphs that afford a new level of insight.
removing columns of information as needed. You can
print these views and save them for later use. You can
also set default views and share views with others in
the organization.
TRAVERSE uses the powerful, fully configurable SQL
Reporting Services reporting engine, and comes with
a useful variety of pre-built reports that will meet the
needs of most companies. SQL Reporting Services
gives you the ability to customize these reports, if
necessary. TRAVERSE includes a number of powerful
advanced reporting applications, including;
• Advanced Financial Analyst, a state-of-the-art
reporting tool that allows you to perform ‘what
if’ analyses, create charts and graphs, and
distribute financial information in native Excel,
HTML or text formats.
• Synoptix for TRAVERSE from CompuSoft
Development, a complete solution for enterprise
report writing and drill-down analysis. It delivers
end-to-end reporting capabilities from financial
and operational reporting to advanced budgeting
capabilities.
Furthermore, because TRAVERSE tightly integrates
• Advanced Information Analyst, a
with Microsoft Office applications, you can use
multidimensional reporting tool that helps you
Microsoft Excel to create limitless combinations of
understand increasingly complex problems.
reports and usable data sets.
Dashboards, Inquiries, Reports, Spreadsheet exports, Automated Alerts...
However you need information delovered to you, TRAVERSE has a solution
22
Improve Collaboration Using One Information Framework
To be most effective, departments must be able to
restrictions can have a profoundly negative impact in
share information freely. Unfortunately, businesses
several ways:
often rely on multiple systems that perform specific
functions and cannot share information readily with
other systems.
This has created crippling problems for organizations
wanting to respond quickly to change. Information
silos occur, and employees are often denied access to
key information. Whole departments are cut off from
the resources they need, and receive only a small fraction of the data that should be available to them.
To succeed today and in the future, organizations need
a comprehensive business solution that can integrate
easily with other software products. TRAVERSE empowers employees to gain access to and share the
information they need to be most effective.
The Hazards of Using Disparate Systems
Traditional accounting/ERP systems are often based
on proprietary technologies and databases that cannot
easily integrate with other software products. These
• Incommunicative systems force employees to
commit information to memory, or to enter
information into separate, disconnected systems
like spreadsheet programs.
• Disparate systems do not work well together.
Databases are not easily relatable between
systems. Needed information is not accessible to
the right users.
• Companies have outgrown the abilities of their
rigid, outdated accounting/ERP systems. These
systems are not robust enough to handle the
changing demands of business today. Employees
have to rely on external programs and platforms
outside of the accounting/ERP system to perform
their jobs.
• The lack of information means decisions cannot
be made accurately, effectively, or in a timely
manner.
TRAVERSE is the Next Generation of Business Software
TRAVERSE can help your employees collaborate more
Best of all, TRAVERSE assures the validity and integrity
effectively with all stakeholders: customers, vendors, exec-
of your financial data by subjecting the data you import
utives, banks, and so on. You can connect all your depart-
via the Integration Engine to the same business rules and
ments to one integrated source of data, which provides
validations as data entered directly
accurate information to stakeholders as needed. Your
into TRAVERSE.
employees get things done easily with real-time, relevant,
and integrated business knowledge.
TRAVERSE offers complete solutions for businesses in
Tear Down Walls Between Applications Using
Service-Oriented Architecture
many industries. The comprehensive, award-winning fea-
If the need for more advanced integration arises, the
ture set meets the needs of the entire organization, making
TRAVERSE framework provides the solution. TRAVERSE is
TRAVERSE an ideal solution to unify your departments
designed following object-oriented principles and is built
under one integrated system.
on Microsoft’s .NET Framework. The business processes
The TRAVERSE eBusiness applications allow you to stay in
close contact with off-site stakeholders such as vendors,
customers, and sales representatives.
can be deployed as software services in a service-oriented
architecture (SOA), providing services that can be
used by other packages to exchange information with
TRAVERSE.
Maximize Efficiency by Safely Integrating
Your Applications
Because TRAVERSE can communicate with other packages
If the unique needs of your business demand additional
can integrate with TRAVERSE in this manner are limitless.
software solutions, the TRAVERSE Integration Engine in the
You can incorporate wireless applications, handheld
TRAVERSE Design Studio allows you to exchange data on
device applications, web-based applications,
demand or at scheduled intervals. You can define data ex-
and other business applications both internal and external
ports from TRAVERSE to your other software applications,
to your organization.
by way of their services, the types of applications that you
as well as imports of data into TRAVERSE.
24
Deliver the Right Information to the Right People at the Right People
at the Right Time in the Right Format
and placed into the hands of the right people within
Traditional Business Solutions Slow the Flow of
Information
your organization.
Traditional accounting/ERP systems create many
Critical business information must be accurate, timely,
To help businesses compete in today’s rapidly
changing environment, TRAVERSE delivers the right
information in a timely fashion to the people within
the organization who need it most. TRAVERSE will help
you identify potential problems before they develop,
and will help you mobilize the appropriate resources
to solve problems and seize opportunities as they
arise.
obstacles that prevent information from landing
on the desks of decision makers when it is needed.
Traditional accounting/ERP systems
• merely produce lists of data, requiring employees
to comb through spreadsheets and reports to
identify which information is important and
which is not
• deliver information late (if at all), causing
employees to waste time putting out fires • make it difficult for management to gauge the
state of the company • prohibit access to information because the data
is stored in separate, incompatible software
applications
Act on Timely, Reliable Information Delivered Automatically to You
TRAVERSE bridges this information gap by providing
actionable information alerts, business metrics, and
scheduled reports. You and your employees are freed
from having to spot opportunities and problems,
allowing you to spend time developing strategies,
crafting solutions, and building your business.
TRAVERSE can be configured to e-mail informational
alerts to the right people inside—and outside—of your
organization. Alerts are timely and sent directly to the
people best able to make a decision and take action.
Your employees will save time and energy by seizing
opportunities and solving problems quickly.
TRAVERSE provides Digital Dashboards you can
use to monitor key performance indicators from
your desktop. From sales results to cash balances
to financial ratios, Digital Dashboard delivers the
information you need to keep your finger on the
pulse of your business.
26
A Solution for Your Future: TRAVERSE is Built for Change
Today, rapid change is a fact of life. Businesses are
modifications now may mean additional costs in
challenged by the need to become more agile, to meet
the future when those modifications are no longer
new requirements, to capitalize on new opportunities,
compatible with service packs and future versions of
and to control costs. TRAVERSE, the next generation
the traditional software.
of business management software, provides the
flexibility, adaptability, and scalability organizations
need to adapt and grow in turbulent times.
Traditional Systems Have Not Kept Up
Businesses are dynamic. Their needs have changed.
Because of their rigidity and lack of scalability,
traditional accounting/ERP systems that once served
TRAVERSE Grows and Changes With You
Open Systems was founded on the belief that the best
way to answer our customers’ business needs is to
enable them to tailor our software to any industry-specific need. With our TRAVERSE and OSAS products, we
offer a variety of methods and tools to make sure that
your business solution fits your needs perfectly.
the needs of the business are now outdated,
As described previously, TRAVERSE provides four
outgrown, or out of step with the needs of today.
layers of adaptability: Personalization, Design, Inte-
Traditional accounting/ERP solutions often require
costly modifications to adjust to new business realities.
However, modifying a traditional solution can be a
risky proposition. Waiting to customize a solution may
cause missed opportunities that using an optimized
solution can provide. On the other hand, paying for
gration, and Customization. While you can use these
capabilities to tailor the software to your specific needs
today, you can also use them to adapt TRAVERSE to fit
your future business requirements, if they change.
Customize Your Solution Without Modifications
If your current or future needs require a customized solution, you can build it within the TRAVERSE
framework. The TRAVERSE framework is created using well respected, widely-used Microsoft
technologies—.NET and SQL Server. This makes it easier to find the skilled technical resources you
need to create your own customized solution.
With traditional software, creating a custom solution requires the modification of source code. The
TRAVERSE framework, on the other hand, allows you to build objects to change the behavior of
the software without modifying TRAVERSE source code. Therefore, you can enjoy the benefits of
deploying a custom-crafted solution while minimizing or eliminating the need to rework this code
when applying service packs and future versions of TRAVERSE.
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TRAVERSE Delivers a Solid Return on Investment
TRAVERSE provides solutions to many of the problems businesses face today. As discussed previously, TRAVERSE can
help
• streamline business processes
• improve access to critical business information and help put it to use
• enhance employee collaboration through information sharing
• foster a proactive business culture through timely
business alerts
• assure that evolving business needs are met through adaptability and scalability
TRAVERSE delivers a solid return on investment through increased productivity, lowered costs, and greater efficiency
in your business. Moreover, TRAVERSE delivers returns in non-traditional ways as well.
By making your employees more productive, they are free to do the business of your business. TRAVERSE allows your
employees to spend time on value-added activities like increasing sales, improving customer service, or finding new
ways to streamline operations.
Employees feel good about doing work that helps the company, rather than managing processes. TRAVERSE helps
free your employees to focus on what they do best.
Act on Timely, Reliable Information Delivered Automatically to You
Because traditional accounting/ERP solutions are monolithic,
difficult to configure, and costly to maintain, businesses have
historically viewed them as an expensive necessity, not an
investment from which to expect organizational gains.
Furthermore, the expense does not end with mere maintenance
and support. Businesses are forced to pay for expensive
modifications that merely keep the solution working, and pay
again to have those same modifications configured to work with
service packs and upgrades. The traditional accounting/ERP
solution becomes an organizational money
pit that does not address the increasing needs over time.
TRAVERSE is an Investment in Your Business
Choosing TRAVERSE as your accounting/ERP solution will give
you returns and benefits for years to come. Because it is featurerich and adaptable, TRAVERSE represents an investment in your
business, your mission-critical processes, and the fulfillment of
your company goals.
Adaptability and scalability are built into TRAVERSE, giving you
the flexibility to scale your solution as your company grows, adjust
functionality as your needs change, and stay current with service
packs and new versions without overhauling customizations.
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The TRAVERSE Framework: Built with Trusted Technology
The next generation of business software, TRAVERSE,
is configurable, adaptable, and cost-controlling by
design. TRAVERSE has been redesigned using Microsoft
technologies like .NET and SQL Server.
The TRAVERSE framework leverages these cuttingedge technologies to deliver a user experience and
flexible software for a new era of business. This era
requires software which is easily adapted to your
unique business needs. You can be assured that the
TRAVERSE framework and these popular and powerful
technologies will serve as a solid information base for
your business well into the future.
Some Solutions Are Not What They Seem
Many accounting/ERP packages that claim to be built
with .NET technologies are simply the same software
with a .NET wrapper. Nothing about those products
has really changed. TRAVERSE, on the other hand,
has been redesigned from the ground up with these
technologies at the core of all aspects of the software.
TRAVERSE’s innovative design puts you in control of
your software, and fully delivers on the promise of
these technologies.
TRAVERSE’s Framework Provides
Unsurpassed Adaptability
The TRAVERSE applications are built on a complete
framework designed to simplify the extension of
functionality to meet the specific needs of your
company. The framework provides the four layers of
adaptability that make TRAVERSE the most flexible
accounting/ERP solution available.
In most cases, you can easily adapt TRAVERSE to fit
your business without any need for code modification.
With the power to personalize reports, adjust inquiries,
and make use of the robust business intelligence
applications available for use with TRAVERSE, you
can achieve mastery over the information within your
system.
For companies wanting to build in-house solutions
to meet unique needs, the TRAVERSE Software
Developer’s Kit provides the tools to create extensions
or custom applications. An extension or custom
application built using the TRAVERSE framework
automatically inherits the personalization, design
changes, and integration capabilities of standard
TRAVERSE applications.
Customize Your Solution Without Modifications
Adaptations you make to the software, either through the Personalization options, the
Design Studio, or the TRAVERSE framework, are preserved when you apply service packs and
future releases of TRAVERSE. There is no need to re-create customizations to work with later
versions of TRAVERSE solutions.
Leverage 40 Years of Experience with Open Systems, Inc.
Open Systems’ core competency is designing business software for small, growing, and midsized organizations. TRAVERSE is the culmination of 40 years of providing usable, adaptable
business solutions for companies like yours.
The TRAVERSE applications are built on a complete framework
designed to simplify the extension of functionality to meet the
specific needs of your company.
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Open Systems-the Difference is in the Product, Price, and Relationship
Open Systems is interested in and dedicated to
You can rest assured that Open Systems will continue
your success. Our commitment to you is part of our
to develop solutions built upon the latest technologies
company DNA. Our mission is to provide adaptable
that deliver the functionality and flexibility you need to
business solutions that empower our clients to
grow your business well
effectively meet their objectives.
into the future.
Throughout its more than thirty years in business,
Adaptable Solutions for Businesses
Open Systems has collaborated with reselling
partners, consultants, and developers in order to
Like Yours
deliver adaptable solutions to thousands of small and
Open Systems has created specific solutions for a
mid-market clients. This channel approach leverages
wide variety of industries, including accounting,
the incredible expertise that our reselling partners can
distribution, manufacturing, not-for-profit, service,
bring to their clients by adding value to our solutions.
retail, and construction. Our solutions have been
Together, our reselling partners, dedicated support
staff, and enthusiastic group of employees stand ready
tailored to fit the needs of countless vertical industries
and market niches.
to help you achieve your goals by bringing you the next
Our solutions are adaptable because of our
generation of business software.
commitment to provide flexible, scalable, and
Put Our Experience to Work for You
Open Systems was founded in 1976 on the premise
of delivering powerful accounting software solutions
to small and mid-market customers. Dr. Michael
Bertini, the CEO of Open Systems, purchased the
company in 1990. Dr. Bertini’s commitment to product
development is complete and ongoing.
configurable solutions that conform to your business
practices. Since the beginning, our commitment to
adaptability has taken the form of source code freely
available with all of Open Systems’ products. Our
objective today with TRAVERSE is to provide you with
unprecedented adaptability that eliminates the need
to change the source code to create the solution you
need to fit your unique business.
Meet Today’s Challenges With the Next Generation of Business Software
Because the pace of change in business today is greater than ever before, businesses
need a powerful, adaptable solution that provides the timely information needed to
make informed business decisions. Furthermore, TRAVERSE will help agile organizations
to prosper in this rapidly changing business environment.
Our commitment to you, our investment in product development, and our focus on
providing the most adaptable business software available makes Open Systems your
ideal business partner.
Let us show you how TRAVERSE, the next generation of business management software,
can help your company conquer the challenges of today’s business climate and provide
unparalleled scalability and flexibility to adapt to your business both today and into the
future.
©2016 Open Systems Holdings Corp. All Rights Reserved. Open Systems and TRAVERSE are registered trademarks
of Open Systems Holdings Corp. Microsoft and SQL Server are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation.
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Business Solutions
Corprate Headquarters: Minneapolis, MN
Business Solutions
Division of Open Systems inc. Auburn, AL
1922 Professional Circle
Auburn, AL 36840
1-800-547-4179
southware.com • [email protected]