ProActive Software Updates

Customer Comments on Xero Integration

Thu, Sep 04 2008 16:40:38 +1200

ProActive Software is proud to have successfuly integrated it's world class web based project management software - ProWorkflow with award winning web based accounting software Xero.

ProWorkflow and Xero both run on a SaaS (Software as a Service) model. One of the great benefits to SaaS and web based applications is the ability to leverage API's to get different applications working seamlessly together. This eliminates double entry and opens up powerful flexible solutions to customers. We've been working with the team at Xero (Web Based Accounting) to get ProWorkflow (Web Based Project Management Software) seamlessly integrating through invoices.

A ProWorkflow and Xero customer, Spin Advertising and Design was the first customer to take advantage of this new integration. ProActive Software has been working closely with Spin to refine the integration and it's now running seamlessly. The strength of the SaaS (Software as a Service) business model is that any improvements to the integration can be implemented live on the customer's account - so the customer can benefit immediately.

Invoices can be created directly inside ProWorkflow, using information from the project (expenses, time, line items etc). There is a simple 'Send To XERO' link to push the invoices across. Now they are in Xero, payments can be applied as received. It's easy!

Here are some comments from Alex Mann at Spin:

"The link between ProWorkflow and Xero has concluded our search for the sort of application we have been seeking for many years, we have now eliminated our data entry to virtually nothing (no joke) along with the benefit of two extremely good applications(rather than one app that does a half hearted job)

Firstly our time tracking and project management for our team, or what we term as our “Virtual Job Bag”, this runs online, has massive flexibility and functionality at an affordable rate, and now that Pro-Work-Flow has integrated with Xero we now have another great application for accounting and measuring the success of our business on a financial level.

We now have a truly paperless office, can access/track/communicate/share info with our entire organisation from anywhere on the planet, and have a powerful system to have our organisation run globally."

- Cheers, Alex Mann - Spin Advertising and Design

About ProActive Software
ProActive, developers of ProWorkflow, project management software are a privately held company with over 80% of customers outside New Zealand.
Details at www.proworkflow.com
- Julian Stone – CEO, 021 864 639

About Xero
Xero is listed on the New Zealand Stock Exchange and builds the world’s easiest accounting software.
Details at www.xero.com
- Kate McLaughlin, Xero, 021 481 554.

ProWorkflow + Xero = Success

Mon, Aug 04 2008 03:42:43 +1200

Proactive Software is pleased to announce the integration of their world class project management software ProWorkflow with award-winning accounting software Xero. Both Xero and ProWorkflow are web based tools supplied on a software as a service basis (SaaS). The integration allows users project managing their work with ProWorkflow to interface seamlessly with Xero accounts.

ProWorkflow and Xero work smoothly together to speed up and simplify the project work and associated billing activity. Invoicing data is entered once and shared by both applications.

SaaS means businesses and staff can be connected anywhere, anytime they have access to the internet. The solutions are affordable and coupled with a low cost of entry customers can trial the real products and determine the fit without complex decision making process that, when wrong can?t easily be corrected.

ProWorkflow CEO Julian Stone said: "It is great to see the SaaS space growing. We were early movers in this space and with other applications coming on stream we can focus on what we are good at - project management - and leverage the skills of others who are experts in their space, like Xero to extend the utility of what we can offer our customers."

"This sort of 'best of breed' link up is the way of the future for application development, it really is great for users."

The ProWorkflow + Xero integration is now officially available to New Zealand customers. One of the early users of the integration, Alex Mann from Spin Advertising and Design, recently said "I am so impressed with ProWorkflow and their ability to respond to our requests for changes... and now that we have Xero integration. - that just worked superbly from the get-go. I see this relationship with ProWorkflow as key to the future of our firm."

Stone said: ?Validation from customers about SaaS companies such as ProWorkflow and Xero integrating services, just gives us the push to further invest in other areas of integration. We?re nearly finished testing our QuickBooks integration, then it?s onto an iPhone/mobile application and integration with Outlook and iCal. ? Integration is definitely our focus at this time.?

Xero CEO Rod Drury said: ?We?re proud that the SaaS industry is working together to give small businesses access to sophisticated, integrated, best of breed offerings. It?s also interesting that our tech teams never met physically yet the integration is seamless as was completed in a very short time. This is the beginning of an exciting phase of computing for small businesses.?

About Xero
Xero is listed on the New Zealand Stock Exchange and builds the world?s easiest accounting software.
Details at www.xero.com
- Kate McLaughlin, Xero, 021 481 554.

ProActive Software Releases Version 6.0

Wed, May 07 2008 20:01:25 +1200

Our customer driven development programme continues with a new software release that features three plans tailored to different customer needs.

The latest version of ProActive Software's project and time management application ProWorkflow (version 6.0) incorporates a new range of features, more flexibility and an enhanced user experience. The new release of ProWorkflow introduces three tiered plans with corresponding pricing, enabling customers to increase cost efficiency by selecting the plan that best meets their needs.

“It has been over a year since our last major version change,” says Julian Stone CEO ProActive Software Limited, “we have bundled a number of major new enhancements in the product and can now offer our customers a choice of options to better suit their needs.”

“We have put up three plans and we are convinced they will better fit individual customers than the old ‘one size fits all’ approach”, says Stone.

“Our development team surpassed our test customer expectations in this release,” says Stone. “Whilst version 5 was delivering great ROI to users, we saw our customer base falling into small, medium and corporate clients, all throwing up different needs and priorities. So we targeted a feature set and price at each customer group.”

“We are now rolling out product and pricing plans. All plans will be available as of June 2008.

Version 6 enhancements include a new onscreen alerting system, events, hierarchy, resource reports and AJAX interface modifications. As an industry first Version 6 also includes a powerful custom reporting engine. Other key features include:

Browser-based online access, for remote web-based management and project status
Intuitive, modular organization with the Project Manager, Dependent Tasks, Task Manager, Time Tracker, Contact Manger, Timeline View, Notes Manger and Reports Manager
Comprehensive administrative options, including extensive Administration sections and a Project, Task and Notes Search Tool
Live onscreen visual alerts and notifications to keep team members informed

‘If you are looking for a project management tool it is worth checking out. Our account setup Wizard has been enhanced to make it easier to use and improved the user experience for those just getting started on a free trial account”, says Stone.

“After six years of working with real customers ProWorkflow is rising to the top of workflow management solutions,” says Stone, “Version 6 demonstrates our commitment to improving our customers’ experience and meeting their needs. Watch this space for more significant new developments toward the end of 2008.”

Background:

ProWorkflow is a project and workflow management tool provided primarily on a SaaS (Software As A Service) basis through a high bandwidth Freemont, California-based host. It is designed to operate as a job or project management solution for companies requiring a simple, intuitive method of tracking, managing and invoicing time spent on project tasks. It enables managers to keep accurate time records, supporting collaboration, making it easy to organize, plan and delegate projects and tasks, with a complete overview of activity.

Customers include a diverse range of organizations, from California State University, the US Coast Guard, and the Arizona Health Board, to AirNZ, ANZ Bank, Fox and a host of smaller businesses.

ProActive provides free trial accounts for potential customers at its interactive website: http://www.proworkflow.com. The ProWorkflow product is available as either a hosted subscription account (SaaS) or downloadable encrypted code. Customization is available to meet specific requirements.

ProActive Software is an international software development company focused on developing solid, reliable platforms designed to improve efficiency of business processes by providing accessible, state-of-the-art project planning and tracking tools. The company’s key product, ProWorkflow, has thousands of users in over 30 countries, across industries that include creative studios, development house, architects, education, medical, military establishments, IT, financial services and others.

To find out more about Proactive Software Ltd and the ProWorkflow solution visit the links below:

www.proworkflow.com
www.proactivesoftware.com
www.julian101.com

Author: Julian Stone - CEO
ProWorkflow - Web Based Project Management Software

So who's using the technology we use?

Wed, Feb 27 2008 12:06:25 +1200

We've been asked a few times lately about the technology we develop our software in and who's using it globally. Here's a little more info about the development language we use. The heart of the ProWorkflow solution is run on a server platform called ColdFusion from Adobe.

ColdFusion is in use at 75 of the Fortune 100 companies. Here's a partial list of customers (with links to case studies) that rely on ColdFusion today.

192.com
ACD Direct
Allied Office Products
America First Credit Union
American Power Conversion
Amkor Technology
Aspen Skiing Company
AT&T Wireless
Bank of America
Bertelsmann
BMW USA
Boeing
Casio USA
Caterpillar
Chicago Bears
City of Davis, California
County of San Diego, Department of Child Support Services
Crayola
Dallas Stars
DHL
Dial Corporation
East Carolina University
eBags
Eli Lilly
eMCSaatchi
FAO Schwarz
First Union
Foot Locker
George Washington University
Georgetown University
GlobalSpec.com
Goodyear
Half.com
Hasbro
iHotelier
Inmarkets Training, Ltd.
International Speedway Corporation
InvestEdge
Jaguar Australia
Legato
The Limited
Mayo Clinic
Mayo Health Systems
Michelin
Moen
MySwitzerland.com
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
New York Giants
New Era Cap Company
New York State Office for Technology
One World Alliance
Peace Corps
Pepsi
PGA of America
Pottery Barn
Prometheus
Quaker Oats
Roche Pharmaceuticals
Rugby Football Union
Schlumberger
Scott's Corporation
Seattle Times
United States Senate
Siemens
Simon & Schuster
SmartMoney.com
Sprint
State of New York
Symantec
Travelers
United States Olympic Committee
US Bank
The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania

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Visit http://www.adobe.com/products/coldfusion/ to find out more about ColdFusion....
Visit www.proworkflow.com to find out more about our solution....

Author: Julian Stone - CEO
ProWorkflow - Web Based Project Management Software

Global software company manages over $200 million of time

Wed, Feb 27 2008 02:26:11 +1200

ProActive Software Ltd, a New Zealand based Software Company, have doubled the total amount of hours managed by their flagship project and time management software product, ProWorkflow.com, to 2.1 million hours in just eight months.

ProWorkflow.com, a Software as a Service (SaaS) solution, is now managing over $200 million dollars worth of time time for thousands of users globally at a time in the market where more and more companies turn to SaaS model businesses for cost effective and reliable management tools.

Just last June ProActive Software was revelling in the SaaS solution's millionth hour tracked under management and with good traction in more than 20 countries the ProWorkflow solution is set to tackle another big year making waves in the web based project and time management workspace.

Julian Stone, CEO of ProActive Software Ltd, says the growth of ProWorkflow is the culmination of nearly five years in operation which has captured the attention of a wide range of different businesses and industry leaders. A selection of these companies is viewable on their impressive customer testimonials page.

Stone says "Our ProWorkflow solution has built up thousands of long term users over time due to the SaaS model. The very nature of SaaS means that a solution must deliver value otherwise customer drop-off occurs. When we talk about value in SaaS, we're not just talking about the product, rather the product, usability, support, pricing and infrastructure. When all these come into line for a customer, they get the 'value' out of the model. That's when you can start scaling the software company."

He says the increasing growth shows clients are continuing to see the benefits of ProWorkflow.com's continual evolution as the customer focused team at ProActive Software make ongoing improvements and additions while working directly with clients for the best results.

Stone is impressed with the popularity ProWorkflow.com has seen in the past two years and sees the growth continuing while the team at ProWorkflow make more innovations in their approach to the project and time management SaaS.

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Visit www.proworkflow.com to find out more....

Author: Julian Stone - CEO
ProWorkflow - Web Based Project Management Software

Crash Brokers now web-based and paperless

Thu, Feb 14 2008 22:56:40 +1200

Here's a copy of an article recently published in 'Business to Business' magazine (and website) about a ProWorkflow customer in New Zealand. This is a great success story and good example of ProWorkflow's project management software being used to create efficiencies in a real-world scenario.

Here's the original article:
http://www.btob.co.nz/cms/news/2008/01/art10003038.php

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Crash Brokers now web-based and paperless

Crash Brokers is an Auckland-based MV accident management service providing a 24/7 turn-key solution. The firm manages collision repairs from the point of impact through to the day of re-delivery.

This includes pick-up/delivery and replacement late-model cars and vans, and is free of charge to customers. The model links seamlessly with all insurance companies’ procedures to ensures a superior service experience for customers and consistent high quality.

Crash Brokers is constantly innovating and improving customer service.

The latest mile-stone is the launch of a web-based job management system that allows customers, insurance brokers and service providers to access all records relating to each case on-line in real time. This is a significant service enhancement that has improved communication and information flow to customers, increased staff efficiency and eliminated reliance on paper.

After discussing a case with the caller, all pending arrangements are confirmed by email.

The “project” is then entered into the on-line system which sends an automated email-alert to the customer advising log-in/password details.

Crash Brokers staff update all milestones daily so customers know as soon as insurance assessing is complete, target completion dates, any subsequent updates and other relevant information. Other files and images can also be attached.

Crash Brokers’ Director Karen Knight says a number of project management software packages were trialled over many months before deciding on Christchurch based www.ProWorkflow.com.

She says they’re delighted with the functionality and robustness of the system, as well as the unlimited technical support provided by ProWorkflow’s Director Julian Stone and his staff.

Knight describes ProWorkflow as a first-class product that’s easy to navigate and intuitive to use - it fully supports Crash Brokers objectives of providing a highly efficient professional service that saves customers time, stress and money.

Knight says collision repair management is a sensible out-sourcing decision as it can be time-consuming and frustrating particularly for SME’s that don’t have the spare resources to waste on non-productive activities.

Customers seem to agree. The handy link from Crash Brokers to the consumer protection web-site www.nocowboys.co.nz shows a 99% satisfaction rating from unsolicited customer feedback – that’s pretty hard to beat.

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Visit www.proworkflow.com to find out more....

Author: Julian Stone - CEO
ProWorkflow - Web Based Project Management Software

ProWorkflow - Indepth Customer Review on Iterating.com

Wed, Dec 05 2007 16:57:29 +1200

Here's a post that put smiles on the guys faces in the office. We found a review from a customer on a well known software rating website called Iterating.com and and thought it was worth a post. On the website the ProWorkflow solution gained an 8.95 rating so we're happy with that.

Here's the review: http://www.iterating.com/products/ProWorkflow/
And it's copied below...

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ProWorkFlow rocks for small business project managers.

I have used ProWorkFlow for several years now so I have seen it progress over a good period of time. The developers are very focused on the project, extremely competent and I felt very secure having some of my most sensitive data on their hosted system.

The functionality behind the project management is quite extensive, with multi-users, easy to use access controls, and the reporting is excellent. If you're a small business with lots of subcontractors and clients that like to see project progress, this one is worth every penny as hosted solution, bar-none.

Where they lack some is in integration with existing systems. For example, if you use QuickBooks, it's marginally integrated at this time which can be hassle. Conversely if you don?t use Quickbooks, the system has a good invoicing module that is a huge time saver if you have subs/employees entering billable time on projects. It completely seems plausible to me that it is just a matter of time before they grow enough to take some of these concerns on.

Usability is excellent but there are some frustrating aspects I have to knock a few notches off. An example of this is inability to set hourly costs by specific users or projects. This is probably more due to the fact that I use subcontractors more so than salaried employees, so to me this is very important that I track what I quoted, what it costs, and what our margins are. That part is not address with ProWorkflow, but like the integration issues, they know this very well and it?s probably just a matter of time.

On architecture and quality, I can only say that source is fully available for purchase and is entirely customizable. So if your organization is large enough to manage modifications, then this is a great code based, evident by some of the heavy hitters that have licensed the product from them. They will customize the system for you if you can afford it, but the hosted solution for small business is mainly been my interest and where I have come to know it. This would make integration with existing systems somewhat a none issue, if you have the in-house expertise to do this.

Support has always been very responsive, often times Julian himself (director of Proworkflow) making the call. No idea how he finds time to do that, manage the development, and continuously explore web technology interests (he has a blog). The man must be a genius is all I can say about that. I have submitted many feature requests in the past, and while I can't say I've had every feature request fulfilled on the hosted product, what they have implemented, they have implemented very thoughtfully and with the biggest bang for the buck for sure.

Performance & scalability, whatever tricks they do make this look simple, has been a non-issue since the beginning. They seem very conservative not to overload their servers with too many customers. They're always brisk, and I can't remember them ever being down for any extended period of time. Like I said, they rock this hands down and was one of the main reasons I signed up with them years ago, after trying many other systems that were fine feature-wise, but just bogged down with slow user response experienced.

Clearly, Julian and his team have a winner on their hands; I just hope they're no early exit strategy, as I very much like to see them continue to grow with their sense of focus for the product.

The results are obvious; they have a great product, made by a very lean group of guys with some serious knowledge on managing project management enterprise tools.

Once they get some integration features in place to facilitate invoicing through other systems (they do have an invoicing module that's pretty good), they'll have hit this out of the park.

I would hands down recommend this product/service to any small business looking for a web-based solution that?s within reasonable monthly expense and has just about all the bells and whistles you could ask for. And depending on the requirements needed, I would likely recommend it?s code-base to a midsized firm with inhouse resources that could take this and run with it.

Visit www.proworkflow.com to find out more....

PPC Marketing - Pay through the nose or do the hard yards

Thu, Oct 04 2007 19:36:29 +1200

All business owners out there who use or are considering using Google Adwords should read this... Research by project management specialists ProActive Software Ltd, developers of ProWorkflow.com suggest that Pay Per Click (PPC), the most common form of online advertising, is losing ground to other forms of advertising. Here's the research blog post.

Used by the likes of Yahoo and Google, PPC lets advertisers bid for the amount they are willing to pay for each person who clicks on their advert and is enticing to advertisers as no payments are made unless the ad delivers a click through to the advertiser's website.

However there are some pitfalls of the PPC model to be aware of.

Without an in-depth knowledge of how PPC advertising works advertisers can miss the mark totally, and although most sites offering PPC advertising have resources to help target the ads to pages with relevant content, even when done right the conversion rates can still be very low.

ProActive Software Ltd have been using the PPC model for the past five years and have been gathering data on their results (download PDF from this blog post) and on the ensuing bidding wars which have erupted in the fiercely competitive business management software market in which they operate.

Proactive found two main problems:

Bid Price - In the past 12 months, the average ?Bid Price? for keywords we've tracked, to retain the same position, has increased an average of 230%. This seems due to people continually outbidding each other for position, driving the price up.
Conversion Rate ? The quality of the leads coming from the PPC campaigns has been decreasing. The Average Conversion Rate dropped from 5.8% to 4.5%.

During this time the conversion rates for ProActive's other (non-PPC) methods such as natural search results, blogs, image ads, referrals and newsletter campaigns have either remained constant or increased.

ProActive's conclusion was that PPC advertising appeared to be spiralling up in cost, lowing in conversion and shrinking their profit margins as they couldn't lift prices as fast as the cost of advertising was increasing.

Proactive Software CEO Julian Stone says, ?On one hand you can spend big money on PPC campaigns, an increasing expense, and on the other hand you can put in the hard yards, like all good successes, and invest in other free forms of online marketing.?

Other advertising research released this month also suggests the best forms of advertising arise from having the best products and services available which in turn create 'word of mouth referrals'.

Global managing director for Nielsen?s Customized Research Services, David McCallum pointed out in a recent article that ?advertisers around the world are able to reach consumers across an increasingly diverse range of media platforms.?

?Even so, the recommendation of someone else remains the most trusted sources of information when consumers decide which products and services to buy. And even though new media technologies are playing a role in ?globalizing? society, many purchasing decisions are still based on firmly held national and cultural attitudes ... the importance of responsive, high quality customer service is yet again highlighted.?

Great service necessary in SaaS software model.

Sun, Aug 26 2007 15:00:35 +1200

There is nothing like walking out of a shop, satisfied with your purchase, product in hand knowing that you have a face behind the sale.

The Internet in some ways has taken that assurance away from the customer and with the masses of choice only a mouse click away the thought of purchasing a product or service online can be quite daunting.

However, the software as a service (SaaS) industry in New Zealand is fast moving from futuristic idea to current day reality and companies offering SaaS are looking for ways to maintain the personal service which has been a big part of historical software sales.

ProActive Software has found great and personal service to be a key part in their success on the global stage.

CEO Julian Stone says customers have said they're surprised to get such personal service when dealing with ProActive.

He says "Don't make sales, build relationships. This is a necessary part of the SaaS business model. Look after your customers as they are the foundation of the business. It's important to keep customers happy month after month to retain their business."

Customers of their core product www.proworkflow.com, have told Stone that their dealings with people at other software companies, often based in the US, have been rude, lacked callbacks, with slow email responses, making many customers wary of using SaaS where they had little ability to have personal contact with their supplier.

However, Stone says when customers come across a company with good service, they tell people.

Stone has attributed ProActive's excellent response time with sales and support enquiries to their customers satisfaction. When customers build their business on our servers and use our code they must know we will be there if something needs attention.

An average enquiry for ProActive, from point of contact, to response is typically 15-60 minutes, where most of ProActive's customers had said average response times for other software companies was usually measured in days, not minutes or hours.

"If you want to make a sale, sell a good product. If you want to grow a business, sell good service. We've found that most referral sales now come in as a result of ProActive Software's service,? Stone says.

As Stone says ?ProActive have built their SaaS company they have always kept service as a top priority, knowing their focus would continually be tested and be drawn onto product development and administration.

ProActive Software knows it is extremely important to keep the level of service constant and high "Customers don?t care that we have ten times as many customer to look after, they don?t care we are on someone else?s problem, they want the high service level maintained - so as we grow we automate, simplify, and when necessary bring in additional resource a bit before it is really needed. It takes a while to build a reputation of not letting down customers, it does not take anything like as long to lose it,? Stone Says

Local global software company gains momentum.

Sun, Aug 26 2007 14:58:33 +1200

New Zealand has an illustrious history of, growing, building, designing and inventing some of the most usable products and services in the world. New Zealand is leading the way in the hotly contested software as a service (SaaS) industry.

ProActive Software Ltd. has been supplying companies worldwide with project management software since 2002. In that period ProActive's flagship product 'ProWorkflow' has frequently won when compared to, or evaluated alongside the world?s biggest products in the Project Management software space.

ProActive Software Ltd CEO Julian Stone says ProWorkflow is gaining more sales momentum in the global industry.

"Whilst there are government and private organizations willing to help software companies establish networks and relationships in foreign markets, it should be - and is - possible to build offshore sales through smart use of technology without this assistance," Stone says.

ProWorkflow has been developed in the real world. “We have worked on hundreds of revisions since ProWorkflow launched,” says ProActive Software’s development director Alan Barlow “the company's success is proof that we can build world class software and can compete on a global stage.“

ProActive Software has been steadily growing in both customers and revenue year after year according to Stone and he says the development approach has been a huge success considering so many new companies entering the SaaS market have used public floats or investors to cover their large overheads and massive start up costs.

While many companies are entering the SaaS market are claiming to be leaders ProActive's developed product has been selling in the company of the world?s leading solutions for the past five years and Stone says "ProActive Software has built its global customer base without stepping foot in another country and without outside assistance."

Remote Sales Approach Lands Offshore Clients

Sun, Aug 19 2007 20:48:40 +1200

New Zealand companies competing in international markets are often as David was to Goliath, small, seemingly insignificant, inconsequential in terms of size and often with pebble like marketing and sales budgets.

But with the right aim and a very good slingshot New Zealand companies can fell the international giant and bend their corner of the market by targeting customers in effective and efficient manners.

New Zealand's ProActive software has managed to hit Goliath right between the eyes by developing internal systems and technology to sort and manage sales leads to allow for geographic regions and time zones across the globe, giving ProActive's staff time to maximize hot sales leads during the limited working hours in New Zealand.

Mastering the slingshot, which has now become VOIP, Skype and video conferencing, ProActive sales staff can approach offshore clients, who are open to online collaborative sales discussions, in highly responsive manners which suit the ever evolving international market place.

ProActive have been well positioned in the New Zealand Software as a Service (SaaS) market for the past four years and recent dealings with USA fashion giant Fossil was managed end to end, remotely, with no face to face contact.

"Though smart use of available technology we've made about 99% of all sales at ProActive remotely; 80% of these are to offshore companies," says Stone who has been involved in online business in many forms since the inception of the Internet.

ProActive CEO Julian Stone is again producing more evidence that leading edge communication coupled with a real problem-solving product is the new slingshot needed to conquer the Goliath which is the US market.

Stone has worked with thousands of clients in the past four years each needing their own unique solutions and ProActive has often provided those solutions with out and face to face contact.

Stone says New Zealand companies, like ProActive, need to harness the experience they have in targeting local customers and apply the technologies available to conquering international markets.

ProActive Software Thriving in Foreign Markets

Sun, Aug 19 2007 20:46:17 +1200

Technology has become a gateway to international success for many New Zealand companies operating in volatile global markets and with the continuing advancement of communication tools, international borders are no longer a massive hurdle to tackling foreign markets.

Global solutions provider ProActive Software have been at the forefront of New Zealand's technology uptake for the last four years and continue to do so, expanding into more than 20 countries, during periods where the New Zealand Dollar has fluctuated and even crippled some exporters.

ProActive CEO Julian Stone has kept his finger right on the pulse during a period which has seen high stress levels and low margins for many New Zealand exporters.

Stone has done so by managing his communications with a minimal, but effective, sales team based entirely in New Zealand.

ProActive Software has continued to achieve heights most companies aim for, but fall short of due to the high costs of penetrating foreign markets such as the USA.

Stone has utilized communication tools which are readily available and low cost, if not free, and which have seen high uptakes by businesses in foreign markets.

"Through email, VOIP, Skype and video conferencing, our team can easily handle anything from individual sales enquiries to large multi-staff conference calls. Smart use of available technology allows ProActive to easily sell to global markets." Stone says.

While the New Zealand dollar has seen some falls in recent days Stone has been able to stay competitive during the high periods by using technologies available to reduce operating costs while many other exporters have had to look for ways to cut production costs to stay competitive overseas.

Stone sees fluctuations in the New Zealand dollar as just a standard part of operating in the international market place and views efficient operating technologies as key to any business wishing to stay competitive in those markets.

Web Based Software Review of ProWorkflow.com

Wed, Jul 11 2007 20:07:14 +1200

It's always great to be written about - if the content is positive. Recently there was a review done on our core product 'ProWorkflow' on the popular web applications website WebBasedSoftware.com. Feel welcome to have a read of the review. it can be found here: ProWorkflow Review.

Creative firm says SaaS companies 'Central login is gold'

Mon, Jul 09 2007 22:29:18 +1200

With New Zealand's creative industries booming, and demand for creative services coming from around the world, many in the sector have been looking for smarter, value-added solutions to help them more easily manage the thousands of projects they are delivering each year.

Whilst only a few years ago the standard industry approach was either an Excel spreadsheet, a complex Microsoft Project run by the accountant, or, more commonly, brown paper "Job-Bags" with ?client? and ?job? details hand written on the front. Times have changed and creative firms are rapidly turning to "centralised" online applications which offer specific tools and functionality for the tracking of their complex project information, as well as providing accessibility for geographically diverse project teams.

New Zealand owned and operated ProActive Software Ltd, is a leading provider in this rapidly expanding market.

"We have been satisfying the needs of many creative businesses, globally, for the past four years",says ProActive CEO Julian Stone "having cost effective and time saving project management systems is vital for companies in creative industries, many of whom work on international projects with tight deadlines our flagship solution, ProWorkflow has become an essential tool for many industry leaders".

With more than 15 creative clients in Wellington alone, many of whom signed-up after receiving a word-of-mouth recommendation from a friend or business acquaintance, ProWorkflow is quickly becoming a creative industry standard for project and resource management.

"We know the Wellington creative sector have always been very quick to adopt new technology and solutions, and are also great supporters of other New Zealand businesses. It has still been a surprise how fast word spread through the capital?s design firms about the benefits of using ProWorkflow"

Among ProWorkflow?s nationwide client base are Doubleclique and Chrometoaster, both at the forefront of the creative industry. Between them, they boast a myriad of clients with household brand names including (Doubleclique) Telecom New Zealand, New Zealand Affordable Art Show, Aangel Messaging, (Chrometoaster) TAB, New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, SPARC, Weta Workshop and the RNZAF.

Doubleclique was looking for a better way to track time when Luke Pierson, Creative Director at Doubleclique, found ProWorkflow. Previously Doubleclique had been using spreadsheets and in his search for a management solution Pierson found www.proworkflow.com and was impressed enough by what he found to sign up for the program online.

ProWorkflow had shown massive improvements for Doubleclique and "gives us really good visibility of where our projects are at." Pierson also attributed credit to the team at ProWorkflow for being "supportive" and "responsive" to any needs Doubleclique have had.

"At the start ProWorkflow was a good solution and some really neat features have been added along the way," Pierson highlighted two major selling points; "good value and the product works really well. We?ve been very happy with the performance, and it?s nice when it comes from New Zealand."

By contrast Brendan Jarvis, Group Account Director of Chrometoaster began using ProWorkflow after looking at many other products across the world and found ProWorkflow to be easily adaptable to their business.

"The main reason was because the company had under gone quite a rapid growth and we needed something to tie the systems together," he said. "We definitely feel it helps with the efficiency, it is really easy to use for the staff and the project managers themselves."

"The reports we can generate from it gives us what we need without information overload. It?s good to see how much we've invoiced against projects and we can immediately see if a project is overdue or over budget."

Jarvis has been impressed with the access for his staff and managers and said the SaaS model was a big advantage.

"I really like the SaaS model. And having that central login is gold."

While Jarvis had some initial concerns about integration he has since seen a smooth transition which has reaffirmed his decision to go with ProWorkflow.

"The very personable follow up has been great. Julian and the team have been quick to reply and really helpful. It?s been really good." he said.

Stone says the days of Excel and Word Documents as sole project planning lists are over as the ProWorkflow server stores business documents and spreadsheets which are accessible anywhere, anytime, and can be shared by any number of specified people.

Online project collaboration reduces the risk of costly mistakes by having all the necessary information in one place, helping users make informed decisions on the spot. This saves time, creates accountability and enables profit.

"Robust systems such as ProWorkflow also allow customers to build up a valuable store of data which can be analysed and used to streamline processes, benchmark future performance, and pin-point any problems in the work flow. It?s introducing a new level of smart business tools to our customers at an attractive value proposition." says Stone.

"We deliver real benefits to real customers, what customers want today we build into our product tomorrow and all our customers benefit as we release better and better tools, better value and it is no surprise we are seeing creative companies get more aggressive in their adoption of web solutions. It?s signalling a change towards trust in the Internet as a business tool," he said.

http://www.doubleclique.com/

Doubleclique is a digital design company focused on design-led, brand-true online experiences. Doubleclique have a seven-year track record delivering online and offline design for their broad client base. Doubleclique?s breadth of capability includes web design and development, interactive, multimedia, and application interface design.

http://www.chrometoaster.com/

Chrometoaster are leaders in creative technology services and offer a wide variety of opportunity to business including interface development, interactive presentations, website and usability consultations, motion graphics, 2D and 3D animations, 3D product visualisation along with traditional design services, such as brand identity and logo development.

To find out more about Proactive Software Ltd visit the links below:

www.proworkflow.com
www.proactivesoftware.com

Local SaaS Software Company Redefines Project Management

Wed, Jun 27 2007 18:12:37 +1200

New Zealand owned and operated project management software company ProActive Software Ltd has reached one million hours of managed time through its core business solution ProWorkflow since it launched in 2003.

ProWorkflow has been a key tool in the outsourcing of core processes for many companies worldwide, with ProWorkflow now managing 100,000 projects in 20 countries.

ProActive?s CEO Julian Stone said the software was a necessity for successful and efficient project management, often a distributed and always a collaborative process often not suited to traditional methods.

ProActive Software had been working hard with many service companies over the past four years to develop a web based project solution that simplified the process of project management while adding a powerful layer of collaboration, he said.

"ProWorkflow is redefining project management and is now gaining solid market credibility both locally and internationally," he said.

ProWorkflow holds a strong position in a rapidly changing business market which is now demanding more from software suppliers.

?Software as a Service (SaaS) is gaining maturity in the software industry and is seen as a fundamental change in business going forward with more and more companies shifting their business to online models,? says Stone.

"The forward thinking companies that are adopting web2.0 approaches (user generated content) and moving to SaaS based solutions for their core business processes are gaining an edge through powerful collaborative tools, limiting IT risk and spend, giving time to focus on core business rather than on maintaining their peripheral systems."

?SaaS really does lower the cost of entry. Just try it and see if it works. It is a lot more effective than months of search and selection with all the cost in the purchase, only to find the fit and function is less than the selection process suggested.?

"The key to building a successful SaaS software business isn't in focusing on the software itself, as that can be refined live if needed. Rather the key to success lies in the pricing strategy and business model. The low costs of entry, payment geared to usage, with a no risk payback for the users, if the solution does not suit simply stop using it without any legacy investment issues to deal with.?

?There are risks in SaaS so make sure your supplier provides great service and infrastructure, and most importantly is committed to product development ? the cheapest solution may not be the best over time. Look at release frequency and check existing customer references." he said.

As part of the SaaS model, customers rent the software, receiving the latest updates, innovations and services. This saves more time for customers by removing the need to periodically update their systems, and for IT staff to apply updates.

ProActive Software Ltd is a private company with clients of varying sizes all around the world.

To find out more about Proactive Software Ltd visit the links below

www.proworkflow.com
www.proactivesoftware.com

Software Company manages over $100 million of time, 'Solution. Not eye candy' - CEO.

Wed, Jun 13 2007 21:38:16 +1200

New Zealand owned and operated company ProActive Software Ltd showed the world their maturity last week when their time management software, ProWorkflow, reached a million hours, over 500 working years, under management.

Julian Stone, CEO of ProActive Software Ltd, said the achievement was 'huge' by any standard. The software, manages more than one hundred million dollars worth of time for businesses worldwide.

Since inception, ProWorkflow.com has grown in typical entrepreneurial fashion from a simple programme to become a complete online solution for managing companies, projects, time, information and assigning work to staff or contractors which have been developed for use in 100,000 projects in 20 countries across the world.

"As a web based solution, ProWorkflow can be accessed by the entire team, from anywhere. Instead of using paper systems, Excel or Word docs, an entire team can use the ProWorkflow system to collaborate on projects in one place. Reporting is live so an overview can be seen at any time." Stone said.

And, for Stone, achieving their milestone could not have come at a better time.

While IPO, XERO, launched their online accounting product Xero.com last week after raising $15 million in a public float, ProActive Software were quietly celebrating the tracking of their millionth hour.

"ProActive Software's core solution ProWorkflow, like XERO, has a global focus with a local base.We too believe it's possible to create a global business from New Zealand. After selling globally in the US, UK and Australia for the past few years, we've proved that smart kiwi companies can make headway into the global market."

ProWorkflow.com have seen growth across the world, but have remained quiet achievers.

However, it is hard to stay a quiet achiever when you are providing solutions to some of the worlds biggest household brands.

A visit to www.ProWorkflow.com reveals, Juice TV, HotHouse Communications, Hairy Lemon, Double Clique, E2 Media, Chrome Toaster, Air New Zealand, Vivachi, fashion company Fossil and Internet giant MySpace as customers with projects under management.

The list just goes on.

The simple fact ProWorkflow managed to succeed, do it well and compete, is no miracle according to Stone.

He sites the attention to detail, and working with real customers live on the system during ProWorkflow's development coupled with a real desire to create solutions as essential for any start up wanting to grow.

With this milestone achieved Stone has reflected on the success of the ProWorkflow product and with the market changing rapidly, almost daily, he believes ProWorkflow will stay ahead of new start-ups: hard yards are necessary in the software as a service (SaaS) space.

"I came to the conclusion that whilst having money to throw at the problem is helpful, there is no substitute for time on product evolution and customer driven development. Sometimes time matters more than money. The ProWorkflow tool was developed over 4 years by a team dedicated to solution perfection not product perfection. I say solution as it needs to solve real world problems. Otherwise it's nothing more than eye candy."

ProWorkflow has been innovative in it’s approact to project and time management. They are among leaders innovating the entire software service industry as part of a move Stone says will weed out companies which lack credibility or have no tangible services.

As part of the SaaS model, customers rent the software and always have the latest updates, innovations and services. This saves more time for customers by removing the need to periodically update their systems, and for IT staff to apply updates.

"ProWorkflow helps teams run smoother, allowing management to know what's going on, and staff to be more efficient in managing work and tracking time. The solution is licensed on a monthly basis and hosted on ProActive's dedicated servers," Stone said.

"The SaaS business model for business applications is still a relatively new concept in New Zealand, although it has been proven offshore. This is the way the software industry is headed. Downloadable applications are beginning to lose market share to hosted applications as the SaaS market matures."

Over the four years it took to develop ProWorkflow the pressure on businesses to save time has grown and along with it ProActive Software Ltd. ProActive Software uses the ProWorkflow tool to run the business.

For many customers, like New Zealand Media company HotHouse communications, time is money so time became ProWorkflow.

HotHouse communications have up to 15 staff working on their projects and often use outside contractors.

Director John Bullock said using ProWorkflow during the last three years had added an edge to the running of projects making "everyone more efficient in their work".

He had seen marked improvements in managing his project schedules since using ProWorkflow and credits the customer centric-approach for developing a flexible tool that can be configured to suit a particular situation without large customization costs.

"We were looking for a system that tracked time against projects ... (ProWorkflow) was a very accurate and easy way of doing that.”

"It is very good for tracking different parts of a project and bringing it all together."

Bullock also credits ProWorkflow for increasing the accuracy of billing and detailing reports to clients.

He conservatively projected a gain of 10-15% for his business since using ProWorkflow and saw it as an essential tool to anyone in New Zealand's highly competitive business environment where increasing productivity was essential to survival.

"It's like having a hot and cold tap in your house really ... these tools are essential to the running of a business," Bullock said.

The journey has been arduous but educational. Stone has taken to passing on advice and business tips through his blog www.juilian101.com in an effort to help others learn from his own experiences.

The company is now mature and continues to evolve with the market. Stone is certain new and exciting developments will continue to keep ProWorkflow at the leading edge of business solutions and a leader in SaaS.

To find out more about Proactive Software Ltd visit the links below

www.proworkflow.com
www.proactivesoftware.com
www.julian101.com

ProActive Software interviewed by Projects@Work

Thu, May 10 2007 03:16:31 +1200

ProActive was recently interviewed by Projects@Work about the history of the company and how it all started. Here's the article

Small Fish In A Big Pond
Source: Projects@Work - http://www.projectsatwork.com
Author: Karen Klein (May 10, 2007)

How does the CEO of a New Zealand-based creative design agency become a provider of project management software? Ask Julian Stone, director of ProActive Software Ltd. Stone created a project management tool for his Palm Pilot five years ago and shortly thereafter began marketing it internationally. But it?s tough for a small firm to build credibility, cater to would-be customers and find its niche in a universe dominated by much larger stars.

Julian Stone was frustrated. His creative design firm was growing, taking on new projects continuously and he didn?t have a way to keep track his work. Stone, a New Zealand native based in Christchurch, brought his creativity to the problem and wound up creating a project-, task- and time-management system for his Palm Pilot.

Stone?s solution worked so well that his team started asking if they could use it, too. He enlisted the help of a software developer friend, Alan Barlow, to expand the solution and put it on the Internet where it could be shared. When it worked for Stone?s team, friends and colleagues started asking if they could purchase it for their companies.

And thus, Stone?s small business was born. Barlow became co-director of ProActive Software, the company he and Stone founded to commercialize ProWorkflow, his project management software tool. Within the company?s first month of operation, they had 50 small business customers, most of them with no more than 20 employees. Currently, their customer base is concentrated at 70 percent in the United States, 12 percent in Australia, 7 percent in New Zealand and 5 percent in the U.K. The rest of his customers are distributed worldwide.

?We are a classic garage start-up operating from the country, with a large global user-base, and are now landing large multi-national clients,? says Sam Law, one of Stone?s sales support staff. ?We had no funding investment and only used sweat equity. We are scaling up steadily with annual revenue doubling every six months.?

Stone?s main priority in developing the product was usability. Before they made the decision to put his homegrown solution on the market, he and Barlow crawled user forums at established project management software Websites. What they found across the board, Stone says, were large numbers of unhappy customers who complain that products are unworkable or operate on unsustainable business models.

They decided to emphasize simplicity and the big picture in designing and marketing ProWorkflow. ?We aim to make things as easy for the customer as possible, so we?re always looking for ways we can simplify the application, usability, hosted service and billing. It?s all about automating and simplifying processes,? Stone says.

But getting a foot in the door was not easy for a small upstart based outside of North America. ?We had no apparent credibility from the customers? perspectives, so we had to think smart and make sure we had prepared quick answers for any questions they may ask,? he recalls. ?You pause and you lose credibility.?

Stone also strove to make his Website particularly slick, with plenty of downloadable sales material. ?Instead of looking like a small company that was growing, we had to appear as a solid, mature company even before we were,? he says.

The firm immediately put customers and potential customers into their product development loop through regular telephone calls, e-mails and feedback interviews, Stone says: ?We asked what they needed and built it generically. Then we?d sell for a bit, gather more customer feedback and roll out another release. With each release, the product gets more industry-compatible and can offer greater benefits to customers.?

Although the product has appealed mostly to smaller clients, Stone capitalized on larger customers when he attracted a few. ?We create customized solutions that perfectly meet their needs. These can range from minor tweaks to large full-scale product rebuilds. As a result, they become long-term satisfied customers,? he says.

As a startup, his personal credibility and his firm?s reliability were the biggest hurdles to be overcome when looking to attract new customers. ?We had to prove our credibility to the decision makers. We?d provide all information necessary to do this and now that we have many case studies, it?s much easier,? Stone says.

Another hurdle was price. ProActive overcame the objections of price-driven customers by creating what Stone calls a ?lost earnings calculator.? It allowed customers to plug in some numbers and see exactly how much inefficiency was hurting their companies? bottom lines. His product was presented as a solution to that money drain.

A final major hurdle was deciding how to deploy the software. ?Customers have typically been used to complex IT solution rollouts and had preconceived ideas about the dramas involved with deploying new software,? Stone says. ?We developed an SAAS (Software As A Service) approach, so customers could simply use or rent the service on our servers based in Freemont, Ca., without worrying about complex deployment.?

Good planning and a firm eye on the big picture of his customers? needs has helped keep Stone grounded. Although he does detailed planning, he keeps his time frames short ? typically no more than six months out. Having short planning cycles makes his goals more achievable and allows the firm to change direction quickly if needed, he says.

ProActive has two offices, the headquarters in Christchurch and a satellite office in Auckland, N.Z. ?We are a virtual team and have workers and contractors globally,? Stone says. Technology has made coordination fairly easy. Since the company?s founding in 2002, he counts only 10 in-person days spent with Alan. Mobile phones, MSN, Skype, email and video conferencing have filled in the gaps smoothly, he says.

Because his team is international and virtual, he?s made sure his product addresses those situations. ?This tool allows businesses to take advantage of collaboration and globalization trends. The world is moving towards a global community and businesses need to be able to collaborate on projects, not just locally anymore, but across time zones and country borders,? he says.

Stone has recently scaled up his product, so it will be more applicable at the enterprise level, and begun marketing it to companies with 50 to 1,000 users. Because he?d concentrated on selling to small firms in the early years, he says, he believes the company missed opportunities for larger sales. Stone offers some advice on his blog about selling to markets of various sizes.

Meanwhile, he?s proud that a firm with an ?accidental? birth has come this far and overcome so many startup hurdles. ?Although we are a known solution in the industry now, it wasn?t always this way. Quite often nowadays our leads are referral-based, so there is immediate credibility,? he says.

ProActive Press Releases

Wed, May 09 2007 20:13:54 +1200

This is a fluff post. Just one of those things you need to do occasionally to meet the needs of a social networking tool. Ignore all this. ProActive Software is creating a Technorati Profile

An Interview with ProActive

Mon, Nov 20 2006 02:50:40 +1200

Fastservers recently posted an interview with ProActive Software on the Fastservers Blog It's well worth a read as it give some insight into our background.

Read the interview here.

www.fastservers.net are the hardware providers behind ProActive Software?s www.proworkflow.com product. We thoroughly recommend them if you need SAAS level infrastructure or mission critical hosting. The Fastservers team are complete professionals and work with you to build the infrastructure under your software business.

Take a look and give them a crack! You won?t be disappointed!

Schmoozing at the HiTech Awards

Sun, Nov 19 2006 02:46:07 +1200

The other week was the evening of the PriceWaterhouseCoopers Hitech Awards. As per a previous blog, our company ProActive Software (makers of www.proworkflow.com) were nominated as one of 6 finalists in the ’2006 PwC NZ Hi-Tech Awards - Innovation of the Year category!?. Unfortunately, we didn’t win as there were some other talented entries, but just to be nominated was a great honor in itself. Our category was jointly awarded to: Optima Corporation & Telemetry Research Limited. Right Hemisphere took out the ‘Supreme Excellence Award’ - http://www.hitech.org.nz/news/2006-winners.shtml.

They put on a great event, fantastic food, scantily dressed dancers and the Prime Minister (Helen Clark) even made a speech. She also insulted half the room with a particular comment I don?t think she realized she?d said, but still it was a great night!.

As my pregnant wife stayed in Christchurch, I had the freedom to ?work the room? and met some of New Zealand?s best and most successful tech talent. The wealth of knowledge and experience in the room was incredible.

At our table was Alan Barlow (business partner), his wife Kim, Myself and my parents Grant and Diane.

A great night was had by all! I give it a 10 out of 10 rating!

ProActive Software Nominated as Finalist in NZ?s largest Hitech Awards!

Sun, Oct 22 2006 02:35:35 +1200

Yesterday we discovered that our global software co, ProActive Software - www.proactivesoftware.com have been announced as finalists in the ”2006 PwC NZ Hi-Tech Awards - Innovation of the Year category!”. We were nominated for our core project, task and time management product ProWorkflow, and also for our approach to the underlying business model.

To find out more about the event, visit the official website: www.hitech.org.nz. Especially take a look at the judging panel: http://hitech.org.nz/categories-judgesnz.shtml as it’s an incredible combined pool of talent! This is the biggest “Tech Award” in New Zealand, so fingers crossed!

Our Prime Minister, Business Awards & Cheaper, Faster Internet!

Wed, Aug 02 2006 02:43:43 +1200

A few weeks ago I was attending a black-tie event in Christchurch, New Zealand, for the local Business Awards. I had been nominated for the business awards (for ProActive Software), and short listed to 8 out of about 50-80 businesses that were nominated from our local area. The evening was great, food was fantastic, the “transvestite” stage show amusing, but the definate hilight of the evening was getting to meet our country’s Prime Minister, Helen Clark (she has a great handshake).

Helen was handing out the awards, and whilst I didn’t win, I did receive a certificate. but... I digress...

The real reason I enjoyed the night was that I got to shake Helen Clark’s hand and congratulate her on breaking up Telecom (Our nations’ monopolistic telecommunications provider). Finally, now Helen’s busted Telecom, New Zealand should get some decent competition between the other internet broadband companies.

Hopefully better speed of access in the local loop! About time!