187635 Resource 102363 102466 102466 1193585924379 1193586254805 Controlled NetSuite Partner Conference 2007 Take Aways and The Myth of SaaS Customization.

Some very interesting developments for NetSuite Customers and Partners

<p>I've been to my share of software conferences over the years, mostly Oracle conferences, but the NetSuite Revolution 2007 was by far one of the most interesting. </p><p>I thought that there would be an endless stream of power points all about the great future of the software, and of course there was a little of that, as there should be. But I think the thing that really excited me, and everyone else for that matter, was the live demos of new functionality. There were two that stood out: SuiteBundler and Subsidiary Management and Consolidation.</p><p>The SuiteBundler presentation was really interesting. It was a perfect compliment to the SuiteFlex training that I took earlier that day from Terry Chan of NetSuite. SuiteFlex is the name that NetSuite has given to its customization functionality, comprising custom records, fields of any type, forms, and code - both client and server. Terry showed us how to use the combination of these elements to add a custom module to NetSuite. SuiteBundler took this one step further: Once you create the new module you can copy it from one account to another. Again that evening at the Welcome Reception and SuiteBundler Launch another of Terry's bundles was presented live by NetSuite co-founder Bill Bailey.</p><p>That may not sound as revolutionary as it is. But think about the enormous need in the Small and Medium business market for vertical apps, even micro-vertical apps. It is now completely possible to create solutions for specific industries, but not as one-offs; rather, these vertical solutions can be built, bundled and sold again with all parties to the process reaping benefit. </p><p>This new functionality, again labeled SuiteBundler, is going to revolutionize software for the mid-market, no question. NetSuite clients have an integrated application suite that manages the most fundamental&nbsp;processes of business, like marketing to lead to cash and procure to pay, in a single database.&nbsp;They can now also have those processes that are unique to their business in the same database, related to the fundamental data segments of their business, Customers, Partners, Vendors, etc., without the need for an interface. </p><p>All of this comes right on the heels of an online seminar that I attended a few weeks back about the Myths of Software as a Service, or SaaS. SaaS myths are rumours created by the sales people of creaky on-premise software when they're trying to save deals, or prevent customers from jumping ship. There is no issues whatsoever with customizing SaaS; in fact, my experience with on-premise software is that it is almost impossible to customize it without breaking your support agreement. We could not even add new fields in Oracle, much less custom records. Nor could we alter a form, a common and easy practice in NetSuite. </p><p>So there you have it. For those business models that have unique requirements beyond the scope of on-premise software take a close look at NetSuite's SuiteBundler. Forget about interface solution, or even mash-ups. We&nbsp;have now entered&nbsp;the world of custom software package.</p><p>I have a plane to catch, so I will circle around to Subsidiary Management later.</p> 9 application/xml false netsuite netsuite partner netsuite subsidiary management netsuite suitebundler netsuite suiteflex saas software as a service terry chan vertical applications vertical software Release Notes http://www.infoworld.com/article/07/10/24/NetSuite-releases-SuiteBundler-for-building-vertical-apps_1.html A Good Overview and Analysis by Software Gurus http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=6728 Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 7.0; Windows NT 5.1; YPC 3.2.0; .NET CLR 1.0.3705; .NET CLR 1.1.4322; Media Center PC 4.0; .NET CLR 2.0.50727) 127.0.0.1 127.0.0.1 tfoydel false true false false true 205861 false false true false false false true 102363 blog blogsite/SightLines/web