Zensar Partners with Microsoft to Launch a Cloud-Based Dynamics NAV Solution for Indian SMEs
Date: 01/09/2010 | Msdynamicsworld.com
Zensar Technologies has launched a new hosted ERP (enterprise resources planning) solution based on Microsoft Dynamics NAV for small and medium enterprises in India.
The cloud-based ERP solution is tailored to meet the specific needs of emerging Indian small and midsize manufacturing companies that are facing multiple challenges of high growth, shortage of in-house IT systems as well as talent, and budget constraints, said Krishna Ramaswami, VP of Zensar's Strategic Services Unit.
"We've been working in the Microsoft Dynamics space for the last six to eight months but we before we got down to building [the solution] we initially had to address the problems of the SMEs in India in a variety of industries like manufacturing, automotive, pharmaceuticals and textiles," he said.
Ramaswami said that although the SME segment in India is large, only a small percentage of SMEs in any industry are IT savvy and many of them aren't using IT solutions to manage their business processes.
"They may have some exposure to IT in terms of using Microsoft Office or some local solutions that help them do a little bit of accounting, but many don't even have e-mail," he said. "And they definitely don't have an ERP system that integrates their business processes."
Zensar worked with OEMs, industry experts and the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) to determine which industry might best benefit from an integrated ERP solution and ultimately decided to run a pilot program with a group of automotive supply chain SMEs.
"We had to [determine] how these organizations could use IT and communications technologies to become more competitive and operate more efficiently when it comes to delivering their products and services," Ramaswami said.
So with the help of the large enterpises and the CII, Zensar executives approached the SMEs to find out what their requirements were for implementing an IT solution that would help them become more productive, more profitable and more competitive.
"They needed easy, simple-to-use, affordable solutions," he said. "They didn't want to get burdened down with managing the operations. And they couldn't make capital investments in hardware and software. And they just didn't have the right kinds of skills to help implement the solution. So we had to look at a solution that would address their functional needs and was relevant to their industry and that we could tailor to Indian SMEs. And the SMEs also wanted a reliable vendor and one that was a household name."
Ramaswami said the only solution that could provide integration capabilities, scalability, reliability, was relevant to Indian SMEs and instilled confidence in its customers was the hosted version of Microsoft Dynamics NAV, which had not previously been offered in that form in India.
"[With this solution] they don't have to worry about the software, about upgrades, about who will implement it or support their hardware, network and applications," he said. "We created a customized solution for the automative cluster SMEs that's hosted on a cloud and works on a pay-per-use model."
Zensar is planning to extend its solution to other SME market segments within India including leather and textile, as well as to SMEs in other countries, said Harsh Kohli, Associate Vice President and Head of the Manufacturing Vertical in Zensar.
About Zensar Technologies (http://www.zensar.com/)
Zensar Technologies is among the top 20 software services providers from India. Zensar is the world's first enterprise-wide SEI CMM Level 5 Company and was also later certified as a CMMI Level 5 Company with industry expertise that spans Retail, Manufacturing, Banking, Insurance and Utilities. Zensar has more than 5400 employees with sales and operations presence across US, UK, Germany, Sweden, Finland, Middle East, South Africa, Singapore, Australia and Japan. The Company delivers comprehensive services in mission-critical applications, enterprise applications, e-business, BPO and Knowledge Services. The Company has developed tools and methodologies, including the proprietary Solution BluePrint (SBP), which enables its clients with innovative business solutions and a rapid ‘go-to-market’ capability. The Company supports Fortune 500 clients with software business solutions that help them compete in the digital economy.
For further information, please contact:
Shaonlee Bose
Market Innovation
Zensar Technologies
+91-20-66057845/ +91-9923074441
s.bose@zensar.com
