Open Text , ECM, and Sharepoint

Rumours of the Death of Open Text Have Been Greatly Exaggerated
Open Text, the makers of Livelink and the new owners of the ECM application formerly known as Hummingbird (now Livelink ECM - eDOCS) released their fiscal 2007 results today. To the surprise of many, profit was up, license revenue was up and debt was down. The result of all of this is an uptick of 10%+ on their share price in after hours trading.
I say ‘to the surprise of many’ because there has been a lot of speculation about the impact that SharePoint would have on incumbent ECM vendors. This very blog predicted a couple of challenging quarters for incumbent ECM vendors through the middle part of 2007 as organizations considering ECM figured out whether SharePoint was up to the task. Based on my observations here in Calgary I stand by my earlier comments about organizations delaying their purchasing decisions about ECM tools. If this is true elsewhere, as I suspect it is, how is it that Open Text has managed to post such impressive results?
My take on this is that Gartner’s predictions about the growth in the ECM market are accurate and that there is enough to go around for everyone. Microsoft reports that SharePoint revenues topped $800 million in 2007 which exceeds Open Text’s revenues by more than $200 million. My math tells me that this gives Microsoft about 28% market share in the ECM space and Open Text 20% (that’s $800 million and $595 million of the $2.9 billion that Gartner predicted). I may be wrong about how long organizations are delaying their purchasing decisions or it may be that they’re approaching their ECM solution as an “and” when it comes to SharePoint instead of an “or”. I’d appreciate any comments you, my loyal readers (both of you), might have about this one.
In terms of the overall ECM market, for companies that have already deployed a non-SharePoint ECM solution the question is how and where does SharePoint fit in (if at all in some cases). For those that have not yet deployed an ECM tool, the question is, firstly, why the heck not and second, does SharePoint give me everything I need? To me, the more important issue is to identify what problems your organization is trying to solve. It is very easy (and very common) to start talking technology before figuring out the business problem you are expecting an ECM tool to help address.
While it is difficult to distil a complex discussion about the ECM market into a single blog post, my view on this hasn’t changed. Incumbent ECM vendors will very likely continue to have success meeting the needs of organizations with a heavy regulatory requirement to manage their content and also in areas where they own mature vertical markets. SharePoint will gain ground in these areas over time as third party applications providing strong compliance management, engineering drawing management, legal matter management etc. are developed and bolted on to SharePoint. Maturing integrations between traditional ECM apps and SharePoint will also help. SharePoint clearly owns the collaborative space and will continue to dominate the desktop. It’s easy to use and viral in nature and is hard to stop once it gets a toehold in an organization. Whether this is a good thing or not is a topic for another day, but again the bottom line is to identify your business need and find the tool (or tools) that fit the bill.
I’ll give another plug to my friends at AIIM who have recognized that many organizations both inside and outside the world of ECM are asking these very questions. Their SharePoint Meets ECM sessions are scheduled for this fall and I suggest you attend if you can. For those of you in and around Calgary, I’ll be speaking more on this topic this fall as well.

AICPA awards Multi Year Contract to Active Data Services

Active Data Services Inks Deal With The American Institute Of Certified Public Accountants08-30-2007 MORRISVILLE, N.C. – Peter Ransome, executive vice president and CMO for Active Data Services, Inc., a next generation business process outsourcing firm, has announced that the firm has been contracted by The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) to provide re-engineering services involving revenue cycle management, training and member communications. Active Data Services is providing a variety of services that will streamline business processes and reduce costs associated with information management, mail services and printing. “We are excited to have the opportunity to work with AICPA and facilitate moving their document production processes to the great state of North Carolina,” said Ransome. “They now have the advantage of our state-of the-art equipment and software combined with our experienced staff to ensure that all of their printing and information-related needs are managed effectively.” “During our relocation to the Triangle we have looked to align our organization with partners that understand the work we do and can help us to better serve our members,” said Victor Velazquez, vice president of service and operation for AICPA. “Active Data Services has been a great business partner and has helped us smoothly transition our printing needs.

Active Data Services, Inc. enters into Strategic Partnership with Bloodhound Technologies

-- Kenneth A. Eller, president and CEO for Active Data Services, Inc., a business process outsourcing firm, has announced that the firm has formed a strategic partnership with Bloodhound Technologies, a Research Triangle Park-based claims editing and business analytics company. Through this partnership Active Data Services will provide services to scan and archive all types of claim forms, such as HCFA 1500s and UB 92.
Clients are able to direct paper claims to a post office box, where the claims will be opened, documents scanned and converted to an electronic format for delivery to Bloodhound and to the clients’ claims processing platform. Additionally, all scanned information can be archived and retrieved through the Internet via a secure document management ASP.
"We are excited about the opportunity to partner with Bloodhound and to facilitate the claims process for their clients," said Eller. "Now, because of our expertise in healthcare document management, Bloodhound clients can also have their paper based claims processed by Bloodhound's industry leading clinical editing solution."
"Bloodhound's clinical editing solution provides healthcare payers the strongest return on investment in the industry through overpayment savings and increased auto-adjudication rates," said Gary G. Twigg, CEO of Bloodhound Technologies. "Partnering with Active Data Services will allow our clients to send us a greater percentage of their claims for editing which will increase their ROI even more."

Active Data Services named Kodak Authorized Imaging Reseller

Morrisville, NC – August 14, 2007 -- Peter Ransome, executive vice president and CMO for Active Data Services, Inc., a next generation Business Process Outsourcing firm that streamlines document intensive applications in Healthcare, Finance, Government, and commercial markets, has announced that the firm has been named a Kodak Authorized Imaging Reseller (KAIR).
As the only KAIR in the Raleigh area, Active Data Services can take advantage of Kodak’s dynamic channel programs, strong brand name, industry leadership and exceptional support and service. Active Data Services, which manages the processing of over 40 million documents per month, will be responsible for purchasing, promoting, marketing and reselling Kodak products.
“We are honored to be a member of the KAIR program,” said Ransome. “This is great news for the Raleigh area as there has not been any locally based Kodak KAIR partners. We now have the opportunity to offer our customers more options in our industry leading document and data capture solutions. Kodak continues to lead the market with advance document transports and image capture technology backed by the industries best service organization. We have long utilized their technology in our high volume production center.”

About KODAK Authorized Reseller Program (KAIR):The KODAK Authorized Imaging Reseller Program (KAIR) is dedicated to demonstrating and enhancing the KODAK commitment to Channel Associates. KAIR offers rewards, programs, support, training, marketing assistance, and Document Imaging Products of exceptional quality in order to reach revenue goals. The KAIR mission is to provide new levels of world-class imaging solutions, greater sales volume, and increased profit potential. KODAK Document Imaging Products are known for their performance, reliability and value. Combined with dynamic channel programs, strong brand name, industry leadership and renowned service and support, KODAK delivers complete solutions.