PRESS RELEASE
Mobile technology puts African business owners in the driving seat
Keith Fenner - Sage ERP Africa.
JOHANNESBURG,
South-Africa, July 2, 2015/ -- With smartphone penetration ramping up
across Africa, the continent’s businesses have an opportunity to use
mobile technology to become more efficient, productive, and responsive
in the way they do business.
According to the Ericsson Mobility Report for 2015 (
http://www.apo.af/uwS8Ft),
there were more than 910 million mobile subscriptions in Africa by the
first quarter of 2015. A growing number of these mobile users are now
walking around with powerful smart devices that give them access to apps
and information wherever they are.
Logo:
http://www.photos.apo-opa.com/plog-content/images/apo/logos/sage.png
Photo Daryl Blundell:
http://www.photos.apo-opa.com/index.php?level=picture&id=2264 (Daryl Blundell - GM, Sage Pastel Accounting)
Photo Keith Fenner:
http://www.photos.apo-opa.com/index.php?level=picture&id=2265 (Keith Fenner - Sage ERP Africa)
Photo Gerhard Hartman:
http://www.photos.apo-opa.com/index.php?level=picture&id=2015 (Gerhard Hartman - Head of Department for Sage
Payroll & HR’s Int)
Download biography Daryl Blundell:
http://www.apo-mail.org/Daryl-Blundell.docx
Download biography Keith Fenner:
http://www.apo-mail.org/Keith-Fenner.docx
Download biography Gerhard Hartman:
http://www.apo-mail.org/Gerhard-Hartman.docx
ERP – making collaboration easy
And
that, in turn, creates new ways for organisations to interact with
employees, suppliers, and other stakeholders. “We’re seeing many
organisations mobilise their enterprise resource planning (ERP)
software, “says Keith Fenner, Senior Vice-President Sales - Sage ERP
Africa & Sage ERP X3 AAMEA, Director and Head of Sage Middle East (
http://www.sage.com).
“Workers
and managers are increasingly able to access ERP data on the road to
serve customers, speed up decision-making, and save time.”
For
example, a salesperson can now easily check from a tablet or smartphone
whether a product is in stock while on-site with a customer, says
Fenner. They can capture the customer’s details and initiate the order
without leaving the customer premises, all leading to a faster and more
seamless service.
“Mobile workers can now use their time between
meetings and at airports more productively,” he adds. “And they can
access data on the spot so that they can react to opportunities and
problems more rapidly. Of course, mobilising business processes also
streamlines processes by allowing data to be captured in the field.”
Accounting for all on the move
Sage
Pastel Accounting General Manager, Daryl Blundell, notes that mobility
is transforming smaller businesses. “An accounting solution with a good
mobile app is a real boon for SMEs,” he says. “Employees with mobile
devices can be productive many more hours a week because they can work
from anywhere in the world and can maximise what might otherwise have
been wasted time waiting in airports and reception rooms.”
He
adds: “Sales people can take their tablets into meetings and give
PowerPoint presentations, while MDs can quickly see the status of
business KPIs on a real-time dashboard. And enterprise mobility can
allow employees access to information on the fly, such as financial
reports, stock orders, customer data and inventory lists.
“Customers
can accept terms by physically signing the mobile device, so deals can
be negotiated and closed in one meeting. Employees can keep up to date
with work without returning to the office and stay up to date on
relevant projects so deadlines aren't missed. What’s more, it helps
everyone achieve a healthy work-life balance.”
Mobilising HR functions
Mobile
technology is also helping HR departments to become more efficient and
to build better relationships with employees. Gerhard Hartman, Head of
Sage HR & Payroll’s International Division, says that companies can
now offer employee self-service (ESS) across mobile devices to
streamline HR processes and engage employees more effectively.
“With
mobile ESS, companies can enable employees to file leave applications,
doctor’s notes when they’re ill, and expense claims - all from their
mobile devices,” he adds. “They can look up their payslips, change their
personal details, and more, all without needing to do paperwork or
phone the HR department.”
Employees benefit from the convenience
and access to information 24/7, while managers and the HR department can
handle leave requests, expense claims, and other admin from their own
mobile devices. The result is that everyone saves time and gets more
done, says Hartman. “Accessing HR tools from your mobile simplify
everyone's life - from the employee trying to figure out how many
vacation days they have left to the HR team who should be focusing on
strategy and value-add rather than on paperwork,” he adds.
Distributed by APO (African Press Organization) on behalf of Sage.
Idea Engineers (PR agency for Sage)
Clive Moagi
Tel: +27 (0)11 803 0030
Mobile: +27 (0)73 4116 023
Clive@ideaengineers.co.za
Del-Mari Roberts
Tel: +27 (0)11 803 0030
Mobile: +27 (0)72 5958 053
delmari@ideaengineers.co.za
About The Sage Group plc
Sage (
http://www.sage.com)
energizes the success of businesses and their communities around the
world through the use of smart technology and the imagination of our
people. Sage has reimagined business and brings energy, experience and
technology to inspire our customers to fulfil their dreams. We work with
a thriving community of entrepreneurs, business owners, tradespeople,
accountants, partners and developers who drive the global economy. Sage
is a FTSE 100 company with 14,000 employees in 24 countries. For more
information, visit
www.sage.com.
SOURCE
Sage