Intacct, pioneer of ERP on tap, is here

It will offer its web based platform to BPOs and software vendors

Intacct Corporation, a California-based provider of ERP software as a service, on Wednesday announced the launch of its India operations through Intacct Software Private Ltd. The company delivers 'ERP on demand' to enterprises directly and indirectly through business process outsourcers (BPOs) and independent software vendors (ISVs).

Intacct's India operation will focus on developing and servicing the company's web-based ERP applications and building alliances with Indian BPO firms and offering them its strategic platform for delivering their services.

Traditionally, ERP solutions, the largest solution an enterprise would install, have been licensed with large price tags and installed through customisation taking a fairly long period. Intacct represents the most difficult part of transition from software ownership to software on demand and software as a utility, like turning on a water tap, in which even an ERP solution is delivered as a service for a fee.

This is the result of the dotcom bubble that burst in 2000 after which firms became hugely concerned with the cost of ownership and the return on investment. Unsurprisingly, Intacct was born in 2003 and has remained a privately-held firm, being funded by Deloitte & Touche, Goldman Sachs and others. As IBM's only 'ERP On Demand' partner, it introduced the first web-residing business application suite which could be managed by many entities.

Intacct began its operations through a partnership with Minsu Infosystems Pvt Ltd, a professional outsourcing organisation. But in view of the success of the concept, it now plans to merge its operations and increase its engineering staff strength to 58 in a few months.

The company plans to deliver financial, supply chain, professional services automation and business analytics software as a service to midsize and large corporations for a monthly subscription fee.

"Customers require no hardware, software or IT consultants to implement, integrate and customise Intacct's ERP solutions to meet their industry and business needs," said Nagaraj Prabhu, Intacct's vice president of engineering who will head the India operations. It lowers the cost of ownership, raises the return on investment and "dramatically" reduces the implementation time.

Speaking on the occasion, Robert J Jurkowski, CEO, Intacct Corporation said that most software companies prefer software to be delivered as a utility service. IDC forecasts that demand for software as a service will grow at 21 per cent a year to reach $10.7 billion annually.

At present the team strength in India is 29 and will focus on research and development, quality assurance and professional services for the entire ERP on demand suite. "The team in India will enable Intacct to do rapid innovations in key solutions needed in the on-demand market place," said Prabhu.

Intacct is the leading platform provider for US-based BPO firms delivering financial and accounting services and "is here to offer the same platform to BPO firms in India," said Jurkowski. In a wider sense it also will be "leveraging the country's entrepreneurial spirit and vast pool of engineering talent."