TechnologyOne builds sector-specific software templates

Creates 12-man Solutions Group to target vertical markets.

Enterprise software vendor TechnologyOne has begun targeting specific business sectors with pre-configured templates for water, government, housing, and research organisations.

It was the next step in the “evolution” of the ASX-listed company, which expected to spend $2.5 million on creating and updating the templates each year.

Since embarking on the strategy last year, TechnologyOne’s newly formed, 12-person Solutions Group had delivered nine templates, with eight more to ship by the end of 2011.

Each template featured pre-configured versions of the vendor’s HR, payroll or business intelligence software, designed in accordance with the Solutions Group’s discussions with customers.

TechnologyOne founder and executive chairman Adrian Di Marco said the templates would reduce the cost of implementation and risk by 40 to 50 percent.

He likened the templates to home building plans, which offered “best practice” ideas but could be customised to meet customer demands.

“Why start on a blank sheet of paper?” Di Marco said, extolling the flexibility of TechnologyOne software when compared to “monolithic” SAP and Oracle solutions.

“We’ve always had a total approach [to software delivery], and the next step in talking to our customers is, ‘Why don’t you pre-configure it?’.”

The challenge, Di Marco said, was to provide flexible software and “really understand the industry” – and after 24 years in business, the company was “now at the point where we can do this”.

Each new customer project would be used to aid further development of the template, which was to be updated on an ongoing basis.

Templates to be launched included OneWater, OneEnergy, OnePort, OneAirport, OneCommunity, OneHousing, OneGovernment, OneCouncil, OneHealth, OneNFP, OneResearch, OneUniversity, and OneBank.