Feature
The new social layer for iQ for Business customers should help put data in context, and make it easier to reach out to colleagues, customers and partners for key insights into what it means. Neudesic Pulse will be embedded into iQ for Business as part of Neudesic's OEM program for independent software vendors.
Why BI Needs Social
Social collaboration tools come in many flavors in 2012, so that's why it's key for Neudesic to have deployed its partnership integration program. By sliding Pulse right into the software people are already using, like iQ for Business, the transition becomes smoother and less painful. And because social is more familiar to people than ever before, the change becomes that much easier.
The new partnership will allow iQ for Business customers to have one place to work together across departments, job descriptions and geographies. The Pulse social layer adds features like microblogging, mobile connectivity, security and social tasks. Additionally, because both companies are already Microsoft partners, the new integration will easily connect to SharePoint, Dynamics CRM, Lync and Office. This compatibility is not quite ready, however, but that may change in the next couple of months.
What Neudesic Pulse will bring to BI
Partnerships vs Apps
We like the strategy of partnering with other companies at the enterprise software level. It gives a company like Neudesic the chance to branch out without having to depend on developers coming up with a killer app. With an app, adoption would depend on people finding the app and then deciding if they might like to try it. With the Neudesic OEM project, the company can integrate with other systems and build its user base in a more structured way.
Neudesic just launched the OEM program this year, and content authoring tool vendor MadCap Software was the first company to sign on. Furthermore, Neudesic is featuring an updated version of Pulse called 3.0. It has direct SharePoint uploading so information can be sent automatically to assigned SharePoint sites. Tell us in the comments if you like this kind of all in one product or if you like to mix and match systems.
