MEDIA RELEASE PR37064
IBM Receives SMB Excellence Award From Major Industry Analyst Firm For Express Advantage
ARMONK, Nov. 12 /PRNewswire-AsiaNet/ --
IBM (NYSE: IBM) today announces it has received IDC's first SMB Excellence Award for the effectiveness of its
Express Advantage program in helping mid-market businesses thrive in a rapidly changing business environment.
IBM, the only firm to receive awards in two categories, was also recognized in the "Innovative Alliances" category
for the Intuit QuickBooks Enterprise Solution via IBM Smart Cube.
IBM's Express Advantage program was recognized in the category of "New Application Approaches" -- and was
awarded for excellence in product development and promotion. Express Advantage includes IBM's broad portfolio
of targeted hardware, software and services that have met stringent criteria, including affordability, ease of
implementation and ownership to ensure their value to midmarket businesses. Express Advantage also
incorporates IBM's Business Partner ecosystem, industry insights and connections to help midsize companies
succeed in today's smaller, flatter and smarter world.
"Mid-market companies typically have extraordinary IT needs, but not extraordinary budgets to meet those
needs. IBM, through its Express Advantage program, has established and nurtured a portfolio of technology
resources that leverages a variety of development resources across technology areas to meet the sometimes
conflicting needs of General Business customers," said IDC's Raymond Boggs, Vice President of SMB Research.
For example, this Fall IBM added Cognos Express to its Express Advantage portfolio -- the first integrated
reporting, analysis, planning, budgeting and forecasting solution purpose-built and priced for midsize companies.
"IBM has been recognized by IDC for its breadth and depth of offerings and solutions for the midmarket that help
them to do more with less, manage and mitigate risk, and take advantage of flexible delivery choices like cloud
computing," said Marc Dupaquier, IBM General Manager, Global Midmarket.
Intuit QuickBooks Enterprise Solution via IBM Smart Cube was also recognized in the "Innovative Alliances"
category for excellence in product development, distribution and delivery.
The Smart Cube appliance combines Intuit's QuickBooks Enterprise Solutions financial management software
with IBM hardware, middleware, and technical support. As part of IBM's Smart Business initiative, SMBs that
purchase a Smart Cube also gain access to Smart Market, a Web-enabled marketplace for browsing, rating, and
downloading applications from a growing network of independent software vendors.
The solution is targeted to firms that aren't quite ready for cloud-based solutions as well as forward-looking firms
that are prepared to outsource a growing share of their IT needs. In partnering with Intuit, whose accounting
software is currently used by more than half of firms with fewer than 100 employees, and adding distribution
through Ingram Micro, IBM has expanded its reach into the mid-market.
Other award categories included: Market Segmentation/Customer Targeting, Software-as-a-Service and Cloud
Computing for SMBs, Streamlining/Enhancing Customer Engagement and Technology Deployment.
For full profiles of the SMB initiatives of the 16 award-winning companies, please see the recently published
document, 2009 IDC SMB Excellence Awards - Innovative Product , Marketing, Support and Promotions Products
to Enhance Customer Appeal and Competitive Success (IDC #220604).
About IBM
Learn more about new midsized business solutions from IBM.
About IDC
The IDC SMB Excellence Awards are granted to technology providers who in IDC's view are serving the SMB
market in innovative ways, providing advanced technology capabilities to firms with fewer than 1000 employees.
Nominees for the IDC SMB Excellence Award are evaluated on the basis of three key criteria: the creation of
products and/or programs that specifically address the unique needs of SMBs; the business implications of these
products or programs for the nominated firm; and the competitive impact of these products or programs. The award
recipients are selected by IDC's SMB Research team in consultation with the IDC analysts that follow the relevant
technology market associated with these products or programs. The full report is IDC#220604.
IDC is the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events for the information
technology, telecommunications, and consumer technology markets. To learn more about IDC, please visit
Contact:
Jennifer Clemente
IBM Communications
919 418 6169
jennic@us.ibm.com
SOURCE: IBM
CONTACT:
Jennifer Clemente,
IBM Communications,
+1-919-418-6169,
jennic@us.ibm.com
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