Aptean Releases Pivotal 6.5

Aptean this week released Pivotal 6.5, the latest version of its enterprise-class CRM solution for sales automation, marketing management, and customer service delivery. Pivotal 6.5 features a completely redesigned sales automation user experience that enables secure mobile access from any laptop, desktop, or tablet.

"We looked to build [Pivotal 6.5] for a mobile-first environment," says Will Haraway, director of global marketing and communications at Aptean.

The product, he adds, supports all the major mobile devices and platforms, and can even accommodate users who are likely to be on multiple devices simultaneously.

The newest version of Pivotal features Enhanced options for the mobile sales user such as creating emails, appointments, and tasks as well as having access to their calendar while in the field.

Also included is a mapping function that allows users to see where customers are located and then plot the route. "The nice thing about the mapping feature is that the user doesn't have to toggle back and forth between screens," Haraway says.

The Action Center allows users to create their own dashboard by adding graphs or searches. This feature incorporates Aptean Analytics, which are powered by the QlikView Business Discovery platform "to make information available to the user right at his fingertips," Haraway says.

"Aptean believes that CRM solutions struggle when they try to be all things to all people. With that in mind, we've rethought the traditional look and feel of CRM to meet the needs of today's hyper-connected, mobile sales users," said Matt Keenan, vice president of the CRM product group at Aptean, in a statement. "Pivotal 6.5 delivers real solutions—specialized sales capabilities, including customer, contact, and opportunity management, and real results that will provide the productivity and efficiency that salespeople require, both in the field and in the office."

Caliper, a human resources assessment and consulting firm based in Princeton, N.J., was one of the early adopters of Pivotal 6.5, having tested the product for the past few months.

"Pivotal is the most critical tool that our salespeople use," said Bryan Martin, senior vice president of global operations at Caliper, in a statement. "The new mobility features will enable our team to access Pivotal in and out of the office with the same user experience each time."

Companies like Caliper were crucial to the development of Pivotal 6.5, according to Haraway. "In developing [Pivotal 6.5], we really engaged our customer and partner network," he says. "We've had many customers for a long time, and we've relied on them to tell us what they like and don't like. This product is truly based on feedback from our customers and partners."

Aptean's Pivotal CRM is designed to fit organizations of all sizes, as the solution can be configured to meet compliance and local requirements as well as vertical market-specific issues, particularly in the financial services, home-building, food and beverage, and manufacturing industries, which make up a large part of Aptean's customer base.

Aptean was formed in 2012 following the merger of CDC Software and Consona. Pivotal was part of CDC's portfolio. Other CRM solutions that Aptean offers include the Onyx, Knova, Saratoga, and SupportSoft product lines.

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