Business Edge Systems` USA partner selected to lead CRM project for energy corporation

Business Edge Systems` USA partner, SPL WorldGroup, a leading international provider of information technology consulting and enterprise solutions, has been selected by Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania and Columbia Gas of Maryland, to deliver and integrate a suite of customer relationship management software. The new software will allow the company to better understand and analyse customer energy requirements, track and meet customer needs more closely and provide more efficient service. The first phase of the project will centre on deployment of a sales force automation system.

The software solution, named SMART - sales and marketing analysis reporting and tracking - is designed to meet both the management and accounting needs of companies that deliver energy products and services. Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania and Columbia Gas of Maryland will be among the first natural gas utilities to use the system. SPL WorldGroup`s breakthrough approach to the development and integration of complex applications, backed up by world-class experience in the utility industry, significantly differentiated the company from its competitors. As part of the project, SPL WorldGroup will use Visual Elk and synchronisation products from the Great Elk Company to build SMART.

"We have selected SPL WorldGroup as a strategic partner to help us better market our energy business as we grow and expand into a broader and more competitive marketplace," said Melanie Popvich, vice president of customer services and marketing for Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania and Columbia Gas of Maryland. "The SMART database will make our company one of the leaders in the energy industry, providing the integration, flexibility and rich functionality necessary to be successful in the marketplace."

Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania and Columbia Gas of Maryland`s marketing department will use SMART to replace current systems and related manual processes. Today, customer information is collected through a variety of systems that are not interconnected. Users work with colleagues to help create a comprehensive picture of overall activities in any one account. The system will support the day-to-day customer contact management and lead-tracking requirements. It will also provide management with the sales and marketing information necessary to improve customer analysis and simplify reporting requirements.

"Working with Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania and Columbia Gas of Maryland we can put the full range of SPL WorldGroup`s strengths to the fore - including our expertise in software integration and our in-depth knowledge of the utility industry," said Moshe Mor, president and chief executive officer of SPL WorldGroup. "This project is reflective of the continuing transformation of the energy marketplace, which is creating a ready market for the kinds of applications we plan to deliver to Columbia Gas."