Simian launches platform

Canadian content management vendor Simian Systems has released SiteForge, an open source collaborative development platform that helps open source developers centralise project development, source code access, issue-tracking, documentation and product releases.

Its ease-of-use and straightforward installation process is what differentiates SiteForge, Simian Systems said in a press release.

"We aim to do for the collaborative development industry what SugarCRM is doing for customer relationship management. That is, to reinvigorate the industry with the introduction of a modern, high-quality open source solution," said John Luxford, president and chief developer of Simian Systems.

"With the growing need for open source and distributed development in more industries, it`s time to make the tools of the trade available to everyone."

The company said that SiteForge allows for an unlimited number of projects to be created and managed within a single copy, solving software project management needs, while being designed to get a new project Web site up and running fast.

Among other features, the product provides an integrated documentation area for each project, which allows easy access to key information such as installation and troubleshooting help.

SiteForge is available for download at www.sitelliteforge.com/siteforge. Installation and technical support services are also available.

Fewer than one in three big companies, undergoing a major restructuring programme, ever achieve their efficiency of effectiveness objectives, research has suggested.

According to the Management-issues Web site, a study of more than 800 chief executives, HR directors and senior managers found that 40% of structural re-organisations are not completed on budget and 60% fail to come in on time.

Organisational change is now a constant feature of modern working life, the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) reports.

In a business environment where major change is to be expected, on average, every three years, managers should use end-of-project reviews and similar devices. This is to ensure that reorganisation skills are built systematically into the organisation as a whole, rather than residing with a few powerful and potentially mobile individuals, said the CIPD.

"The pace of reorganisations is accelerating, in both private and public sectors. In this culture and atmosphere, organisations are unlikely to succeed by simply trying to pick the best organisational structure `off the shelf`," said CIPD organisation and resourcing adviser Vanessa Robinson.