Solit iNovations, the African affiliate partner of Lawson Software in Africa, has made a significant contribution to the overall success of Lawson worldwide by exceeding its revenue targets for the 2002 fiscal year, ended May 31.
Solit iNovations, having assumed responsibility for Lawson in 2000, first stabilised the customer base before entering Africa on an aggressive sales drive. This has led to a number of new customers, locally and throughout Africa and for the first time in the four years Lawson has been represented in the region it has exceeded its revenue targets.
"We were set the task of increasing revenue by 60% through our affiliate channel over the previous year," says Gerhard Visser, MD of Solit iNovations.. "We easily beat this figure, ending the year with 93% growth.
"Despite the global slowdown in demand for enterprise software, Lawson has held its own in all markets," adds Visser. "This is valid in Africa, where Lawson's cost-effectiveness and flexibility have made it ideally suited for the local requirements."
Lawson, which listed last year, has reported $4,1 million on total revenues of $107 million for its 2002 fourth quarter compared with net income of $9,6 million on total revenues of $118,5 million in its 2001 fourth quarter.
For the full year ended May 31, 2002, net income was $18,3 million on total revenues of $428,3 million, relative to net income of $24,9 million on revenues of $394,3 million in 2001.
Locally, Solit iNovations closed the year having secured licensing deals with several new clients across Africa.
Lawson offers a set of enterprise software solutions targeting specific industries. These include financial management, human resources, professional services automation, procurement, distribution and customer relationship management solutions.
Globally, Lawson signed 193 contracts in the fourth quarter, compared with 187 in the 2002 third quarter. Of total licensing activity in the 2002 fourth quarter, 55% came from new and 45% from existing customers.
"Lawson's customer wins, including those in Africa, show that it continues to beat its competitors based on the deep vertical functionality of its products and the vertical market expertise of its people," Visser says. "Despite the challenges of the current economy and its impact on the technology sector, Lawson continues to benefit from its vertical market strategy and the diversity of its customer portfolio. Overall, Lawson is well positioned to benefit from any sustained improvement in the economy and in the technology sector and continues to be aggressive in its pursuit of product or vertical growth opportunities."
Share
Editorial contacts