Category Archives: Collaboration

New semYOU Cloud Office Offers 15 Enterprise Apps for Business Productivity, Collaboration

With its new version of the semYOU Cloud Office (www.semyou.com), scheduled to be launched in late May, app computing system semYOU is taking users beyond the hype by offering businesses a comprehensive, flexible cloud-based enterprise office system based on software-as-a-service.

Now businesses that need software for human resources, project, task, scheduling management and more can gain access to required applications by simply pointing and clicking. The new semYOU Cloud Office is a complete software infrastructure for small or large companies that want to be flexible, are working globally and collaborate with different partners worldwide.

“In less than three minutes, a business can make the whole software infrastructure of semYou available for individual users, teams, projects or the whole company, complete with an administration suite for managing users, groups, rights and licenses, security as well as customization,” said Volker Jahns, CEO of semYOU LLC.

The system provides users with 15 enterprise apps such as Task-Manager, Project-Manager, Project-Timer-Recording and more that all users in the Cloud Office may use. The array of applications makes it possible for IT departments to deploy a full software suite for ongoing projects via the cloud without having to change software infrastructure or increase costs.

“The big advantage of implementing a virtual office via semYOU Cloud Office is that you have the ability to be flexible and scalable for each new situation in your business,” said Jahns. “Instead of your being stuck with a rigid system architecture that’s dedicated to specific applications, the new enterprise app idea from semYOU is to enable you to use professional apps for each business case, just when you need them.”

An additional benefit is that users do not have to deal with software installations, downloads or any other changes to their computers.

The semYou enterprise app system is designed as a low-cost model, and businesses can create virtual offices for their teams starting at $15 user/month for a minimum duration of one month. That means if 10 individuals use the system’s applications, the business pays $150 for that month, and users are not restricted to the same app.

“With semYOU, the cloud finally gets a face,” stated Jahns. “We’re demonstrating how the Internet will look tomorrow for business.”


Clarizen Gets $12 Million for Social Project Collabortion

Image representing Clarizen as depicted in Cru...

Clarizen today announced that it has completed a $12 million Series E financing round led by Vintage Partners. Existing Clarizen shareholders Benchmark Capital, Carmel Ventures, DAG Ventures and Opus Capital also participated. The funding will support continued expansion, strategic partnerships, and product development designed to enhance the end user experience.

Clarizen makes organizations more effective by combining the tools needed to plan and execute work within a collaborative cloud-based environment that puts data, structure, and communications all in one place. Simple to use, yet robust, Clarizen’s project management suite eliminates the need for multiple disconnected planning and communication tools. Clarizen’s unified, collaborative environment gives team members and organizations better visibility into their work and provides the tools to get projects executed more quickly.

“Clarizen’s vision for today’s social workforce reflects our understanding that successful organizations need much more than task management or another way to communicate,” said Avinoam Nowogrodski, CEO and co-founder of Clarizen. “The workplace we enable is powerful, because Clarizen helps move information and communications out of silos, gives them structure, and makes this data actionable. This funding comes at an exciting point as we look to accelerate our investment in mobile access and global expansion.”

Clarizen recently introduced its native Android application to complement its existing iPhone app, providing users with real-time access to their tasks and projects from their mobile devices. In addition, the company introduced Clarizen Anywhere, a browser-application and Microsoft Outlook-based toolbar that provides users with immediate access to Clarizen without the need to login.


FileTrek Releases Management Tool on iPad

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FileTrek, Inc. today released FileTrek for iPad, a management dashboard tool designed for workgroup managers and other team members to easily and transparently track the flow of projects, data and collaborative activity while on the go. FileTrek for iPad provides live activity updates of projects, displays how project files are related and how those files are being changed, with real-time data syncing and updates. The FileTrek iPad app is built for members of workgroups that require timely distribution of frequently updated files and the ability to track those files and data wherever it resides.

“The speed of the mobile work environment can make it very difficult for managers and team members alike to meet in-person to review and report on the status of shared projects,” said Carol Mason, Director of Product Management at FileTrek. “Managers want to view data and activity while on the go, and team members want to report the status of their work without having to write a report or make a phone call. FileTrek for iPad simultaneously presents three up-to-date feeds of information – people, projects and data, all on a single pane of glass. It will change everyone’s mindset as to how to get projects done with greater efficiency, and even have some fun while doing it.”

The dashboard app is an extension of the FileTrek solution launched on February 15, 2012. The application is the only combined cloud-based file sharing and tracking solution on the market. FileTrek is designed to allow secure file sharing, project collaboration, and the ability for managers to track content and data with enhanced compliance-friendly audit reporting. The solution is easy to use, transparent to users and can scale across thousands of desktops and mobile devices to maximize individual and workgroup productivity.

FileTrek for iPad features include:

With FileTrek for iPad, a worker in the field can access data through a tablet and have the same secure view of spreadsheets, presentations and memos as a manager in the company offices. Any existing FileTrek project or document that has been synced or shared can be added to the dashboard with a single click. There are no limits to the number of “favorite” projects, people and files that can be tracked.

FileTrek’s innovative data tracking feature allows users to obtain a comprehensive view of all activity within a workgroup or project, who has worked on it, and the various changes that have been made to it. The app provides reliable access to the most recent versions. A file map tracks project dependencies and illustrates how files are related.

Receive live activity updates of all your FileTrek projects, access and revisions. You can see up-to-date sharing activity within a project, who has been added, who has been removed, information on what files have been reviewed, changed or removed, An intuitive cover flow interface allows users can visually flip through snapshots of files to easily access and view all the documents and files related to the project(s) they are working on.

FileTrek for iPad is an innovative solution for people that manage multiple projects at any given time such as sales staff, real estate agents, creative services professionals, health care providers, etc. The dashboard is particularly useful for members of workgroups that require timely distribution of frequently updated files.

FileTrek for iPad is free and available now for existing Team and Enterprise accounts from the iOS App Store. Follow this link to download. For any company registering a new Team or Enterprise account with 20+ users on an annual purchase plan prior to July 31, 2012, they will receive a new iPad free.


Syncplicity Launches Group Sync, Sharing Capabilities for Businesses

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Syncplicity today announced the beta rollout of first-of-its-kind Group Sharing and Permissions features for business users. With the launch, Syncplicity is the first solutions provider to make it easy to share and sync folders across large groups of users within an organization, while allowing them to organize their files the way they want on their own computers and devices, and seamlessly collaborate from anywhere. By enabling group-based folder sharing directly from a user’s local file system on their computer or mobile device, users can more easily collaborate with dynamic cross-functional teams, freed from checking files into rigid organizationally-aligned file servers or dragging and dropping them into a new place to share and collaborate from. At the same time, the new features give businesses the security, transparency, compliance and manageability they require.

“Group collaboration can now occur without hassle, marking a seismic positive change for the industry,” said Leonard Chung, Syncplicity Co-Founder and Chief Product Strategist. “IT Administrators need a solution to the chaos and security headaches introduced by unmanaged and uncontrolled sharing through consumer-grade solutions. We’ve answered the call with innovative group capabilities that maintain the business-class administrative, mobile, and security features today’s organizations require, while enabling users to safely and automatically sync and share files and folders easily on a large scale.”

Syncplicity speeds access to shared files and eliminates information silos by ensuring everyone in a group has seamless online and offline access to files in shared folders without the burden of sharing them with each new group member. With the new Group Sharing functionality, Syncplicity users and Admins can easily share folders with pre-defined, centralized groups of users along with individuals. Every member of the group gains immediate access to all the files in the shared folders and organizes them however they prefer on their own computer. As new users join the group the shared folders are automatically synced to their computers. And, when users leave the group they automatically lose access to those folders and the files can be automatically wiped from their synced locations for additional security.

Syncplicity’s Group sharing also dramatically reduces the time and cost of supporting users and protecting company data. As new users are added to the system, IT Administrators can easily add them with groups, giving group members immediate access to all folders, including shared folders from corporate file servers. This reduces end-user file server connectivity and permission issues and reduces the support cost of VPNs. Because groups are centrally managed, users who are removed from a group lose access to shared folders and files associated with that group immediately.

Additional key features of the Syncplicity group sharing and permissions beta include:

Admins can create an unlimited number of groups and easily add users
Admins can avoid complexity and uncertainty by having constant
visibility into what folders have been shared with the group and what
users are members of each group
Admins can share folders from on-premise file servers so members of
the group get online, offline, and mobile access to those folders
without having to map drives or configure a VPN
Folders can be shared with “read only” or “read-write” access to
protect files from inappropriate changes; Syncplicity determines an
individual user’s access rights based on permissions granted through
group membership and individual shares (e.g. a user can be granted
read-write access individually even if they belong to a group that
just has read-only access)
As an added protection, Syncplicity prevents data loss by not allowing
any user to permanently delete files unless they are the original owner
Synced group folders can be accessed online and offline— if offline,
changes are synced to the group as soon as the user connects and
Syncplicity automatically handles version conflicts

Syncplicity customers interested in participating in the beta program can register at https://syncplicity.wufoo.com/forms/m7x1s1/ for additional details.