new slide 4

MMazzone@fathomdelivers.com — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 21:48:06 +0000

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Engineering a User Friendly Project Management Solution Starts With the User

MMazzone@fathomdelivers.com — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 13:25:51 +0000

At Vorex, we set out to accomplish a singular goal: To create a project management solution that is as robust as it is easy to use. And while we have full confidence that this claim holds true, we are always happy when this sentiment is reinforced by others in the industry. And this is exactly what happened earlier this month when Get App released their review [http://www.getapp.com/blog/vorex-review/] of our Professional Services Automation Software.

In their review, GetApp echoed the claims we have been making all long, even going as far to say, “If you run a business that requires project management, workflow management, financial controls and more, then you can’t lose with the free trial and multiple packages to choose from, there is no reason not to try the project management software available by Vorex.”

Your Feedback is Critical to Enhancing Our PSA Solution

It’s important to note that while these positive endorsements are nice, what we really appreciate is when we receive feedback from our customers. Because of your reviews and feedback (both the positive and the negative), we are able to enhance our solution, engineering the updates that are most relevant to the success of your company:

Your feedback helps us customize our solution to meet your direct needs
All updates are completed at no additional costs to you
Enhancements and improvements are engineered to address real business world needs

By employing this customer-centric approach to identifying upgrade opportunities, we have been afforded some amazing insights into what you need. The result has been a complete reimagining of what the word solution actually means. No longer are we engineering a solution we ‘think’ you need. Instead, we have created a solution we ‘know’ delivers results.

So please, reach out to us and let us know what we can do to make our project management solution even better. Leave us a message in the comments field. Or contact us directly.

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Cloud Technology in the Small Business world – Why it's here to help, not hurt

Mike Salem — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 14:01:15 +0000

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The benefits of the cloud have been well documented. Simply run a Google search, and you will be greeted by dozens upon dozens of articles, news reports and advertisements all touting the efficiency, scalability and cost saving advantages of the cloud.

But despite this documented proof, skeptics remain, as concerns about security and data privacy have taken center stage. In fact, right next to all those articles touting the advantages of the cloud, you will find news reports about compromised credit card numbers, leaked files and hacked emails.

This can create quite the dilemma for the small business owner – who with a limited pool of internal resources may be attracted to the advantages of the cloud, but afraid of putting critical internal data at risk.

Security Should be the Norm, Not the Exception

There is no denying that security breaches happen. However it is important to note that this is because of a lack of security standards by the provider, not because the cloud is unsafe.

In truth, the security of your data starts with the provider. For example, at Vorex we take the security of your information seriously. Using a multilayered security approach and employing the services of state-of-the-art data centers, our cloud based PSA solution is engineered to ensure that your data remains safe and available from downtime and outside security attacks.

The Advantages of Cloud Based Business Automation

In short, while security should always remain top of mind, to focus on it in lieu of the advantages is detrimental to the health of your business. This is especially true in the world of small business professionals, whose expanding business and continually evolving responsibilities make them prime candidates to take advantage of everything the cloud has to offer.

As a reminder, here are the advantages that a web based PSA solution can bring to your business:

Access from Anywhere – With a cloud based business automation solution, you are not tied to any single location or computer. Instead, you can log in from just about anywhere and you will have access to all your critical company information.
Data Availability – System downtime and security can bring your business operations to a halt. But with a Vorex PSA solution, the security and infrastructure maintenance are taken care of for you, meaning your data always remains secure from intruders and natural disasters.
Save on IT – The cloud will slash your software expenses. Instead of investing in a computing infrastructure, maintaining hardware, and performing software upgrades, all of this is taken care of for you with a cloud based performance system.

The above is just a short list of the advantages that a web based business automation solution has to offer. At Vorex, we invite you try it for yourself, risk free. Sign up for our 30 day free trial to learn more.

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The Spreadsheet Trap: How is it Affecting Your Project Management Success?

Mike Salem — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 19:05:36 +0000

It’s easy to fall into the spreadsheet trap: Long considered the unquestioned, go-to-choice of project managers, most spreadsheet software is relatively inexpensive, easy to learn and adaptable And because of these advantages, spreadsheets often get used to accomplish a laundry list of project management related tasks – including, but certainly not limited to:

Quotes and Estimates
Forecasting
Time tracking
Billing and invoicing

That’s an awful lot of responsibility for one piece of software. Especially since a lot of it falls well outside the parameters for which the spreadsheet was originally designed.

What’s more troubling is that things like collaboration, real-time updates, workflow support, scalability and web based access (all factors that weigh heavily when accounting for the success of a project) are virtually impossible with most spreadsheet software.

This then forces you to resort to a hodgepodge collection of software applications, emails, databases and mail merge files– just so you can create a quote, send an invoice or approve an employee’s request for time off.

Not only is all of this a tremendous waste of time, but it is full of any number of opportunities for mistakes and errors – mistakes and errors that can lead to:

Inaccurate quotes and invoices
Lack of project accountability
Lags in communication
Missed deadlines

Viewed from this perspective, it seems apparent that spreadsheets are not always the most effective choice for managing a project, especially when the success of that project relies heavily on accurate forecasting, timely management and interactive collaboration.

This is when a PSA solution, one that includes integrated project management, time tracking and CRM, becomes ideal. Through an integrated and web-based project management solution, you can eliminate all those needless error prone processes – and spend more time on what’s really important: Growing your business.

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Financial Wellness Tips for the Small Business Professional

Mike Salem — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 13:39:57 +0000

Here’s the situation: Maintaining a strict budget and tracking business expenses are a critical part of a project’s success. Unfortunately, in the world of the small business professional – where resources are limited, deadlines are tight and responsibilities are aplenty – this task often gets pushed aside.

What happens next is, in an effort to meet client demands and grow business, you end up spending more than you should, pushing an already limited budget to the breaking point.

Tracking Material and Effort Based Expenses

In order to avoid taxing your budget to its limit, you first need to create a system for identifying all possible expenses.

This includes -

Material expenses – Meals, rentals, travel
Effort based expenses – Time spent on projects, planning, researching, etc.

While some of these expenses are obvious, other expenses, like time used and internal resources allocated, are easy to overlook. But remember, any oversight will make determining true project profitability next to impossible, as each expense is critical to ensuring financial health.

How do you create a budget and track expenses when time is limited?

After accurately identifying all your expenses, you then need to measure how they compare to the original budget. Unfortunately, because most managers are already wearing multiple hats, they often have limited time to devote to this task.

This is when a Professional Services Automation solution, which offers detailed insight into how the project is performing, becomes a good option. Instead of just tracking your expenses, a well-engineered PSA solution should allow you to:

Set project limits: Setting expense limits helps to make sure a project remains within budget. For example, our Vorex PSA solution not only lets you set and track expense limits, but it offers advanced visibility into how the project is performing against those set limits.
Automatic Validation: Automatic validation lets you define a set of approval rules (maximum allowed time, allowed tasks…etc.). This will play an instrumental role in streamlining the review process. In fact, Vorex customers have reported that this feature has cut their expense review time by as much as 70%.
Workflow Management: Is every expense being reviewed and authenticated by a manger or appointed approver? Defining the workflow and approval route will ensure that all expenses are reviewed and approved by at least one person before they are finalized.
Integrated Invoicing and Billing: Integrating your invoices and billing systems with your expense tracking means your invoices will remain accurate and timely. This also prevents the need to manually migrate expense entries from your expense tracking application to your invoicing software.

For more information about how business automation solutions help to streamline your expense tracking operations, contact Vorex today.

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Getting Started With Vorex PSA

Mike Salem — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 15:46:49 +0000

The industry’s most intuitive Professional Services Automation solution just became easier to use!

At Vorex, we are happy to announce the release of our newest Getting Started Guide. If you are new to Vorex, or maybe need a little refresher, this can be a great place to start: Vorex Getting Started Guide

A little about our intuitively complete PSA solution

From day one, our goal has been to bring something new to the world of business automation: We didn’t just want to create an all-in-one solution, and we didn’t just want to create a solution that was easy to use. What we set out to do was engineer a Professional Services Automation solution that would deliver in both those areas.

We are not like those other solutions: With other business automation solutions, what you end up with is a bunch of separate applications: One for your projects, one for your invoices, one for your timesheets, and so on and so on … But when you need all those independent solutions to communicate with one another, what you end up with is a lot of inefficiencies, a lot redundancies and a lot of wasted resources.

Here at Vorex, we have bundled all those separate solutions into one complete, natively integrated application. Now, all your projects, all you expenses, all your timesheets, all your contacts, all your prospects, and all your opportunities can be managed from one single interface.

Want to learn more: Check out this Interactive Video

Tell us how we are doing

Of course, that is only half of our promise. The other half is simplicity. We recognize that it is not enough to offer a complete solution. Our goal has been to create an intuitively complete solution – one that is as comprehensive as it is easy to use.

Designed by business professionals for business professionals, our suite of PSA solutions is programmed for “intuitive-ease of-use.” Every application, every screen and every interface is engineered to work together – meaning handing data from one operation to another is as simple as pushing a button.

But we realize that there is always room for improvement. In fact, each upgrade is user driven, based on your input, requests and reactions. So if there is ever something you would like to see added, subtracted or changed, please let us know.

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Remember to Celebrate HR Appreciation Month

Mike Salem — Sat, 12 Jan 2013 15:59:05 +0000

January is more than half way over. So in case you may have forgotten, (and we are hoping you haven’t) it’s Human Resources appreciation month – meaning now is the perfect time to celebrate those people in your company who are tasked with the important responsibility of building and maintaining your talented and productive workforce.

A bit of HR trivia: Time off and its impact on productivity

In honor of all those hardworking people who are responsible for ensuring the happiness, well-being and productivity of each employee, Vorex would like to share a piece of trivia that every good HR professional needs to know: Taking time off improves productivity!

ABC News and CBS News have both reported extensively on time off and its positive impact on productivity. Citing a Harvard Business Review article, CBS reported that forcing employees to take time off improves collaboration efforts while also serving as a catalyst for creative ideas. The ABC article, which focuses on employee initiated vacation time, reported that any vacation, even one that only lasts 24 hours, is a great stress reducer.

The most cited advantages of time off include:

Increased collaboration
Improved company morale
Better productivity
Less burn out

So if you are stumped and looking for a way to demonstrate your HR appreciation, you may want to keep this information on hand. What better way to show your HR staff that you care than with some well-deserved time off.

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slider 4

admin — Wed, 26 Sep 2012 19:35:51 +0000

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Capterra – Users Review

Mike Salem — Tue, 28 Aug 2012 15:34:59 +0000

Our publicly traded company had many requirements; all were addressed professionally by Vorex team

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DAR Telecom

admin — Tue, 28 Aug 2012 15:34:37 +0000

I strongly recommend this solution to any business owner. It is easy, powerful, and backed by excellent support.

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