LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--IFS, the global enterprise applications company, invites business people, students, innovators and other individuals to apply for the first IFS Innovation Award—“from idea to business value”. IFS is looking for a conceptual idea of how to apply technology in a new and innovative way to increase business value.
The winner will receive a cash prize of EUR 10,000 and the opportunity to see his or her innovation converted into a product prototype and—possibly—become part of the extended ERP suite IFS Applications. The winner will be announced by IFS CEO Alastair Sorbie at the IFS World Conference on October 15th, 2012, in Gothenburg, Sweden.
IFS has a long tradition of working with innovation to increase business value. Since 1983, IFS has been innovative in utilising technology for bringing new and improved business software solutions to its customers. The winning submission will be developed by IFS Labs, IFS’s in-house think-tank for innovation and technology.
“I am pleased to invite innovators to share their ideas with us. The opportunity to see their idea being developed into a real software prototype is one we hope will be attractive to creative minds that want to increase business value through better use of business software,” IFS CEO Alastair Sorbie said.
The jury will consist of Alastair Sorbie, IFS CEO, Joe Barkai, Research Vice President, Product Lifecycle Strategies for IDC Manufacturing, Magnus Höij, Editor in Chief IDG Internetworld, Cindy Jaudon, President & CEO of IFS Americas, Dan Matthews, IFS CTO and Head of IFS Labs and Thomas Säld, Head of IFS R&D.
“As the lines between commercial and business applications continue to blur, it becomes apparent that the next big innovative idea can come from virtually anywhere. That is what is so intriguing about the IFS Innovation award and what led me to volunteer to be a part of the jury,” said Joe Barkai, Research Vice President, Product Lifecycle Strategies for IDC Manufacturing Insights. “By opening up the request for innovative ideas to such a broad audience, the pool becomes virtually limitless.”
The winner of the IFS Innovation Award must present a concept showing new and innovative use of business software that creates real business value for companies in IFS’s focused industries. The jury will highlight the following criteria:
- Originality of the innovation
- Impact of the innovation
- Practicality to develop the innovation
- Possibility to measure the benefits of the innovation
“We are always searching for intelligent solutions that can simplify work processes for businesses or users. Although our ambition has never been to invent new trends, we are constantly looking for innovative ways to combine existing ideas that result in real business value. We ask ourselves, ‘How can this technology benefit the user?’ If the answer is “it can’t”, we leave it by the wayside. If we find real potential in the idea, we implement it into our portfolio,” Dan Matthews, IFS CTO said. “Whatever technology we choose to explore, it must always center on the user and offer a productive, elegant and enjoyable work environment,” Matthews continued.
The applications must be submitted to innovationaward@ifsworld.com by September 1st, 2012. Please visit www.ifsworld.com/innovation for more information about the award and how to apply.
About IFS
IFS is a public company (OMX STO: IFS) founded in 1983 that develops, supplies, and implements IFS Applications™, a component-based extended ERP suite built on SOA technology. IFS focuses on industries where any of four core processes are strategic: Service & asset management, manufacturing, supply chain and projects. The company has 2,000 customers and is present in approximately 60 countries with 2,700 employees in total. Net revenue in 2011 was SKr 2.6 billion.
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