IBM has added SAP business software integration to two
of its main productivity applications.
The move enables IBM’s Workplace and Notes systems to link with
SAP enterprise resource planning applications without major
upgrades to core systems.
The integration of SAP software with IBM productivity tools
follows Microsoft’s move to offer greater integration with SAP
systems through its Windows Office productivity suite.
Both IBM and Microsoft are aiming to give users familiar clients
to work with when using SAP data.
However, unlike the Microsoft approach, which uses a separate
add-on product, integration is being included in Lotus Notes
7.0.
IBM Workplace for SAP offers corporate functions such as
scorecards, dashboards, alerts, document and content management,
e-forms, instant messaging, and user presence awareness.
Planned future enhancements include employee and manager
self-service functions and contractor management features.
Lotus Notes Access for SAP helps users integrate SAP data and
business processes with Lotus Notes tasks, said IBM. These
processes include holiday workflow, time reporting, contact
management, and report generation. All these tasks are performed
through the Notes client.
Workplace for SAP costs from £87 per user. IBM Lotus Notes
access for SAP is free to Notes users.
