SAP's press release:
For Release 8 a.m. GMT
Dec. 15, 1997
SAP Acquires Significant Share in Sales Force Automation Company
Kiefer & Veittinger Experience and Resources Accelerate SAP's
Delivery
Of Customer Management Applications
WALLDORF and MANNHEIM, Germany - Dec. 15, 1997 - SAP AG, the world
leader in business application software, today announced that, pending
German regulatory approval, it will acquire a 50 percent share in
Europe's market-leading sales force automation software company,
Kiefer & Veittinger GmbH (K&V). K&V's wealth of business knowledge,
technical resources and consulting expertise will be combined with
SAP's development efforts to rapidly deliver a more comprehensive set
of customer management applications to meet companies' rapidly growing
need to improve their customer interaction and relationships.
"There is already tremendous synergy between our two companies,
including corporate cultures, product architectures, our
industry-solutions focus, and many common customers," said Heinz
Roggenkemper, executive vice president of SAP Technology Inc. "This
will enable us to quickly leverage K&V's domain knowledge for
development and consulting as part of TeamSAP(tm)."
"More than 40 percent of our 250 customers are already using our sales
management system integrated with their existing SAP solutions," said
Georg Kiefer, president of Kiefer & Veittinger. "These customers have
clearly demonstrated the value and demand for a seamlessly integrated
solution that provides consistent, real-time information to
salespeople, customer service representatives and ultimately to their
customers directly."
SAP's investment and the joint development project will provide K&V
with a global presence and financial strength. Under the agreement,
K&V will maintain its identity, continue to support its existing
product for its current installed base of 250 customers, and continue
to offer its product within the framework of SAP Complementary
Software Program (CSP).
About Kiefer & Veittinger
Founded in 1986, Kiefer & Veittinger GmbH is headquartered in
Mannheim, Germany, with U.S. headquarters for K&V Information Systems
Inc. in Waltham, Mass. K&V, employing 300 people worldwide, is the
European market leader in sales force automation systems. With the
SALESmanager family, K&V is the only software provider to offer
industry-focused sales-process management features and seamless
R/3(tm) integration in a solution that supports all the popular
client/server platforms, protocols and databases. Over 18,000 users
at more than 250 global corporations use SALESmanager to effectively
manage their entire sales and marketing process.
About SAP
SAP is a market and technology leader in client/server enterprise
application software, providing comprehensive solutions for companies
of all sizes and all industry sectors. Cultivating innovative
technologies on a solid foundation of business experience, SAP
delivers scalable solutions that enable its customers to continually
improve upon best business practices. SAP products empower people to
respond quickly and decisively to dynamic market conditions, helping
businesses achieve and maintain a competitive advantage. |
