Capitalizing on a government campaign to accelerate industry-wide digital transformation, SK Telecom aims to secure a sizable share in South Korea's cloud groupware and enterprise resource planning markets with a differentiated service that incorporates artificial intelligence to attract mid-sized companies seeking to introduce efficient corporate management.
Groupware is application software designed to help people working on a common task to attain their goals from geographically dispersed locations through shared Internet interfaces as a means to communicate. Enterprise resource planning (ERP) provides an integrated and continuously updated view of core business processes using common databases.
SK Telecom (SKT) has unveiled a software as a service (SaaS) called "Basis Works" that combined its video conferencing solution with ERP, groupware and document tools provided by Douzone Bizon, an ICT solution and service provider in South Korea.
"The goal is to secure at least 10 percent of the domestic cloud ERP and groupware market, which is expected to grow rapidly, by securing around 200 mid-sized companies as customers," SKT's smart factory division head Choi Nak-hoon said in an interview with Aju Business Daily.
Basis Works is a software as a service (SaaS) that combined SKT's video conferencing solution with Douzone's ERP, groupware and document tools. "SKT has secured related technologies and know-how by developing and operating SK Group's mobile groupware," Choi said. "Through Basis Works, we plan to provide better value to companies."
Another strength of Basis Works is that it can immediately use new technologies provided by SKT and Duzone. Within two to three months, SKT would add its interactive AI as an extension program running on ERP and groupware.
"The combination of ERP and groupware with AI will be the biggest strength that differentiates Basis Works from cloud groupware on the market," Choi said, adding that AI immediately informs managers of management reports such as sales status and serves as a secretary to solve employees' questions and replace miscellaneous tasks.
Choi said that Douzone's ERP, groupware, collaboration tools, and e-mail included in Basis Works are seamlessly connected to one service. "Scattered enterprise services are hard to influence the market. First, we need to create an integrated service and combine AI with it so that corporate customers can use it conveniently."
SKT targets mid-sized companies with 50 to 200 employees as its main target because too small companies handle related tasks at accounting offices while large companies have already introduced ERP and groupware. "The transition of enterprise solutions to the cloud is rather slow in South Korea, but there will be a time for change soon," Choi said, calling for various sales options and price arrangements to meet the needs of customers.
Douzone gained a strong ally to expand its cloud ERP and groupware. The company supports digital transformation by segmenting a service-type software for private companies and expanding opportunities for innovative new financial services. Douzone's services include accounting programs, cloud, groupware, information security and ERP.
Douzone's ERP 10 is a software solution that realizes real-time enterprise, robotic process automation, and business process automation required by large companies. It manages big data, maximizes management efficiency by closely connecting all information and resources of a company, and improves the accuracy and visibility of decision-making through the comprehensive analysis of real-time data.
(This story is based on a Korean-language interview conducted by Aju Business Daily reporter Kang Il-yong)
