Tag: business

EACOMM releases Fixed Asset Management Software

EACOMM Corporation Philippines is proud to release the first of a series of MS Access-based small-medium scale business applications developed in partnership with AQMA Tech Solutions, a software development studio focused on business software development and IT consultancy. AQIL MAGNUS Fixed Asset Management Software addresses both administrative and accounting needs as to maintaining fixed asset records. AQMA-AMS follows standard accounting procedure as defined by the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP). The software maintains a database of fixed assets and automatically computes for depreciation expense (via straight-line depreciation method) and computes for the asset’s book value. The software also allows the user to properly assign the asset to a specific department/ employee / and even to a specific location for easy administrative handling. This asset assignment feature allows for the proper allocation of depreciation expense for accounting report purposes. AQIL MAGNUS takes into account the asset’s date of purchase, asset life span (in months), salvage value, purchase price with or without the Value Added Tax (VAT Rate), before it computes for the depreciation expense per month. AQIL MAGNUS has the 4 basic Asset Types (Equipment, Furniture, Leasehold Improvement, and Computers) and it offers the flexibility of further classifying assets with the Asset Class and Asset Subclass level of classification. The software comes with 4 modules: System Module, Administrative, Accounting, and Reports Module. System Module – includes database customization commands, table set-up, User creation/password setting, plus other system-related functions. Administrative Module – includes Asset Record creation, Assignment of Assets to Departments/Employees/Location, Selling an Asset, and Writing-off an Asset. Accounting Module – includes depreciation expense and book value computations. Computations can be done in an aggregate level, at the department level, or at the employee level. Asset depreciation begins on the month following the asset’s date of purchased. Reports Module – includes built-in reports that list assets by company, by department, by employee, and by location. AQIL MAGNUS has the following special features: User Log-in/Log-out to determine access rights User creation with built in User Types (Admin, Accounting Staff, Admin Staff) Table purging to reset database contents Built-in reports Database/Record maintenance capabilities Customizable codes to fit your asset tagging procedures User-friendly and ready to use For customization, AQIL MAGNUS can be modified to fit client’s specific needs. Examples of customizations may include: (a) changing the asset depreciation method;  (b) User Types customization; (c) Log-in/out monitoring; (d) additional reports; (e) color-customization; plus any other customization that the client may require. We are currently offering a Trial Version for download which allows up to thirty (30) log-ins.  For the trial, please use USERNAME: User, Name  PASSWORD: password. Note that the application requires MS Access 2003 or higher to run. DOWNLOAD AQMA-AMS NOW! For comments, suggestions or further information regarding this product please contact: EACOMM Integrated Solutions Division 11th Floor CyberOne Bldg. Eastwood Cyberpark Bagumbayan, Quezon City Philippines, 1110 Tel: +63 2 438 2986 Fax: +63 2 912 6745 Email: solutions@eacomm.com

EACOMM Corporation Featured in Entrepreneur Magazine

EACOMM Corporation is featured in the July 2008 Issue of Entrepreneur Magazine. Entrepreneur Magazine is published by Summit Media and is available at most book stores, magazine stands, and convenience stores for Php 125.00. You can also check out the article below. The Interview was conducted last April, 2008. Technology Jul 02, 2008 Living yearbook By Katrina Tan After early gains in producing interactive yearbook CDs, this IT venture set up by a group of friends now offers a range of services to clients here and abroad The idea for EACOMM Corp. came up when five friends—Elias Ravillas, Arvin Sanvictores, Christiane de la Paz, Odnerolf Fajilan, and Mikhail Torres—chanced upon an interactive yearbook CD back in college. “Interactive CDs were just entering the market at that time and had limited features and functions,” says Torres, EACOMM’s current managing director. “Since four of us took up engineering at the University of the Philippines and had knowledge in programming, we felt we could improve the product. We wanted to add a creative aspect to the technology. Yearbooks are very nostalgic, and we thought that adding audio-visuals would be something viewers would appreciate.” In 1999, after their graduation, the five thus began their first venture as a semi-independent information technology arm of Universal Matrix Corp., a consultancy firm owned by Torres’ father, Ruben D. Torres. Torres recalls: “As part of Unimatrix, we were provided office space on Katipunan Avenue and given capital to acquire computers. Although we didn’t create a formal business plan, we learned a lot about conducting a business and about making presentations to clients.” The five had to learn online whatever programming skills they needed, such as Shockwave and Macromedia Director. “Some days we’d work from 10:00 a.m. till midnight,” Torres says. “We began with government projects. These were for database services, multimedia development, and other projects that took about six months to develop. One project went for about P700,000 based on the industry going rate, and we earned roughly 50 percent in profits from it.” EACOMM’s foray into the educational arena began when it was commissioned to create an interactive CD to complement the 2001 yearbook of the Ateneo High School in Loyola Heights, Quezon City. Says de la Paz, the company’s director for marketing and training: “There were a few companies making the products then, but since our company was relatively young, we found it difficult to convince clients to purchase our product. So we surveyed how many students were interested in purchasing an interactive CD with their yearbook. Most of them were interested, of course.” Torres credits EACOMM’s ability to win clients to its creative approach to projects and to the consistency of its communication with clients. Its first yearbook project, for example, had a 3D gaming theme that perfectly suited the graduating batch—a unique feature that led to several other yearbook projects. It was at this time that EACOMM decided to separate from Unimatrix. In August 2001, it relocated to a 55-square meter office at the IBM Plaza Building in Eastwood, Quezon City, but kept its Katipunan office as a production facility. Investing almost P1 million of its saved profits in office space and PCs, the company then established a 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. work schedule, formed departments, and began actively approaching clients. The company’s early years saw some managerial changes, with founders Ravillas and Sanvictores migrating to the United States and getting replaced by Francis Alincastre as director for Web development and by Joel Abelida, director for multimedia, respectively. As an independent entity, EACOMM initially focused on markets inside academe, handling about 10 yearbook projects a year. Says Torres: “Since we were able to do the computer programming ourselves, the first employees we hired were creative people. Manpower is one of the main difficulties in this industry. Skilled employees are hard to find, and their salaries are always growing.” In fact, 80 percent of EACOMM’s current expenses go to manpower, with the balance going to acquisition of PCs and software licenses. “We have about 20 full-time and part-time employees, split between creatives and programmers, and 20 to 30 individuals from whom we outsource certain jobs,” says Torres. Today, aside from making job postings on their website and a few online advertising placements, EACOMM no longer actively looks for clients. The company now gets two to three unsolicited project requests weekly. The nature of its business also enables the company to render its services across the globe. Indeed, 40 percent of its current revenues is generated from foreign clients. “We charge a standard of US$15 to $20 an hour,” says Torres. “A basic website is about $2,000 to $3,000, but prices really depend on the project. What’s nice about that is we don’t really view local companies as our competitors—in fact, we even outsource projects to them.” EACOMM has since expanded its services to include web design and development, multimedia development, integrated hardware and software solutions, and training. The company now runs the EACOMM Studio of Digital Arts (ESODA). Over the years, the company has established strategic partnerships with, among several IT companies, Indigo 21, a UK-based information technology and business process outsourcing (BPO) solutions provider; Zeus Networks, a local software development company; and Elisha Telecom Ltd., London-based voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) hardware and software provider. EACOMM saw its biggest growth during the period from 2001 to 2006, experiencing a 30 percent annual increase in revenues. In 2005, the company moved to still another location—a larger 155-square meter office in nearby Eastwood’s CyberMall in Libis, Quezon City—to accommodate its growing business. “A major challenge in the IT industry is to constantly innovate and keep up with trends,” says Torres. “We’re currently creating standard Web applications that can be used by several clients, as opposed to creating one website per client. This makes our operations more efficient and productive and allows us to optimize the use of our current resources.”

AN URGENT MESSAGE FROM THE PHILIPPINE IT SERVICES INDUSTRY

The Philippine IT Services industry consists of companies in the business of animation, call center and contact center operations, business process outsourcing, medical transcription and software development. Collectively, these companies generated over $2 billion in export revenue in 2005. In total, the industry currently provides employment to 160,000 professionals. Our target is to reach $12 billion in annual revenue by 2010, providing employment to over 1 million Filipinos. We are proud to say that the Philippines is now mentioned as one of the preferred sources of IT services world-wide. While our entry-point into the global market has been our low costs, we are increasingly gaining attention for our quality, reliability and expertise. It is easy to understand why. The Philippines has a pool of qualified professionals, cited frequently as among the best in the world. Local companies are investing in aligning their processes with international standards. Our telecommunications infrastructure is among the most competitive in the region. Our business incentives, grown over several administrations, are designed to attract foreign investment. Our list of high-profile international clients continues to expand. The industry’s impact on the economy can be further multiplied if we consider the trickle-down effect on other local industries. The IT Services companies and their employees have emerged as prime consumers for other goods and services We are confident in our industry’s abilities to reach its targets and to further increase its contribution to the economy. However, we cannot do it alone. A concerted effort among all stakeholders is required. We have to make sure that our schools produce enough graduates for us to hire. We have to make sure that government policies are in place to attract and retain investors. We have to make sure that we maintain an environment where Filipino professionals are given progressive opportunities to enhance their skills, careers & standards of living without the need to leaving our country. We also have to make sure that our foreign customers and partners have the assurance that our ability to fulfill their requirements is not compromised or disrupted because of an unstable external environment. We know that our business fundamentals as an industry remain strong. We have withstood all kinds of crises in the past. But, in our business, the perception of continuity and reliability is a key consideration. The global market is sensitive to isolated local incidents and can interpret these out of proportion. We respect every party’s right to voice an opinion. Our industry has been, and will continue to be, an active participant in promoting transparency and good governance in our society. However, while there are national issues that cannot be ignored and need to be resolved, our call is for everyone to proceed with rationality, sobriety, responsibility and consideration. We have processes in place, let us use them and improve on them where necessary. The Philippine IT Services industry provides an opportunity for the country to achieve long-term economic growth and stability. Let us not waste the opportunity. No less than 1,000,000 jobs depend on it. Signed: Animation Council of the Philippines, Inc. (ACPI) Business Process Outsourcing Association of the Philippines (BPOAP) Medical Transcription Industry Association of the Philippines (MTIAPI) Philippine Software Industry Association (PSIA) IT Services and Electronics Division CITEM Tel: 632-8325044 Fax: 632-8323965 URL: www.e-servicesphils.com EACOMM Corporation is an active member of the Animation Council of the Philippines and a long time supporter and partner of the CITEM and its Annual E-Services Exhibition