A new SAAS-based application from AT&T and mobile resource management provider Xora, the Xora GPS Locator from AT&T, gives cost-conscious businesses with limited IT staff the ability to better track their field-deployed employees.
Network operator AT&T and mobile resource management provider Xora
announced a GPS locator application that gives
small to medium-sized businesses real-time locations of their mobile work force.
The solution is a SAAS (software-as-a-service) application designed to help
AT&T business customers improve the productivity and accountability of
their field-based employees and in doing so lower expenses related to overtime
and fuel costs.
The application, Xora GPS Locator from
AT&T, is compatible with most AT&T mobile devices and smartphones,
including the BlackBerry Bold, as well as laptops and specialty industry
devices. The service will be available at the end of July from AT&T at a
monthly subscription of $21.99 per device, plus an activation fee.
The GPS locator does not require any
software to be loaded on the phone: Field-based employees just power on their
mobile devices and office staff can see their locations using Xora's Web-based
maps and reports. The Xora Web interface also features Google Maps complete
with street, satellite and hybrid views, as well as real-time traffic
information. Web-based reports indicate where and when vehicles are stopped, and
for how long, making it easier to identify time spent at job sites or on
breaks.
"With the addition of Xora GPS
Locator to our portfolio of enterprise mobility applications, small and
medium-sized businesses can better manage their mobile work force on a wide
variety of AT&T mobile devices," said AT&T Business Solutions Director
of Industry Solutions Igor Glubochansky. "The resulting increase in
productivity and reduction in expenses are especially critical today, with many
businesses being challenged more than ever to remain profitable in a sluggish
economy."
The GPS Locator is based on technology
from Xora's GPS TimeTrack solution, and can
be accessed from the same Web-based portal as Xora GPS
TimeTrack and Xora GPS TimeTrack In-Vehicle.
The companies said the application is ideal for SMBs in industries such as
construction, field services, transportation and distribution, as well as state
and local government-entities that are looking for a user-friendly and
comprehensive solution that can provide visibility, accountability and
compliance for field operations that have no large IT staff or on-site hardware
to deploy.
Xora CEO Sanjay Shirole said once
companies gain real-time visibility into the locations and activities of their
mobile employees, it's like someone took the blinders off. "More importantly,
as a result, companies can take action based on what they are seeing in order
to improve the efficiency of their business," he said. "The result is that more
gets done with fewer resources and in less time, leading to greater profits-and
that is how success is measured in most companies."
Nathan Eddy is Associate Editor, Midmarket, at eWEEK.com. Before joining eWEEK.com, Nate was a writer with ChannelWeb and he served as an editor at FierceMarkets. He is a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.
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