Business Bits

By Hacienda Network Staff Writer

Fun Mobility

Hacienda's Fun Mobility has launched a new application, FunMail, for iPhone, Twitter, and Facebook users. The program allows the addition of cute or comical images to standard text messages, offering what the company describes as "a unique, eye-catching, and fun blend of communication and self-expression."

The program is easy to use. Users type their text message as usual, and the FunMail "Media Brain" automatically presents a variety of images that relate to the message, with the user's text rendered into the image. The Media Brain behind the program's text analysis is an open-source learning system that tunes itself based on usage patterns and supports over 50 languages via Google Translate.

"FunMail enables anyone to instantly create vibrant, compelling visual messages," says FunMobility CEO Adam Lavine. "Whether it's talking about fantasy football teams among friends on Sunday or flirting via text, FunMail enhances the way we communicate and bring text to life."

The company is also in discussions with mobile carriers, web developers and device manufacturers to embed FunMail into existing platforms and, in turn, open up a new messaging revenue stream. For more information, access www.funmail.com.
Veeva Systems

Biotechnology company Accera Pharmaceuticals has selected Veeva CRM from Hacienda's Veeva Systems to serve the company's customer relationship management software needs. The Veeva CRM suite, which uses Software as a Service (SaaS) technology, is specially tailored for the global life sciences industry.

"Veeva's SaaS solution makes it easy to scale up and change without disrupting existing functionality," says Ed Bach, Accera's director of sales operations. "We started out with a vanilla CRM system that we needed to modify heavily to meet our specific needs. We were reinventing the wheel and we were not thrilled with the result... Compared to alternatives, Veeva CRM has more robust reporting capabilities, a more intuitive interface, and many more pharma-specific capabilities. It's the CRM solution for the life sciences industry."

Accera's entire team of field sales representatives and sales operations team will go live with Veeva CRM this month.
Hacienda Companies Recognized by San Francisco Business Times

Three Hacienda companies have been recognized by the San Francisco Business Times in their list of the 25 largest employers in the East Bay. Kaiser Permanente, a company with its IT division in the park, comes in at number two on the list with 17,572 employees in Alameda and Contra Costa counties. National retailer Ross Stores, which has its headquarters in Hacienda, is listed at number 22 (1,500 East Bay employees out of a total of 46,150 company-wide), while Robert Half International follows at 24.

Also in this issue ...

December Business Bits

Business Bits