Xactly/Sage Link To Boost Global SMB Growth

Xactly, which provides cloud-based incentive solutions, has inked a partnership with business management software firm Sage. The partnership integrates sales and accounting functions on the Salesforce 1 platform.

In a release on Wednesday (Sept. 16), the companies said the new relationship will target small and mid-sized businesses, with an eye on real-time data for revenue generation. Sage Live will work with Xactly to “break down the traditional barriers between the front and back office,” according to the release.

The Sage Live platform operates across payment, accounting and payroll services. By linking with Xactly, Sage can now be pushed beyond the back office to be used alongside the sales force as well, in what the release terms a “cloud-based incentive compensation solution.” Sales growth and profitability can be monitored in real time, along with customized incentive payments, and disputes between departments can be allayed, according to Sage and Xactly.

In a statement that accompanied the release, Evan Ellis, president and chief operating officer of Xactly, said that “ambitious organizations are looking for technology which can help them disrupt established players, drive growth and optimize performance. This partnership with Sage creates new ways to break down internal role-based barriers to greater efficiency. Sage and Xactly share very similar core values, and we are thrilled we have the opportunity of working with such a strong global company to empower the small and medium businesses to drive commercial expansion.”

Sage has noted the opportunity available within the SMB arena, both in the United States and internationally. CEO Paul Bridgewater recently spoke with MPD’s Karen Webster about how the marketplace of payments and business tracking solutions remains a fragmented one, even SMB players find growing opportunities and challenges within eCommerce and EMV, among other areas. The executive pointed out that there are roughly 70 million SMBS globally, and here in the U.S., there are as many as 570,000 new startups every month.