Intuit QuickBase Offers Powerful Project Management Enhancements to Meet Today's Tight Budgets and Demanding Deadlines

Business Wire, Jan 23, 2003

Business Editors

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 23, 2003

Enhanced Service Offers Business Teams a Way to Manage Projects

More Easily, Efficiently and Affordably

Intuit(R) Inc. (Nasdaq:INTU) announced today several new project management features for its award-winning QuickBase(R) for Corporate Workgroups Web-based service (http://www.QuickBase.com). These features add even deeper project management capabilities to a service that is already widely heralded by customers for its customizability, rapid deployment and unmatched affordability.

"QuickBase solved big problems right off the bat, at a price that no other solution on the market could match," said Wayne Showalter, a principal software engineer with Ventana Medical Systems, a supplier of automated diagnostic systems to the anatomical pathology market. "In a few weeks, we created project management solutions with everything we wanted. Projects are more complete. We can keep track of issues and make sure that they are addressed. Using QuickBase has substantially improved the quality of our products."

Comprehensive Project Management

"Successful project management is about communication -- the ability to quickly manage and share information across a team," said Jill Ward, vice president and general manager for Intuit QuickBase. "The Internet can help teams be far more effective at managing and sharing information. Because QuickBase is an entirely Web-based service, it's a far more powerful and efficient project management tool."

QuickBase for Corporate Workgroups includes the critical features required in project management software, such as document management, project management, reporting, and role-based permissions. QuickBase also offers:

-- Time and expense tracking and reporting to keep projects on time and within budget. QuickBase features the ability to compare forecasted versus actual expense throughout the duration of a project to avoid expense "gotcha" surprises.

-- Highly customizable reports that can be personalized for everyone on the team. Need a monthly calendar for the team, a pie chart for the boss, or an itemized task list for each team member? Produce any or all of these formats directly from QuickBase using an easy view builder that's designed for the everyday business user.

-- Unparalleled ease-of-use that welcomes all team members to participate. Different from current desktop or custom project management applications that cater primarily to project management professionals, QuickBase is easy enough for every team member to use -- without expensive, formal training. Customers agree, especially when teams readily adopt QuickBase into their workflow. "We have completely embraced QuickBase as part of the culture of the company," says Mark Shnier, vice president for customer service and logistics for Gesco, a Toronto-based floor covering company. "It is tough to get a sales force to take on new technology, and even they have embraced QuickBase."

-- Automatic e-mail notifications to keep team members informed of the latest developments on a project. And, project managers are alleviated of the overwhelming burden of keeping everyone informed of critical issues at every instant. With QuickBase, team members can be automatically notified via e-mail at pre-defined intervals (daily, weekly, monthly) or even instantaneously as information is added or changed.

"Our customers tell us that every project is unique, and that requires flexibility," said Jill Ward. "Our customers have the ability to tailor QuickBase to their project needs, rather than force fit their projects into a rigid, one-size-fits-all application. Customers find QuickBase refreshingly customizable and easy."

Customers agree that QuickBase streamlines project management on their terms. "When we are working on a project as large as a $65 million, 350,000 square foot public high school, there are dozens of people involved at each stage and thousands of details to track," says Paul Woyda, AIA chief information technologist for OMR architects. With QuickBase, OMR found a solution that is robust, easy to use and flexible enough to fit the company's changing daily needs, all at a cost of only dollars a day. As Paul says: "QuickBase is our application of choice -- It provides the best of what the Internet and an extranet can offer."

Giving Business Teams a Better Way to Work Together

At its core, QuickBase for Corporate Workgroups offers business teams many Web-shareable business solutions -- including sales management, project management, document management and more -- bundled together in one, affordable price. All solutions built on the flexible and powerful QuickBase platform can be tailored to each team's unique needs. And, for further customization, teams can even design their own custom solutions. As a totally Web-based service, QuickBase for Corporate Workgroups is available anytime and anywhere -- offering real-time access to updated project documents and data for project team members. And, there's no software to install or maintain. Everything a team needs is on the Web.