LAUNCH OF eHORIZON eBOARD SYSTEM BY SOFTWARE TECHNOLOGIES LIMITED (STL) AND THE INSTITUTE OF DIRECTORS (KENYA)- IOD (K) 3RD MARCH 2011

Software Technologies (STL) and the Institute of Directors (Kenya) are pleased to announce today the launch of STL’s eHorizon eBoard System. eBoard system is functionally rich and flexible systems for the communication and managing the boards of the companies. eHorizon eBoard System is a hosted solution which takes advantage of modern technology to lower the costs of software implementations. eHorizon eBoard System is developed by STL to facilitate and ease the work of board of directors. The system will further improve the capacity of board directors to oversee their businesses and institutions. It will further assist them exercise accountability to shareholders while acting responsibly towards their stakeholders. eHorizon eBoard System improves the board effectiveness while minimizing the time and paperwork involved in keeping the board informed and enhancing Corporate Governance.

Today’s launch is being marked by the execution of a  reseller agreement between STL and IOD (K) whereby IOD (K) will act as a reseller of the system to companies  and institutions for use by their boards, directors and senior management. IOD has been instrumental to add value to the system and has worked with STL to enhance its access to the directors in the right context.

Directors face enormous challenges today as they endeavor to guide businesses and institutions towards a better and sustainable future. They are equally under enormous pressure to oversee the performance of their organizations, to detect any threats to the viability of their businesses and to ensure timely and effective measures are taken to change course should that be necessary for improving performance or avoidance of potential calamities. They also are under onerous obligations to account to shareholders for the performance of their organizations while behaving responsibly towards their numerous stakeholders.

To be successful in this regard they must have ready access to information both internal and external to their organizations on a timely basis. In most cases such information is never available or accessible when needed or available in a convenient format.

eHorizon eBoard system developed by STL is designed to create an electronic platform that enables the directors instant access of documents any where any time so the critical information is available to the directors at the click of a button.

A number of critical functionalities have been incorporated into the e-board System to facilitate the work of directors.

Firstly central information storage and retrieval facility for the boards: This enables the board to determine and specify the information they want uploaded into the system for easy access. This may include strategic plans, marketing plans, risk management policies, other policy documents including governance policies and instruments.

Secondly dynamic information for each board meeting or committee meetings, boards need to have loads of information in the form of printed papers before and after the meetings. eHorizon eBoard system enables Boards to go green in real terms. With eBoard system the boards can virtually have paperless board meetings. Directors can access the information viz: Agendas, Minutes, Board Papers and all relevant documents on their laptops or iPads, Reading Tablets or any other electronic medium without printing a single paper during the meetings. Bulging paper board files that take ages to compile and physical delivery to directors will become a thing of the past. Directors unable to attend the meeting can monitor its progress through audio or video links.

Next there is a board performance evaluation module for facilitating board evaluation of its own performance, and that of the chairman, non-executive directors and the CEO. It makes the exercise easy and convenient as opposed to current manual systems that make the process unduly complicated and unappealing.

The additional facility is the compliance module. It enables directors to monitor company compliance with the various requirements of industry regulators and other statutory bodies such as, CMA KRA, NEMA and others. The facility is particularly helpful in the more regulated sectors such as banking, insurance and the pensions sector.

These feature of the system are certain to appeal to both boards and management is the convenience and ease in organizing and managing information at board meetings.

Security of the system is assured through web based access leveraging the security and reliability to ensure the efficiency and effectiveness of the system.

 A company whose board is interested in making use of the eBoard System will enter into a user agreement with STL that will guarantee it extraordinary levels of reliability and high degree of   security. The system installation charges and user charge are both affordable and reasonable. Training is provided both for directors to use the system effectively and to CEO or Company secretary for back office functionality.

Founded in 1991 by Mrs. Jyoti Mukerjee, STL has acquired a great reputation for software development and marketing specializing in eHorizon ERP, eHorizon HRMS,  eHorizon BOSA AND FOSA Systems among many more. Recent addition to the list is eHorizon eBoard System. STL has been in the group of Top 100 SME’s since last consequent years. They have their head office in Nairobi and representation in several countries including Uganda, Tanzania, India and Nigeria, Zambia and Ethiopia.

The Institute of Directors (Kenya) is the professional association of Kenyan directors dedicated to professionalizing the career of directors. It offers its membership an array of benefits including continuing education, director recruitment, board evaluation, mentorship for aspiring directors and networking opportunities with their peers.

Accordingly this partnership between STL and IOD (K) is founded the desire and determination to enhance and facilitate the work of boards. Both parties are convinced that the functionalities provided to directors by the eBoard system will contribute significantly towards making our boards more productive and far more effective. They are united in their view that better boards make better companies and that better companies make a better country.

                                                                                  

                                                                        

Jyoti Mukerjee                                                                        Lewis Kamau

Managing Director                                                    Chief executive officer

Software technologies Limited                                  Institute of Directors (Kenya)

3^rd March 2011.

STL Launches eHORIZON eBOARD System

Decisions made at the Board of Directors’ meetings have far-reaching implications, determining whether the firm in question is headed for success or not. The buck stops at the Board of Directors.

Every time a company is embroiled in a controversy, the magnifying glass turns to the Board of Directors. Was the decision approved by the Board? To find that out, you would probably have to go through mountains of paper files to retrieve the minutes of past meetings.

With the world heading for green solutions to avert effects of global warming, local technology firm Software Technologies Ltd (STL) has launched an electronic board management system – eHorizon eBoard – that will, among other functions, electronically store data, eliminating the need for paper.

The system is also expected to improve governance and operations of Boards of Directors of organizations to meet the growing need for better corporate governance and continuous compliance. The eBoard system, which is hosted online, is designed to manage various aspects of Boards of Directors’ meetings, ranging from minutes agenda of regular meetings to evaluation of directors.

“Boards of Directors hold an average of 6 to 12 meetings every year. The meetings are characterized by the presentation of minutes, recommendations from various meetings and decisions that have far-reaching implications. The eBoard system stores such data electronically, thus saving time spent perusing papers,” says Chets Mukherjee, the STL Operations Director.

The eBoard system, he explains, also has a compliance dashboard that enables the management of a listed company, for instance, to know if reports to be submitted to the stock exchange of the Capital Markets Authority have been handed in on time.

According to Jyoti Mukherjee, the Chief Executive Officer of STL, directors face enormous challenges today as they endeavour to maintain transparency and enhance corporate governance.

They are equally responsible for overseeing the performance of their organizations, detecting risks and ensuring timely and effective measures are taken to maintain compliance.

The eHorizon eBoard is designed to help the directors, chief executives and company secretaries to meet these goals.

On matters concerning the security of crucial files and documents that at times should only be accessed by the directors and top management, the eHorizon eBoard has comprehensive user security, allowing a company to control what each user has access to by defining roles and privileges within the system. Chets explains that, for instance, an Audit Committee member can access documents for the Audit Committee but be restricted from accessing all documents for other committees and the Board.

STL was founded by Jyoti more than 20 years ago to fill the then technology gap in the country. Today, the company serves over 150 large corporations in East Africa, putting them in the league of the most widely recognized providers of software solutions and support in the region. The firm operates branches in Uganda and Tanzania and runs project sites in Nigeria, Zambia, India and the Middle East. STL is better known for its flagship product, the eHorizon suite, a mid-range set of solutions designed to provide seamless information solutions. The eHorizon Human Resource Management System has been feted as the best HR system by the Computer Society of Kenya 4 years consecutively.

Other award-winning solutions by STL include the eHorizon Financial Management System, eHorizon SACCO system, eHorizon Fleet, eHorizon Aid Management System and eHorizon Clinic.

STL is expected to be listed in the Nairobi Stock Exchange in the next two years. 

Source: The Financial Post (Kenya)Author: Dinfin Mulupi

 

Kenya Wildlife Service Board goes green with eBOARD solution

KWS Press release:

Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) being on the forefront of conservation and environmental awareness has introduced a new system in partnership with Software Technologies Ltd that enables its Board of Trustees (B.O.T) run their operations without the use of paper.

The eBoard system is a web application based on the cloud computing technology, a concept that enables a quick deployment period as most of the work is based on configuration of the system to the organizations’ requirements and training for users. It also helps Information Communication Technology (ICT) departments reduce on their capital expenditure and revert to recurrent costs that are manageable over time.

The system is part of a Green Strategy that has been adopted by KWS in its endeavor to go green and enhance efficiency using technology. This will eliminate use of paper in board meetings as the system allows for users to access relevant board documents anywhere via the internet.

During the launch of the system on January 27, 2012 at the Fairmont Mt. Kenya Safari Club, all board members were issued with an Ipad2 device for accessing the system.
With the system in place, only the master document will be required for signing. Other documents will be loaded into the system and easily accessible by members.

The system is designed for mobility and flexibility for users and easily available with minimal support and assistance from ICT. It is role based hence different users have different levels of access. This helps manage and control the security of all board deliberations.

It will allow for better exchange of information as members can access the information before or after meetings without having to call the Corporation Secretary to clarify certain facts that are already shared on the system. Past board materials including minutes from as far back as 20 years ago are also accessible from the system.

It is expected to greatly improve efficiency through reduction of time to prepare board materials and printing. It will also reduce overhead costs of paper. The system greatly increases the security of important documents by reducing the inherent potential risk of board material getting into the wrong hands or being misplaced. All material in the system is only accessible to the members by logging in with a secure username and password.

The launch of the eBoard system makes KWS the first state corporation to go green in running its board operations. At the time of launch, the only other institution in the country currently using such a system after complete deployment is the Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB). KWS has declared 2012 its year of information and technology and the ICT department plans to upgrade its local area network to improve access to systems for the entire organisation.

The KWS Director, Mr. Julius Kipng'etich informed the board of the efforts KWS was making to enhance efficiency and using this system will go a long way in embracing emerging technologies in a bid to achieve the same. The Chairman, Hon. David Mwiraria, welcomed the innovation and congratulated the KWS team for the unique efficiency multiplier. KWS also plans to implement an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system that will enhance its business intelligence and integration of all KWS systems, consequently improving on reporting efficiency.