Review

Professional Services Automation Solutions
CRN Test Center, September 10, 2001

Product: Tenrox PSA
Company URL: www.tenrox.com
Product URL: http://www.tenrox.com/en/solutions/Tenrox_PSA.htm

Tenrox Professional Services Automation software goes well beyond project management by adding an invoicing engine, workflow engine, purchase module and even technical support and problem tracking after project completion. Tenrox PSA includes some forecasting functions that allow managers to determine future project risks before they occur.

Tenrox PSA maintains budgeting at the billing, cost and time level. When developing a budget, managers can determine revenue by comparing each of those levels. Managers can also break down costs in fine detail at the client level, department level, project level, activity level and task level. The billing is set on an hourly or dollar-amount basis. All the cost and revenue rates are adjustable. Tenrox PSA also allows splitting billing across multiple clients. For multiple currency updates, Tenrox PSA links to Yahoo. Tenrox PSA's rate and billing modules were the most flexible of all the vendors examined in this roundup.

Tenrox PSA can measure performance analysis using a business intelligence module called Business Object. The module can connect to a variety of databases, including SQL Server, Oracle and DB2. Data can also be accessed through the Microsoft OLAP engine and Crystal Reports.

Tenrox PSA can set up work schedules with more than one threshold. Restrictions can be applied on the number of hours and the time a resource can work. Expense reports also can be restricted. Expense thresholds are based on client demand. Tenrox PSA can stop users from entering expenses beyond their thresholds without manager approval. When traveling, consultants have the ability to fill their expense reports and time sheets with an offline client.

The product also contains default time-sheet duplication for easy entry.

The resource management section can display user workloads and reserve resources for future engagements. Tenrox PSA uses a weighting scheme to show the percentage of work availability for individual users and title roles.

Tenrox PSA arrives with a workflow-based change-management process module called Tenrox Incident Management. The system tracks calls, manages open issues and designates technicians to resolve the issue. Tenrox PSA also uses the module for some human-resources functions, such as employee hiring processes and reprimand processes. Some accounting functions, such as invoicing, can also be automated within Tenrox Incident Management. Tenrox PSA also allows customizing any notification based on those workflows.

Tenrox automates materials purchasing by allowing managers to track the approval process of materials for a project. E-mail notifications can also be triggered by approved purchase items to alert managers that the product is available. Items can be purchased in multiple currencies, with exchange rates automatically calculated. Regional taxes are calculated internally as well.

Tenrox PSA includes a software development kit called Tenrox SDK. The API is an ActiveX COM library. Tenrox SDK allows updating any field in Tenrox PSA. The API is used to integrate with SAP Accounting, BAAN, Microsoft GreatPlains and ACCPAC.

The Operations area allows managers to break down projects based on location, including multiple currencies. Tenrox PSA also contains GL terminology settings. Tenrox has added 260 security components for granular control, including password management for NT authentication.