Q: Chris, you’ve been at the helm of Varsity for almost a year now.  How are things going?

A: I think quite well.  I took over the helm in the depth of the recession and financial industry crisis, a very hard set of conditions for businesses to weather–our customers and prospects, and us too. The fact that we are a small, agile organization backed by the strength of our parent company, Constellation, Inc. has really helped us keep the business viable.

Like most, if not all, business software companies, we did see a slow-down in new sales. However, for some companies, the downturn has been an incentive for them to improve their shipping competency.  In 2009 we welcomed a number of new customers to the Varsity family, including the well-known retailer Billabong, Bunn (the producers of Bunn-o-matic coffee makers), and Mobis (the parts distribution joint venture of Kia/Hyundai).

Q: I noticed that some of the largest parcel shippers in the country are Varsity customers. What impact has the recession had on their shipping volumes?

A: We have seen a major slow down of economic activity and shipping volumes, as our customers know all too well.  The carriers have been impacted as well. FedEx and UPS, with their high fixed cost structures, definitely had their problems in the last quarter. Our focus has been on supporting our customers in these trying times and preparing to serve them better.

We have been able to adjust to the tougher conditions and redeploy resources to other tasks (or even across other subsidiaries of our parent company—a real source of major flexibility).

Many of our customers have been doing upgrades to 2.7 or adding additional modules. We have a very strong, capable team here at Varsity, and I think our customers acknowledge and appreciate that.

Q: So how do you view your market and Varsity’s prospects going forward at this time?

A: We have always focused on serving the IBM i (AS/400) market. This is a great market for us, one where expect we will continue to add value and grow. It is a market that — in the US alone —  consists of many thousands of mid-sized and large manufacturing, distribution, and retail businesses which rely on the strength of the IBM i platform (and IBM) to run their enterprises with continuity, security, and high performance.

Those companies represent our core market focus. Some people say: “Well, that’s a shrinking market, since the AS/400 platform is kind of evolving away.”  But we don’t see that at all — we just see a very significant, important market that is changing in its own way — just like all markets change — and we are there to be of service.

While software providers like Pitney Bowes and others have dropped out of actively serving the IBM i market, we have made it our business to be there.  We are now recognized as the only software provider that is actively and aggressively investing in and servicing this market; and I think this is true of shippers as well as carriers.  For example, in just the last year, we became a UPS Select Provider, and we’ve been recognized–by UPS as well as FedEx–as the certified provider for shipping and TMS solutions in the IBM i (AS/400) market.  Our intention is to continue to serve this market, change with it and grow (both organically and through acquisition and partnership).

Q: Since taking your new position, what investments has Varsity made in serving your customers, and what are your plans for the future?

A: Boy, it’s a long list that covers many aspects of the product set and the business. First of all, I’d like to discuss the decision we made some time ago to invest significant time and resources in improving our release and change management processes. We’ve licensed special technology to do this (provided by a company named ARCAD), and we are at a point now where we are able to see big differences.  Rolling PTFs is now a reality and we can be much better at managing our customers’ unique, complex software configurations, and it really helps to future-proof our software and also make supporting it more efficient.

We’ve also strengthened and improved product functionality.  Some of this has come from working more closely with our carrier and ERP partners (as well as, of course, IBM); some of this has come from our own internal development activities.

We’ve brought out Release 2.7, which is being adopted across our customer base, and which brings many advantages.

We also delivered greater efficiency and more functionality  by combining UPS domestic and international CCKs into one and adding more UPS Contract Services (such as “Paperless Invoice”).

In the past year, we introduced our two analytics offerings TransData and ShipView Plus (and we have just recently concluded a new arrangement with our BI technology partner NGS to make a low-cost, entry-level version of ShipView Plus available this summer).

We are also bringing out a GUI version of ShipSoft this summer, one more step in the process of modernization.  We are continuing to support the evolution of our customers with IBM i technology that is enabling their enterprises.  Over time, we might incorporate different technologies into our product portfolio, but we will not lose our focus on serving the IBM i market as it evolves.

Finally, we’ve been focusing on customer, support, and services processes, trying to enhance and bring more value into the relationship our customers have with Varsity.  One example is our changing our training process for our customers—now it’s online and requires no travel and cost for our customers. We had very positive feedback after our first online training, and our recent training in August attracted over 80 registrations.

Besides free online training, we’re also upgrading our regular customer communications from simple email to an online communications platform we’re calling Varsity Customer e-Channel.  This should allow us to stay more in touch with our customers. We, and our parent company, understand that being in touch with customers is fundamental to having a successful business

Q: So it seems like 2009 is heading in the right direction?

A: Yes, I really do believe it is.  We are seeing lots of progress.  We are optimistic about the future (and we are seeing our customers and prospects being more and more optimistic too).  2009 marks 20 years since Varsity was founded in 1989, and we’re still going strong.  Our mission is clear, our market focus is steady, and our organization is strong and nimble and well supported.

It’s been a good first year, and I’m looking forward to having Varsity serve its unique customers for as long as they require us.