SAP and Novell Integrate Solutions for GRC

SAP (Newtown, Pa.) and Novell (Waltham, Mass) have expanded a partnership, forged in 2007, to include the delivery of integrated governance, risk and compliance (GRC) solutions. The companies are cooperating on product integration and planning to collaborate on joint go-to-market activities and alignment of strategic direction related to GRC solutions, according to an SAP source. The collaboration will include integration of GRC solutions from the SAP BusinessObjects portfolio with Novell security and identity products, as well as plans for joint marketing and selling of the integrated solutions to joint customers.

The SAP/Novell collaboration is aimed at bridging what SAP describes as the gap between business processes and IT security and controls. The combined solutions will deliver customers agility, transparency and accountability in support of end-to-end business processes and IT environments, providing quick time-to-value with certified integration and targeted solution offerings, SAP claims. As a result, insurers will enjoy reduced risk, lower costs and improved business performance, the vendor asserts.

"The integrated offering from SAP and Novell furthers our commitment to ensure that our customers have the clarity and confidence required to effectively manage risk across their entire business processes and IT environments," comments Narina Sippy, senior vice president and general manager, GRC Solutions, SAP BusinessObjects Division. "SAP and Novell share a large, joint customer base. Our collaboration in GRC provides them with a significant opportunity to leverage their existing IT investment to deliver greater business value and lower total cost of ownership. This is a key example of the SAP ecosystem at work."

"Combining our industry-leading identity and security management solutions with the GRC solutions from the world's leading provider of business software, Novell and SAP deliver business-relevant solutions that affect the bottom-line so that an organization's compliance and risk management program becomes a powerful strategic business asset for the organization," says Jim Ebzery, senior vice president of Identity and Security, Novell.

Anthony O'Donnell has covered technology in the insurance industry since 2000, when he joined the editorial staff of Insurance & Technology. As an editor and reporter for I&T and the InformationWeek Financial Services of TechWeb he has written on all areas of information ... View Full Bio