IMA's 2017 Year In Review
It’s that time of year again. The holiday season is almost upon us, which means another year is coming to a close. As we stop to catch our breath and reflect on the past twelve months, it’s safe to say that this has been one of IMA’s busiest and most exciting years yet. Before we officially say goodbye to 2017 and welcome the new year, we’d like to recognize some of IMA’s greatest highlights and milestones from the past twelve months.
1) IMA Opens New Development Office In Waterloo Region
After months of anticipation, IMA proudly announced the opening of its new development office, strategically located in Canada’s tech hub, Waterloo, ON. Often referred to as “Silicon Valley North”, Waterloo is one of the world’s fastest growing tech regions and a breeding ground for successful startup companies. Perhaps best known as the birthplace of BlackBerry by Research In Motion (RIM), Waterloo has produced numerous globally recognized brands and is home to many corporate research and development teams due to its immense tech culture. With several academic institutes nearby, Waterloo offers a deep talent pool for companies to draw from, along with a wide range of professional and technical resources to leverage. “Locating ourselves in the heart of Canada’s tech community better positions IMA to leverage best in class resources, support, and technologies.” stated IMA Ltd. Vice President & COO, Troy Miller. “As a tech company that specializes in data management, opening an office in Waterloo Region is an important next step in the company’s short and long-term growth plan.”
Look for big things to come from the IMA Product Development Team in 2018!
2) IMA Becomes a Member of Communitech
Taking full advantage of the new Waterloo office location, IMA officially became a member of Communitech in 2017. For those unfamiliar, Communitech is an industry-led network comprised of 1,000+ member companies ranging from startups and large global corporations, to government agencies and academic institutions. Located in Canada’s tech savvy Waterloo Region (just minutes from the IMA Development office), Communitech provides its members with a vast network of resources and hands-on support in all areas of business, including talent acquisition, finance, marketing, and of course, technology development. Communitech offers an environment like no other through its 80,000+ square foot Communitech Hub, which acts as a clubhouse, events venue and shared office space to its member network. Communitech is not only a place for startups and scale-ups to grow their business though; it also serves as an innovation incubator for global corporations such as Google, IBM, General Motors, and many others.
“It is extremely inspiring to be surrounded by so many successful tech companies and global corporations who have and continue to utilize Communitech. As a rapidly growing tech company with ambitious objectives, IMA will leverage Communitech resources to accelerate software development and bring innovative solutions to market. In turn, our customers will be able to reap the benefits of our new and improved solutions within their own business,” commented Troy Miller.
3) IMA Continues to Build Strategic Partnership With Grainger
In August 2016, IMA and Grainger officially announced a long-term strategic partnership agreement to offer On-Site Data Collection, Data Cleansing, and Data Governance solutions as part of Grainger Services. Prior to the official partnership agreement, IMA supported numerous data cleansing projects for Grainger customers, which demonstrated the benefits of quality data within manufacturing and asset intensive industries. By joining forces, Grainger and IMA have added significant value to their joint customers, while helping differentiate each other in an increasingly competitive marketplace. In 2017, IMA and Grainger continued to strengthen and establish the partnership but implementing several On-Site Data Collection and Cleansing projects. With many more opportunities on the horizon, 2018 is sure to be a great year for the IMA-Grainger partnership.
4) IMA Travels the World Expanding Global Customer Base
As IMA continued expanding its global presence throughout 2017, the sales and project implementation team spent many hours in airports, hotels, rental cars, and boardrooms around the world building long-term customer relationships and ensuring maximum project success. Having completed several global projects in 2017 and many still in progress thru 2018, IMA services have now reached virtually every continent around the globe. With an increasing emphasis on big data, analytics, and global integration, IMA’s global project sales are expected to multiply in the coming year.
5) IMA Sales Hit Record High in 2017 as Data Governance Conversion Rates Reach 85%
Despite a growing number of competitors in the field of material master data cleansing, IMA is pleased to announce that its sales hit a record high in 2017. In addition, Data Governance conversion rates also reached a high of 85%, adding significant viability to the uManage web-based solution. IMA attributes the rise in sales primari
ly to the increased awareness and emphasis surrounding master data quality, along with the constant pressure to reduce operating costs. Additionally, companies are more frequently incorporating Data Quality Improvement as a critical success factor in the overall ERP implementation plans. From a competitive perspective, IMA continues to differentiate itself from other solution providers by delivering unmatched service flexibility, customer support, and 28 years of project experience.
Well, that’s a wrap on our top five highlights from 2017. Before we log off to enjoy the festivities of the season, we would like to extend our sincerest gratitude and appreciation to our customers, employees and partners who continuously contribute to the success of IMA. On behalf of the IMA Team, we wish you and your families a wonderful holiday season and a Happy New Year. Bring on 2018!
