New UserPilot tool makes user-management and unified log-in simple with Active Directory synchronization

• Aylesbury (February 3, 2009) - Citytalk, the leading software as a service(SaaS) provider specializing in messaging and collaboration solutions, todayannounced the availability of UserPilot, a tool that allows users of Citytalk'shosted applications to better integrate with their on-premise applications.With more and more companies leveraging a mix of hosted and in-house softwareapplications, user administration has become increasingly time consuming andcomplex for IT administrators - a problem that UserPilot aims to solve. UserPilotalso equips end-users with unified log-in capabilities, making it easier andless time-consuming for users to access multiple applications.
• UserPilot allows Citytalk’s customersto leverage their existing on-premise Microsoft Active Directory infrastructureto simplify user management across on-premise and Citytalk’s-hostedapplications including hosted Exchange, hosted SharePoint and hosted OfficeCommunications Server 2007. Using UserPilot customers can securely synchronizeuser log-in credentials to enable a single username and password combinationfor individual users across on-premise and hosted applications. If a userchanges or an administrator resets a password through Active Directory, the changewill sync with Citytalk automatically so the user can log in to Citytalk’s servicesusing the new password.
• "Many companies are now findingthat it makes the most business sense to leverage packaged software for someapplications and hosted software for others. Unfortunately for ITadministrators, this makes user management and application integration a farbigger challenge than in the past," said Mark Ford, Operation’s Director forCitytalk "Citytalk recognises this pain among IT administrators andbelieves that UserPilot will be a big first step into the integration of hostedand on-premise applications -- which is where the future of software deploymentis headed."
• "Citytalk gets it. We are alreadyusing Active Directory to manage our users across all our applications,"said Derek Christensen, Director of Information Systems for Juice HarvestCorporation, a Citytalk customer. "It makes sense that we should be ableto manage our Citytalk users from the same Active Directory portal, andUserPilot lets us do that."
• As SaaS becomes mission critical tobusinesses, richer integration and management services are necessary toeliminate inefficiencies in user management. With UserPilot, the maintenance ofa SaaS-based email solution is effortless because hosted services areseamlessly integrated with existing on-premise software and user managementapplications.
• Many other SaaS providers require thatcustomers create and maintain user databases that are unique to their servicesbut do not integrate with customers' existing user management systems. Thisresults in inefficiencies for IT staff as they must manage multiple directoriesand log-in credentials, and deal with limitations on data integration acrossthe firewall between hosted SaaS services and on-premise software. SinceUserPilot keeps on-premise login credentials synchronized across Citytalk-hostedapplications, time-consuming password and new user updates are eliminated forActive Directory users.
• UserPilot integrates seamlessly withCitytalk's other hosted Microsoft Exchange offerings to allow for quick andeasy installation. And because no business can afford to compromise thesecurity of the information within their Active Directory, UserPilot was builtwith world-class SSL encryption and mutual authentication to provide totalprotection and provider validation for complete data integrity and security.
• UserPilot is part of Citytalk's largervision of creating a software continuum from on-premise to hosted, breakingdown the barriers separating software as a service from on-premiseapplications. After an extended beta period, UserPilot is now available to allof Citytalk's direct customers and through its channel partners.

Companies interested in learning more about Citytalk's hosted messagingand collaboration solutions should click here.       [1]