Concur Technologies: Poised to Conquer Enterprise Travel

I have written a few framework articles recently, defining Web 3.0 and Enterprise 3.0. In this article, I will cover a company that touches on these concepts and aligns with the trends of where the Internet is heading.

Concur Technologies (CNQR) is an on-demand, Software-as-a-Service SaaS provider that brings together travel and expense management for employees of an enterprise. It basically provides a system to reimburse employees’ expenses as well as pay invoices from vendors. Through the Concur Vendor Payment system, vendors can access a web-based platform to submit their invoices.

Another popular solution from the company is Cliqbook, a travel expense management solution.

Let me take you through this service with a scenario.

A company that uses Concur’s Cliqbook service is holding a training session for its employees in another city, say Washington. Cliqbook Travel would provide a list of the company’s preferred vendors, including hotels, airlines, taxi companies, etc. It would also provide access to other low cost vendors available. When an employee books his or her trip online using Cliqbook, the expense report for the trip would also be generated.

Another feature of Cliqbook, called Cliqbook Meeting, can also be used to generate invitations. Using the profiles from the database, one person can easily manage the bookings for a whole group of employees leaving for the training session.

These services sure fit the SaaS and Extended Enterprise trends of the Enterprise 3.0 model. It integrates the workflow of travel bookings and expense management beyond the walls of the enterprise, and brings the suppliers into its fold.

Concur’s financial performance over the years reflects the growing acceptance of its solutions. The company has been featured in Fortune’s list of 100 fastest growing small businesses for the past two years. According to Concur’s 2007 Q2 filings, the company’s quarterly revenues rose 31% to $30.9 million from $23.5 million in the previous year. The earnings per share were $0.08. The rise can be attributed to a substantial increase in subscription revenues.

For the fiscal year 2007, analysts estimate earnings of $0.30 cents per share on sales of $124.9 million.

The company’s stock is currently trading around $20. It was upgraded from ‘Hold’ to ‘Buy’ as soon as the company declared its Q2 results and announced its Q3 outlook. It looks like the market is backing Concur on its promises. Volume on the stock is really low, indicating its yet undiscovered nature.