Business process management company Staffware is reporting a first half EBITDA loss of £2.4 million, against a profit of £3.2 million for H1 2000, marked by an eight per cent decline in sales of software licenses.
The figures take account of increased net investment in the company's eProcess suite which was up by £0.9 million to £2.1 million and product R&D which rose by £1.5 million to £4.1 million.
Banking and insurance accounts for 44% of Staffware's business. With IT spending in the doldrums, the company has initiated a cost reduction programme aimed at annual savings of £5 million.
The company is pinning its hopes for recovery on the launch next month of a set of integrated components which brings together its existing core workflow and eProcess technologies with CRM and Enterprise Application Integration (EAI). The new products represent a £10.5 million investment in R&D in the last 18 months, and more than 100 man-years of development. As part of the initiative, Staffware also plans to roll out a range of 'adaptable off-the-shelf' applications.
In a statement, the company says: "Whilst we remain cautious about the short-term until overall industry confidence improves, we expect heightened interest levels with the launch of the Staffware Process Suite."