The new release, which will be available in the first quarter of 2009, allows financial institutions to control costs and remain agile by simplifying customizations while streamlining and automating future upgrades.

The version 3.7 application set includes an advanced software development kit (SDK) that greatly simplifies the process of making application customizations and screen modifications without requiring high level programming experience. The SDK provides an intuitive user interface that allows the user to simply drag and drop screen elements, with the resulting changes available immediately. The workflows and navigation behind the screens can also be easily tailored to a bank's unique processes using visual representations that depict how work moves through the enterprise.

"We expect these new tools to help us control our IT costs," said Carl Hoburg, executive vice president, information technology for Zions Bancorporation. "They will simplify the effort and shorten the timeframe required to make application modifications and, most importantly, help us avoid re-creating the customizations every time we upgrade, lowering the total cost of ownership."

With other applications, bank customizations are regularly lost when upgrading to new software releases, a significant drawback in terms of efficiency and hard-dollar costs. By contrast, the new S1 Enterprise SDK includes an "integrated customization environment" that separates the institution's customizations from core code. Changes to the live application are captured as an executable script that can later be applied to new versions of S1 Enterprise in an automated fashion that preserves the bank's upgrade path.

According to Tom Brogan, research director, retail banking for TowerGroup, "Historically, banks have had to engage their vendor to integrate customizations into new software releases. Due to the time and cost associated with this, many banks elect not to deploy new vendor releases. Isolating customizations enables banks to remain current with releases while not sacrificing the customizations they require."

Among other enhancements, the S1 Enterprise branch solutions were developed to offer institutions a more agile software development approach that provides releases on an incremental basis, a methodology that can better accommodate changing business requirements. In addition, the user interface has been refreshed through Web 2.0 and AJAX technologies, allowing for easier, more intuitive navigation and a richer, more contemporary user experience. With the new versions, users will also have the ability to personalize their screens according to individual preferences.

"Managing costs is more critical than ever as financial institutions work through the current market turbulence," said William A. Proctor, senior vice president, branch solutions for S1 Enterprise. "One way we can help is by making it easier for clients to make basic modifications to our branch solutions. At the same time, we're ensuring that the customizations they make today will not be lost as applications are enhanced in the future."