IRVINE, CA -- (Marketwire) -- 03/18/13 -- Sage North America announced today the results of the Sage SMB Survey on Mobile Devices, which recently polled 217 small and midsized manufacturing and distribution firms in the United States and Canada. The Survey found that the majority (85 percent) of manufacturing and distribution firm business decision makers believe that mobile technology is positively affecting their firm's productivity. They also report that, over the past year, smartphones (78%) and tablets (63%) have especially increased in their use for remote access to business information, followed by laptops at 41%.

Furthermore, the Survey found that remote access has made it easier for a sales representative within a manufacturing or distribution firm to get company information while in the field interfacing with clients. Mobile devices have also helped expedite business transactions through retrieval of company information (such as company catalogs), faster credit authorizations, and access to email as well as decrease organizational time for sales reps and clerical staff.

The Sage SMB Survey on Mobile Devices also found that decision makers are using mobile applications most commonly for keeping contacts organized (32 percent), keeping task lists and assigning tasks to a specific employee (20 percent), scheduling (30 percent) and staying updated with project statuses (18 percent). Mobile applications are rarely used for managing the accounting or for creating customer invoices. These are commonly done with desktop software applications (usually accounting or ERP software).

"Over 14,000 manufacturing and distribution jobs were added to the economy in February. As this sector continues to grow, there's great opportunity for mobile devices to contribute to business growth, and the Sage mobile device survey shows this," said Joe Langner, executive vice president of Sage North America. "Mobile business applications enable seamless integration between the production plant and the office, eliminating potential bottlenecks between departments."

Langner continued, "For instance, salespeople on the road need to be able to access vital information in order to close deals. They need to confirm availability of inventory, access their catalog of items, and create sales quotes. With mobile business applications, they can do this anywhere; they're no longer tethered to the office."

The Sage SMB Survey on Mobile Devices was conducted among 217 respondents and has an error rate of +/- 6.7 percent with a 95 percent confidence level.

Complete findings from the study are available here.

About Sage
Sage is a leading global supplier of business management software and services for small and midsized businesses. The Sage Group plc, formed in 1981, was floated on the London Stock Exchange in 1989 and now employs more than 13,500 people and supports more than 6 million customers worldwide. For more information about Sage in North America, please visit the company website at NA.Sage.com. Follow Sage North America on Facebook, Facebook.com/SageNorthAmerica, and Twitter, Twitter.com/SageNAmerica.

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