Introducing the Netkiller Invitation Manager

The Netkiller Invitation Manager is an application that runs on the Google Apps Engine, and integrates smoothly with Google Calendar to help organizations schedule time efficiently. With flexible functionality, the application is an excellent tool both for managing internal company resources, and for organizing external meetings with partners and customers.

Customization allows the application to take on a wide range of scheduling functions. The application combines time management with a detailed resource database which allows for rapid communication across the cloud, which keeps every relevant party informed, and eliminates scheduling conflicts. Resources can be anything within an organization, from meeting rooms, to company cars, or even video projectors and copy machines. Some resources can be used by multiple parties simultaneously, and some cannot, and the NIM database establishes parameters accordingly.

INTERFACE:
Resources within organization sometimes have different levels of access security. For example, in order to access a company car a user may need access to a key card, or for access to a meeting room the user may require a passcode for the door. To accommodate these restrictions the application has three levels of access; user, manager, and administrator.

Manager: Someone with “Manager” clearance is associated with the specific resources that he or she has jurisdiction over. In addition to “My Reservations” and the “Resource Calendar” a manager also has a tab that shows all reservations made of resources under his or her jurisdiction.  This allows security personnel to efficiently approve reservations and share relevant security information, such as key codes, etc.

Internal Communication: NIM leverages the Google Talk API for efficient communication, especially between security personnel and users making reservations of security restricted resources. Chat messages can be easily exchanged within the application to request access and approval.

External Communication: When a user creates a reservation, for example, of a meeting room for a meeting with an external individual, such as a partner or client, that user will include details of the time and location of the meeting, and any gate clearance or security codes required to access the meeting room. The application makes use of the Google Calendar and Gmail in order to automatically send notifications and invitations to attendees.

Mobile:
NIM integrates smoothly with Google Calendar, automatically logging reservations within users’ calendars, and making them easily viewable within a domain in order to eliminate double booking resources and other administrative problems. Google Calendar automatically updates across mobile platforms, making it easy for users to keep track of resources and scheduling on the go.

The Netkiller Invitation Manager application is also being developed to accommodate pure mobile functionality, as well as functions that allow outside customers to manage reservations of resources directly (such as the rental of office spaces and other resources).