Long before computers had the ubiquitous presence that they do today, Saphura recognized the need for
a powerful CRM tool in the retail auto industry. Having background in nuclear physics, she was taught
computing languages while in college. She then started her own company, Prize Corporation, with its
CRM product, ReckonUp. Initially, she wrote the software herself, sold the product to dealers by herself,
and provided all the support on her own. Her concept was ahead of its time - the concept of "customer
relations management" was new to most automobile dealers, and she inevitably found it necessary to first
explain what CRM was, and how it would provide a competitive advantage to the retailer who used it.
In the often male-populated world of the automotive industry, it was no surprise that, both as a female
and as someone presenting a very unique product, she often had to surmount great obstacles.
Having been involved in automobile retail herself, she was able to write the software from the automobile
retailer's point of view - a distinct advantage that dealers rapidly came to appreciate. As the years
went on, her customer base grew, her employee numbers increased, and the software underwent hundreds
of iterations, including becoming a true, web-based product. As a pioneer in the automobile retailer
CRM industry, she was quick to recognize the benefits of a web-based product, as well as the need for
a CRM tool to embrace the entire business of a dealership: from ILMs to email service appointments to
equity reminders for sales management. The retail automobile industry has undergone substantial culture
change over the past two decades, and the contribution of the CRM products to highlight the focus onto
the customer, cannot be understated.
Rapidly, as manufacturers recognized the advantage of their franchise dealers, ReckonUp was certified
by Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, Infinity, Volkswagen, Ford, Volvo, Honda, Subaru, and General Motors. ReckonUp
were a certified interface with Reynolds and Reynolds, CDK, Dealer Track and many more. In 2007, Prize
and ReckonUp were acquired by IZMO, a subsidiary of Homestar LOGICS, on the London Stock Exchange.
Saphura then served as vice president of CRM at IZMO.
After three years od service to that company, Saphura realized that there is time for renovation of client
management. With the advent of Social Media, CRM was not completely serving the dealerships' needs in
that arena. Also, as the conventional social media has failed to assist automobile dealers in sale,
there was another area of service to this vertical emerging. The new CRM and social media tool combined
which also serves as a website is Saphura's latest product. autoWALL, now five years in service has
already received great acceptance amongst the automotive world. In fact, Gratis Solutions / autoWALL
was awarded the great honor of being one of the top 20 most promising software serving automotive industry
by CIO review in 2017 and 2018.
Saphura Long was one of the first three women to be approved for the General Motors Women's Retail
Initiative and has herself completed the NADA Dealer Academy. And is now a General Motors dealer herself.
Although she acquired a highly under-performing dealership, her new dealership was 269% sales effective
in the first month of operations and has been profitable since. All aspects of autoWALL have been and
are in operation in her personally-owned dealership as well as those of her family in Chattanooga, of
which one franchise is, in fact, Hyundai. Saphura was a member of the American Society of Mechanical
Engineers. She was published in the ASME Journal regarding the strengths of steels to be used in the
vessel of nuclear power plants. Working in the metallurgical lab at Combustion Engineering, she measured
and created time tables predicting creep and rupture characteristics of bimetallic weld in and around
a nuclear vessel. Active in her community and a mentor to others, Saphura was Adjunct Professor at the
University of Tennessee School for Engineering in Chattanooga. She was chairman of the Advocacy and
Public Affairs Committee for Junior League. Traveling to Washington, she was instrumental in forwarding
the passage of seatbelt laws in Tennessee. She has always taken an interest in advancing young women
entering the world of business, the field of engineering, and in particular, the automobile industry.
Saphura was educated with a Bachelor of Science from Agnes Scott College and Georgia Tech, and obtained
her Masters of Science in Nuclear Physics from the University of Alabama. Born in Tehran, she was the
National Champion in Women's Fencing and later the Southeastern Women's Champion in the United States.
Saphura is the mother of three children. Her daughter, a medical doctor, has ao9 Master's in Business
Administration from Harvard Business School. One son has completed studying Psychology at Lee University
in Tennessee. Her second son follows in his mother's footsteps, having obtained his bachelor's degree
in Physics and Math from the University of the South, Sewanee and completed yet another degree in chemical
engineering at the University of Tennessee. As a pioneer of the highly technical CRM industry in the
automobile sector, as a female entrepreneur, and as a mother, Saphura Long has been a trailblazer, developer
of game-changing products, and supporter of those who follow her.
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