30.07.2009

An Intelligent Solution

By: Jeff Reich

Taking change by the horns

Analysts say that the move to deploy BI now is being driven by a number of factors, including growing competition, shifting markets, a changing regulatory landscape, and an increasing need for better risk management. At the same time, both stakeholders and governments are demanding greater transparency in finances, operations, decision making, and core performance metrics. This sense of urgency is being intensified by rapidly falling revenues.

So rather than wait and speculate on short-term market developments, many companies are looking to BI to get more reliable, real-time information. With this new set of tools, they can better manage change, strategy, and execution. And more than that: They can position their products, brands, and workforces to take advantage of a more profitable business environment once the economy improves.

Drilling for gold

In the past, IT landscapes were only capable of telling business leaders “what happened.” BI moves well beyond that by aggregating a variety of valuable information to tell decision makers “what’s happening now” and “what is likely to happen.”

In many cases, this data has been available for some time, albeit largely untapped. With the proper set of BI tools, decision makers can now access that information to do analysis, run reports, and make predictions based on past performance. By analyzing the reams of data that companies collect across their complex businesses, BI helps businesses get a single version of the truth for greater, actionable insight.

Reaping greater dividends

As companies of all sizes are discovering, investing in BI tools now can produce measurable results to help them survive – and thrive – in the difficult days and months ahead. By integrating real-time decision making with mission-critical business processes, companies will be better able to position themselves to succeed in every type of business cycle.

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