| 09 Mar 2010 |
|
Business Analytics Critical to Success
- Text size
The volume of data, variety of information, and speed required for decision-making are driving the need to use business analytics to turn information into actionable insight
Dubai & Abu Dhabi, UAE: The emergence of new smarter systems which are interconnected and streaming real time information are presenting business and governments with a unique opportunity to transform decision making. The IBM Cognos Performance events, held last week in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, highlighted how business analytics are enabling decisions-makers to uncover new opportunities to use data to predict business outcomes, optimize old systems, and spot trends before they happen.
"Whether you're a CEO, CFO, CIO, or CTO, the ability to analyze large volumes of data from multiple sources and to improve decision making at all levels is critical to success," said Bashar Kilani, Business Unit Executive, IBM Middle East, IBM Software Group. "Business intelligence that provides detailed reporting and analysis, made relevant with real-time response, enables forward thinking organizations to better understand and respond to events, enabling them to perform smarter, and ultimately to gain competitive advantage."
According to IDC, the amount of digital information will grow to 988 Exabytes by 2010--the equivalent to a stack of books from the sun to Pluto and back. Being able to gain better intelligence from this myriad of data sources allows better insight into the business and as such, more intelligent actions. However according to a recent IBM study, 1 in 3 business leaders are frequently making critical decisions without the information they need and 53% don't have access to the information across their organization that they need to do their jobs.
IBM Middle East is hosting a series of events in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Kuwait, Cairo, and Riyadh as part of IBM's global series running in over fifty cities around the world, aimed at promoting business analytics.
Leading CIOs, executives, and IT professionals learn how business analytics provides practical knowledge and critical insights that enable business leaders to better evaluate, understand, and make use of business analytics, and business intelligence and performance management solutions. The keynote presentation entitled 'New Intelligence for Smarter Business' detailed how new economic realities will reward companies that are smarter, faster, and more agile in their response to changing business conditions. IBM executives alongside senior executives and IT directors discussed the challenges that they are facing in their respective industries and the approaches that can be taken to utilize business analytics for smarter business.
In addition, Dubai's event included a Performance Management Experience Workshop. The hands-on workshop enabled executives and decision-makers to test their decision-making savvy as they assumed the role of an executive in a fictitious company. Using information from the company's Performance Management initiative they made revenue decisions and prioritized resource allocations. A simulated business cycle using business analytics provided operational and financial outcomes based on the decisions made.
The focus of the events reflected the recent findings of the IBM Global CIO Study 2009 entitled "The New Voice of the CIO" which found that leveraging analytics to gain a competitive advantage and improve business decision-making is now the top priority for CIOs. Specifically, 83 percent of survey respondents identified business intelligence and analytics as the way they will enhance their organizations' competitiveness.
"IBM's investment in the analytics space positions us to partner effectively with organizations that want to truly understand the way their business is performing," said Bashar Kilani, Business Unit Executive, IBM Middle East, IBM Software Group. "Our understanding of this sector coupled with our vertical expertise and historical experience of the region are enabling us to work ever more closely with the public and private sectors not only to survive during an unpredictable economy but to thrive as more agile and smarter entities."
The featured business analytic solution at the Performance events is IBM Cognos 8 Business Intelligence. IBM Cognos 8 BI satisfies the needs of IT and the business by enabling decision-making throughout the organization. It delivers the complete range of BI capabilities: Reporting, Analysis, Dashboarding, and Scorecards on a single, open, enterprise-class platform.
IBM business analytics solutions for finance provide a single line of sight across all time horizons. Planning and consolidation combine the forward management view of the business (planning, budgeting and forecasting) with the current and historical view of the business (consolidations, reporting, and financial analytics.) This integrated operational and financial view enables organizations to proactively address business challenges and opportunities, and improve operational effectiveness.
-Ends-
For more information on IBM, visit www.ibm.com
For more information on the 'IBM Cognos Performance' events, visit www.ibm.com/cognos/ae/performance/agenda.html
For more information on IBM Cognos solutions, visit www.ibm.com/cognos
For more information about the IBM Global CIO Study 2009 and interviews about the study, visit www.ibm.com/ciostudy
Press Contact:
Maha Mahdy & Alec Harden
Spot On Public Relations
Tel: +9714 3491686;
Fax: +9714 3493245
E-mail: maham@spotonpr.com or alech@spotonpr.com
© Press Release 2010
Zawya is a distributor (and not a publisher) of content supplied by third parties and subscribers. Any opinions, advice, statements, services, offers, or other information or content expressed or made available by those third parties, including information providers, subscribers or other users of the Service, are those of the respective author(s) or distributor(s) and not of the Company. The Company neither endorses nor is responsible for the accuracy or reliability of any opinion, advice or statement made on the Service by anyone other than authorized Service employee spokespersons while acting in their official capacities. The Company is not responsible for any infringement of intellectual property rights or breach of any applicable law or regulation, including regulation in relation to financial services or the distribution of financial products, defamation, data protection, telecommunications (including regulations relating to excessive use, spamming or other abusive activities) or obscene, offensive or illegal content). Under no circumstances will the Company be liable for any loss or damage caused by a member's reliance on information obtained through the Service. It is the responsibility of member to evaluate the accuracy, completeness or usefulness of any information, opinion, advice or other content available through the Service. Please seek the advice of professionals, as appropriate, regarding the evaluation of any specific information, opinion, advice or other content.
Read the full Member Agreement
http://www.zawya.com/legal/NewsLetter.cfm?name=disclaimer
Post a Comment
1.1 Contain any material which is libelous or defamatory of any person, is obscene, offensive, hateful or inflammatory or causes damage to the reputation of any person or organisation.
1.2 Promote sexually explicit material, violence, discrimination based on race, sex, religion, nationality, disability, sexual orientation or age or any illegal activity.
1.3 Be made in breach of any legal duty owed to a third party, such as a contractual duty or a duty of confidence.
1.4 Be threatening, abuse or invade another's privacy, or cause annoyance, inconvenience or needless anxiety.
1.5 Be used to impersonate any person, to misrepresent your identity or affiliation with any person, or be likely to deceive any person.
1.6 Give the impression that they represent Zawya.
1.7 Advocate, promote or assist any unlawful act such as (by way of example only) copyright infringement or computer misuse.