Business Analytics Critical to Success

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

Riyadh, KSA- 6th April 2010: 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 event, held today in Riyadh, KSA, 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.

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."

To date, IBM has built an impressive business analytics portfolio of software, services, hardware and research capabilities, fueled by over $12 billion investment in organic and acquisition based expansion and development over the last four years, most recently with the acquisition of SPSS, a leader in predictive analytics. IBM has also opened 6 analytics centers worldwide, and recently assembled 4000 consultants with industry expertise to help clients use business analytics aligned to their specific business needs. In addition, IBM has the world's largest Research department brining new innovations to clients and partners with 200+ mathematicians dedicated to business analytics efforts.

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

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