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Interesting Books and Articles
The recent detailing of "Spreadsheet Worst Practices" on CFO.com clearly tapped deep-seated emotions among our readers, who shared their reactions in dozens of comments and E-mail messages and offered their own pet peeves from the world of finance. Read the entire article at: http://www.cfo.com/printable/article.cfm/11525407/c_2984382?f=option
No one can deny that the market for business intelligence applications is hot. An Aberdeen Group survey found that the number-one technology spending item for companies was "reporting and analytics" in 2007.
It’s the top of the eighth inning of the final league championship game. Finally you have your arch enemy right where you want them; they have defeated you year after year, but not this time. This time you’re best pitcher has mastered the opposing batters and you’re leading late in the game. You’ll be on your way to the World Series if he can continue baffling their hitters and get the last six outs. Do you send your star out for the last two innings, or do you call in a relief pitcher? In this, our second installment on business analytics, we will examine the statistical connection between savvy analysis of business data and superior performance. We will also explore how to turn the ability to compete on analytics into a lasting competitive advantage.
If asked, most executives will say that their decisions are rightly based on careful analysis and consideration of key statistics. But when we look at what companies really do and the results they produce, we see so many poor performers that we have to conclude something has gone wrong.
Want to make sure you're making the right BI investments? Ask your users, says David Hatch, research director at research consultancy Aberdeen Group. IT management spends way too much time researching the latest technologies and virtually no time asking users what they want, he says.
The Performance Manager continues an exploration that began more than ten years ago with the publication of The Multidimensional Manager. Both books examine the partnership between decision-makers in companies worldwide and the people who provide them with better information to drive better decisions. More than a decade ago, the focus was on understanding an exciting new transformational trend— companies were becoming more customer- and profit-centric. What drove that trend? Companies were relying more and more on information assets such as business intelligence. Today, that focus has become even sharper and more important. Global competition and interconnected global supply chains have further intensified downward pressures on cost. Technology and the Internet have transformed the knowledge economy from the equivalent of a specialty store into a 24 / 7/ 365 big-box retailer. Vast amounts of content are accessible anytime, anywhere. Today, companies are expected to have a depth of insight into their customers’ needs unheard of ten years ago. And yet market uncertainty is greater than ever. The pace of rapid change does not allow for many second chances. In other words, if being customer- and profit-centric was important then, it is critical now.
Many companies still struggle to use metrics effectively. It may be that fresh thinking is what really counts.
Business intelligence (BI) focuses on delivering the right information in the right format to the right people at the right time so they can make effective and timely business decisions. To do this successfully, you have to know what information you need and when you need it, and then ensure that the business can deliver it.
Editor's Note: From product push to customer pull, technology has vastly reshaped the business transaction—and in turn, the customer's place in the value chain. Today, managing the customer relationship has become the single most important dimension of enterprise strategy. Here, Kaplan and Norton analyze the four-component processes of the Customer Management theme—customer selection, acquisition, retention, and growth—demonstrating their importance in maximizing customer value and, ultimately, in value creation itself. |
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