BI/CPM survey 2008

December 2008 from CAmagazine and written by Michael Burns– “…According to research and advisory firm Gartner, “Megavendors are beginning to dominate the business intelligence market — in less than one year, Microsoft, Oracle, SAP and IBM will have gone from accounting for a quarter of the market to owning over two-thirds of it.”

The acquisitions represent a growing trend toward providing end-to-end solutions. Initially ERP was a back-office application (financials, distribution, etc.). Then it came to include the front office (CRM, eCommerce). Now it encompasses BI and corporate performance management. ERP systems contain a ton of data that needs to be turned into information. That is BI’s job. CPM includes BI as well as budgeting, forecasting and consolidation…”

Preparing for ERP with Best Practices

November 7, 2008 from IndustryWeek – The article is for manufacturers but also applies to other industries - “Manufacturers can prepare for ERP adoption by benchmarking the organization against peers and then removing all non-value-adding activities from the supply chain.

Enterprise resource planning (ERP) is not a magic bullet. ERP systems have become more affordable, effective and -- to a significant degree -- essential, but manufacturers need to pause before joining the headlong rush toward implementation. Companies that do not ready themselves before implementing ERP find it nearly impossible to fully utilize their new systems, and risk upsetting their organizational culture with chaotic implementation phases. However, manufacturers can prepare for ERP adoption with straightforward activities that do not require outside consultation, require no investment other than time and can typically be achieved within three months...”

“Additionally, we will see how manufacturers, regardless of their specialty, can prepare for ERP adoption by benchmarking the organization against peers and then removing all non-value-adding activities from the supply chain…”

180 View – The author makes good points about ERP not being a magic bullet and the usefulness of benchmarking. However, we don’t agree that an organization can remove all non-value added activities in advance of the implementation and without the help of consultants. First many of the non value added activities can’t be removed because of limitations in the existing system. Second, why not take advantage of the vendor’s experience and avoid re-inventing the wheel.

Oracle sees progress on Fusion apps

September 2008 from ComputerWorld – “Observers say Oracle is finally making substantial progress on its next-generation Fusion Applications suite, more than three-and-a-half years after the project was first announced…

Oracle has said Fusion Applications will blend together the best features from its various product lines, which include PeopleSoft, J.D. Edwards, Siebel and E-Business Suite…”

180 View – This article is a few months old so we did some digging to find more recent information on Oracle Fusion. We had trouble finding anything more recent except "Oracle Fusion Applications: Is 2010 Delivery Too Little, Too Late, or Smart Strategy?” published on October 3, 2008 by CIO Magazine that included “Jim Shepherd, senior vice president of research at AMR Research, says Oracle realized that there was no overwhelming demand in the market for a next-generation ERP system, and "most of the acquired PeopleSoft and J.D. Edwards customers were much more interested in enhancements for their existing software than they were in migrating to a new product." In turn, Oracle has lowered the priority of delivering Fusion Apps to the market.” We agree with Jim Shepherd’s comments but a next-generation system will also allow Oracle to compete with other vendors who have built or are in the process of building these next generation systems that include easier to use systems, collaboration, Web-based (just need a browser) and offered not just on a licence basis but also by application service provider — the pay-as-you-play model, where you don’t need to invest in the infrastructure.

Business Intelligence: Bright Spot in IT Investment

October, 2008 from Computer Economics – “…According to our recent survey of technology trends, nearly 60% of organizations are investing in BI initiatives this year. Yet as our data shows, obtaining a positive return on investment is not easy--or at least it is not easy to demonstrate--and budget overruns are more common for BI than for nearly any other technology in our study…

BI applications deliver hard ROI through reduction of time and resources spent on gathering and reporting financial and other information. Soft returns are often more difficult to quantify. Most agree that having access to more timely and accurate data results in better decision-making and operational performance, but it is often impossible to prove with hard evidence…”

180 View – We also see a lot of interest from all our clients in business intelligence, but there is confusion in what is meant by BI. Our definition is turning data into information to make decisions. So BI could be a report writer, a query tool within a system allowing for easy retrieval of data based on multiple criteria, a dashboard or OLAP (OnLine Analytical Processing). Most systems already come equipped with a report writer and a query tool. What’s hot today is a dashboard that is role specific and configurable without programmer involvement. OLAP involves easily analyzing data from different dimensions (customer, region, product type…), drill down and graphing results. OLAP initially was targeted to large companies but falling prices now make it applicable to small and mid sized organizations.

The Right Stuff

November 3, 2008 from Business Finance – “…For many years, companies focused their reporting and analysis efforts on accounting measures and some high-level operating data (units produced, utilization rates, or number of employees, for example). As corporations have broadened the scope of their automation in recent years to include customer relationship management, supply chain management, and other externally facing and operating functions, they have been collecting a much wider and deeper range of data that can be used to measure performance…

The traditional reliance on accounting information as the basis for management reports produces information mostly about the past. Thus it is not surprising that our benchmark research finds that only 20 percent of participants said that they get enough information about leading indicators that will help them to anticipate business issues or opportunities, 60 percent reported that they do not get enough, and 20 percent are not getting any. Creating leading indicators usually requires a combination of operating and accounting information…

One common reason why most companies do not go beyond a historical, inward focus in their reporting is a set of constraints that have been internalized to the point where they have become habit…

They also may not have an IT infrastructure that makes doing this feasible. In far too many cases, information is held in separate systems that don't interoperate easily or is fragmented…”

180 View – We agree that organizations should generate ratios on their leading indicators but we don’t think the problem is mostly about habit/stagnation or lack of IT infrastructure. We think the problem is more about organizations that don’t know the difference between a leading and a lagging indicator. And even if they did, it’s not just a question of integration. It will often require investment in ways to gather the information such as conducting customer satisfaction surveys that have nothing to do with ERP systems.

The Project Manager’s Dilemma; Responsibility without Authority

November 2008 from ProjectTimes – “…They’ve given us all the responsibility for the project, but minimal authority over what we need for the project ….. Responsibility without associated authority!” is the common lament of project managers. Well, folks, I have news for you! You will never have the authority you wish you had, but you will always have the full responsibility for the project. In fact, the reason you have been asked to be the project manager is usually because of your skills and ability to manage this dilemma…

The professional project manager “walks the talk” of project management principles, “knows the talk” of systems and technologies associated with the project, and “understands the talk” of business and users who will be impacted by the project.

The project manager has various roles as an implementer, facilitator, negotiator and a change agent. The fundamental set of skills to accomplish this is through communication, which is the ability to effectively exercise the necessary skills and drive the project towards its intended outcome…”

180 View – Read this article if you’re at all interested in project management.

Warning on pink slip regret

November 26, 2008 from the Financial Post – “Weathering a prolonged economic downturn will be a challenge for many organizations, human resource experts warn.

A shrinking labour pool means this time around, workplaces are going to have to think twice about laying off staff and instead preserve their bench strength for the future…”

180 View (written by Lawrence Young) – Remember the famous words in the opening sentence of Charles Dickens’ classic novel ‘A Tale of Two Cities’ – “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times”?

Well, it’s getting harder and harder to find something good, let alone best, about these times. And the $64,000 question that’s undoubtedly on every one’s mind these days, manager and employee alike, is: ‘IS MY JOB SECURE?’

This article by Daryl-Lynn Carlson gives some valuable food for thought on how to deal with what some people perceive is the ‘perfect storm coming at us’, and how companies need to understand what their workforce requirements and realities are before implementing what otherwise seems to be ‘the obvious’ course of action - organizational restructuring, layoffs, hiring freezes and a slowing rate of salary increases.

The author quotes one expert who advises employers to develop a business plan to address cost reductions that includes an assessment of competitors, the market and regional demographics. "Now, more than ever, organizations need to look at what they're trying to do internally, but also what's happening externally. They may make choices today in order to hit cost reduction targets, but that could have a negative impact on the future because of the job shortage, as those people may not be available in the future."

Finding the balance between short-term cost cutting and long-term positioning is never an easy balancing act. But in these unprecedented times, caution is well advised before one acts on what appears to be ‘the obvious’. In some respects, the difficult time ahead may be amongst the ‘best of times’ to get the corporate house in order.

If your employees will have free time during the economic downturn that is upon us and not going away any time soon, then consider capitalizing on this rare opportunity to upgrade the skills of your workforce, retool the enterprise with new software and re-engineer your business processes. Doing so will equip your company to both weather the current storm and to seize the opportunities that await those that will be ready when the current storm subsides and is replaced once again by calm seas under a sunny sky.

Seven Ways to Defuse Angry Customers

November 27, 2008 from ConnectIT - “Flush with frustration over something gone wrong, the client or customer flies into an uncontrollable rage. Complaints crescendo into shouts, accusations fly and, sad to say, an occasional profanity slices what little silence remains.”

Sound familiar? Let’s hope not. But in case it does ring a bell, read on.

In this article, Jeff Wuorio reviews tried-and-true, old-fashioned methods for cooling off customers so that disputes are resolved with a minimum of fuss. These methods are based on making the customer feel that they are being heard regarding the problem and that they are being included in the solution.

The seven methods all start with “Let’s,” as in “Let’s go over what happened” and “Let’s get together to talk about this.”

180 View (written by Esther Friedberg Karp): These days, we’re trying more than ever to hang on to every paying customer we have, but we want to do so while retaining our sanity. I cannot say that I’ve never had a dispute with every supplier I currently have. But I can say that of I have stuck by any suppliers who have made it their mission to handle customer dissatisfaction quickly and efficiently. It’s no news that a happy customer is probably a long-term one. It is also true that a happy customer will probably refer new customers to your business. Before dismissing this as hokey fluff that belongs in a disagreement at Floyd’s Barber Shop, remember that unresolved disputes are expensive, time-consuming, and take your focus away from other profit-generating initiatives. It is preferable and can be profitable to behave calmly and with dignity in business disputes, generating goodwill and avoiding unpleasantness and extra expenses.

Open Source

October 31, 2008 from Royal Pingdom – “There is a lot of money being made in Open Source, although the profitable companies are not always the ones you would expect.

While many companies don’t disclose detailed financial information we have dug around to find numbers for some well-known open source companies and projects to see how they are doing financially...”

180 View (written by Fred Blauer) – This is a good summary of some of the companies that have made a commitment to open source technology, and some of the associated business models. Time will tell how successful they will be and how much pressure this would place on traditional proprietary software vendors. Not mentioned are some of the open source ERP vendors such as Open Bravo which recently received $12 million in venture capital, and Xtuple who has had a successful launch of their open source Postbooks product. Both are showing a lot of activity and heavy downloads on Sourceforge (the leading repository for open source code).

The Mayonnaise Jar and 2 Cups of Coffee

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was. The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with an unanimous 'yes.' The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

'Now,' said the professor as the laughter subsided, 'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things--your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favourite passions--and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car. The sand is everything else--the small stuff. 'If you put the sand into the jar first,' he continued, 'there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you.

'Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first--the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.'

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented. The professor smiled. 'I'm glad you asked. 'It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend.'