The IT-Finance Connection’s Views on the News: Good Reads

February 18, 2009

Editor’s Note: Periodically, The IT-Finance Connection takes a look around the Web to find worthwhile business intelligence-related content. Here are five items that have been posted in recent days.

eWeek has a terrific four-page story focusing on how best to combine business intelligence and data analytics. It begins by defining the latter. While much of the feature is for people in the field, that definition – which succinctly differentiates the two and clearly states how much value data analytics brings – is something that can be sent to decision makers who ultimately must approve projects.

There isn’t much technology in this FutureGov piece, but it is a worthwhile look at the use of business intelligence by governments. The writer speaks with an analyst and officials in China and the United States. One thing is perfectly clear: This is a great vertical for vendors. Governments collect incredible amounts of data about a wide variety of people and things, and the ability to slice through it is vital.

David Linthicum has a short but very pointed post at eBizQ focusing on three problems he sees in modern business intelligence. BI systems, he says, are too tactical, don’t provide the ability to compare “recent data points with history” and don’t offer real time capability.

This feature at accountingweb was written for an English audience, but the points it makes are appropriate on this side of the Atlantic. The writer looks at the importance of business intelligences for small- and medium-size businesses in the context of the recession. Much of the piece is set up that explains why BI is important. The last third provides good guidance for small companies. The good news is that BI tools are emerging that make it far more feasible for SMBs.

This piece at The Gerson Lehrman Group’s Expert Network looks at recent changes in the BI market. The writer paraphrases Gartner research that the growth rate for BI tools is decreasing both because of the economy — these days, it’s impossible to discuss anything without mentioning the recession – and the more interesting factor that vendors are building BI tools into the other products that they sell. This isn’t going to stop, so a more permanent reordering of the BI sector seems to be possible.

Posted by Carl · Filed Under Business Intelligence