Category: Computer Software

Ventana Research Selects Information Builders as Hot Vendor in the 2009 Value Index for Business Intelligence

Jun 22, 2009 | Computer & Electronics, Computer Software, Internet, Technology | 0 comments

Information Builders Certified to Best Represent Buyer Value Based on a Thorough Evaluation and Audit of the Company and Its Products

NEW YORK, NY (June 22, 2009) –

Information Builders, an independent leader in business intelligence (BI) solutions, today announced that Ventana Research, a leading benchmark research and advisory services firm, named the company as the overall Hot Vendor in its first-ever Value Index on Business Intelligence. Information Builders secured a weighted top-ranking position for products and customer assurance supporting BI. According to Ventana Research, those earning the highest Hot Vendor classification are certified to best represent buyer value based on a thorough evaluation and audit of the company and its products based on research and verified facts.

“The market for business intelligence continues to be a top agenda item for CIOs and those in business and IT who want to gain the insight and knowledge to guide their business forward. Information Builders’ achievement as a Hot Vendor for BI is an indicator of their business focus and technology that is innovative and proven in enterprise deployments,” said Mark Smith, CEO and executive vice president of Ventana Research. “Our thorough analysis across the standard spectrum of technology evaluation criteria from product capability to vendor validation provides a more efficient and effective method to evaluate vendors and our Value Index represents those who were willing to be placed under our detailed examination.”

The Ventana Research Value Index for Business Intelligence in 2009 is an impartial guide resulting from more than a decade of analysis of technology suppliers’ products. Based on research across all vertical industries and organizations of all sizes, the Value Index evaluates technology that can be used by business and IT for BI in the context of seven categories: adaptability, manageability, reliability, usability, functionality, total cost of ownership (TCO), and return on investment (ROI). Research for this 2009 report was conducted from November 2008 to April 2009. Products submitted for evaluation had to be available at the start of January 2009. The methodology used assesses product functionality, suitability-to-task, and the effectiveness of vendor support for the buying process and customer assurance. With the Value Index, businesses can meet the challenge of evaluating existing and future BI technologies, systems, and tools based on the specific needs of their company. The Value Index represents the value of a vendor’s offerings and relevant aspects of its products and services, using both a clear and accessible graphic representation in thermometer form and a precise numerical index.

Information Builders recently announced more than 100 functionality enhancements for its WebFOCUS portfolio to bolster essential BI capabilities without the need for customers to buy add-on products. Committed to driving the scope of BI beyond dashboards, OLAP, and report distribution, Information Builders offers search, predictive analytics, electronic publishing, performance management, and mobile BI, to give customers BI applications that are pervasive, inexpensive, and easy to deploy. The company was recently recognized by Ventana Research as the overall Hot Vendor in its first-ever Value Index on Performance Management.

“We are focused on expanding the role of BI at leading enterprises and government organizations worldwide,” said Information Builders founder and CEO Gerald Cohen. “Being recognized first by Ventana as the hottest vendor for performance management and now for business intelligence are significant accolades speaking to the success of our efforts.”

To learn more about the Ventana Research Value Index for Performance Management in 2009 please visit http://www.ventanaresearch.com/valueindex.
About Ventana Research

Ventana Research is the leading benchmark research and advisory services firm. We provide expert guidance to help organizations manage and optimize performance – to become not only more efficient, but also more effective. Our unparalleled insights and best practices guidance are based on our rigorous research-based benchmarking indexes of people, processes, information, and technology across business and IT functions worldwide. The combination we offer of benchmark research, rigorous market coverage and in-depth knowledge of hundreds of technology providers means we can deliver business and technology education and expertise to our clients where and when needed. The Ventana Research Indexes – the Value Index and the Benchmark Index family – have redefined the research industry by providing accessible, easy-to-use research-based business and technology guidance to businesses. Ventana Research provides the most comprehensive analyst coverage in the industry; more than 2.5 million business and IT professionals through our community of 85,000 professionals and network of media and association partners around the world benefit from Ventana Research’s insights. Ventana Research focuses on business and technology trends and best practices that maximize organizations’ potential to perform while reducing the time, cost, and risk and still achieve optimal outcomes. To learn how Ventana Research advances the maturity of organizations use of information and technology through benchmark research, market indexes, education, and advisory services, and also where to find us on Facebook or LinkedIn or how to follow us on Twitter or BusinessWeek’s BusinessExchange, visit www.ventanaresearch.com.
About Information Builders

Information Builders’ award-winning combination of business intelligence and enterprise integration software has been providing innovative solutions to more than 12,000 customers for the past 30 years. WebFOCUS is the world’s most widely utilized business intelligence platform. It provides the security, scalability, and flexibility needed at every level of global extended enterprises. Its simplicity helps create executive, analytical, and operational applications that reach dozens to millions of users. Information Builders’ iWay Software suite provides state of the art, multi-purpose, pre-built integration components that address all SOA, application, data, and information management requirements. Its integration adapters have been adopted by the leading software platform providers. Together, these products give Information Builders’ customers the ability to grow and innovate according to their needs.

Information Builders’ customers include most of the Fortune 100 and U.S. federal government agencies. Headquartered in New York City with 90 offices worldwide, the company employs 1,450 people and has more than 350 business partners. More information is available at http://www.informationbuilders.com.

Source: Information Builders

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iQ4bis Software Partners with Tectura China to Extend Reach into World’s Fastest Growing Economy

Jun 19, 2009 | Computer & Electronics, Computer Software, Internet, Technology | 0 comments

Partnership, which includes installation, training, customization and ongoing support, is well-positioned to offer â??self-serviceâ?? business intelligence and reporting analytics to hundreds of Microsoft Dynamicsâ?¢ users across China

SHANGHAI (June 19, 2009) –

Microsoft Dynamics users in China now have access to near real-time self-service business intelligence and reporting analytics, thanks to the partnership between iQ4bis Software and Tectura China. Under the partnership agreement, Tectura will be able to implement iQ4bis’ market-leading business intelligence (BI) solutions to Tectura’s Microsoft Dynamics installed user base. The partnership with Tectura China follows a similar agreement between iQ4bis and Tectura South Asia announced last year.

“With the iQ4bis solution suite,” says Dennis Ng, Deputy General Manager – China, Tectura China, “we now offer world-class BI capabilities at a very aggressive price-point and in a guaranteed timeframe to our Microsoft Dynamics user base. We can build a fully-functioning reporting analytics dashboard in as little as two days that is ideally suited to the vast majority of non-technical business users of the Microsoft Dynamics product range.”

“China represents a strategic market for us with a huge business potential,” says Kaz Handa, Vice President Sales – APAC, iQ4bis Software. “Our close relationship with Tectura China covers all levels of end-to-end deployment including sales, marketing, installation, configuration, training and on-going support. Tectura China has the resources – including highly-skilled management, sales and technical teams – to add immediate value to the burgeoning number of Microsoft Dynamics installations in China.”

“The risk for customers in adopting iQ4bis is very low,” explains Mr Ng. “After extensive testing within a Microsoft Dynamics environment, we are confident that the back-end iQ4bis DataServer(TM) represents one of the very best ‘all-in-one’ toolboxes that covers all the necessary ETL (extract, transform and load), cube building, data flow management and data display and reporting functions that underpin the business intelligence needs of a mid-sized enterprise. And when you add the fact that iQ4bis has developed a range of pre-defined ‘templates’ that fast-track implementation, the solution is impressive indeed.” Tectura’s team of engineers has already developed an interface between Microsoft Dynamics AX 2009 and the front-end iQ4bis Analysis(TM).

“The real value of iQ4bis for the Chinese market,” concludes Mr Ng, “is the fact that it is so easy for busy managers to learn and use. Most decision-makers can pick up the basics within minutes and run their own complex queries – with just a few clicks of the mouse – with a minimum of training. With iQ4bis, true business intelligence is now within the grasp of every mid-market enterprise in China.”

About Tectura Corporation
Tectura is a worldwide provider of business consulting services delivering exceptional service and sustainable value through consulting, software and IT implementation. Tectura’s diverse clientele includes mid-sized companies and divisions of larger enterprises in the aerospace, life sciences, manufacturing and distribution, retail and services industries. Tectura China has five offices throughout China. The iQ4bis partnership is being managed from the Shanghai office.

With more than 1,800 team members in 20+ countries, Tectura applies its industry knowledge and best practices philosophy to provide Microsoft Dynamics(TM) ERP, CRM and technology solutions throughout the Americas, EMEA, and Asia Pacific. A Microsoft Gold Certified Partner, Tectura maximizes their vast technology resources and deep Microsoft expertise to deliver increased efficiency, project acceleration and a competitive edge. Learn more at www.tectura.com.

About iQ4bis Software Incorporated
iQ4bis is an independent software provider with a well-earned international reputation for intuitive business analytics solutions for midsized companies. Recognized for its ease-of-use, flexibility and rapid implementation times, the iQ4bis solution is sold, implemented and supported through offices in the United States, New Zealand, Australia, and Europe. Recently, growing demand for efficient and effective data warehousing for the midmarket has encouraged iQ4bis to increase efforts in China and the Asia Pacific region.

A Microsoft Gold Certified Partner, iQ4bis provides a data source and application neutral analysis, charting and reporting solution for business users including iQ4bis Analysis(TM) and iQ4bis DataServer(TM); solutions for a wide variety of ERP systems including Microsoft Dynamics AX, NAV, GP, SL and CRM as well as other world-leading ERP applications. For more information, visit www.iQ4bis.com.

Source: iQ4bis

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Austrian Lotteries and Casinos Austria Choose MicroStrategy for Reporting and Analytics

Jun 18, 2009 | Computer & Electronics, Computer Software, Internet, Technology | 0 comments

MicroStrategy® Incorporated (Nasdaq: MSTR), a leading worldwide provider of business intelligence (BI) software, today announced that Austrian Lotteries and Casinos Austria plan to deploy MicroStrategy for reporting and analytics.

McLean, Va., (June 18, 2009) –

MicroStrategy® Incorporated (Nasdaq: MSTR), a leading worldwide provider of business intelligence (BI) software, today announced that Austrian Lotteries and Casinos Austria plan to deploy MicroStrategy for reporting and analytics.

Austrian Lotteries will replace its current BI solution with MicroStrategy to provide greater consistency across its BI environment and deliver enhanced reporting capabilities for its 150 end users. Austrian Lotteries anticipates that the BI implementation will result in a centrally-controlled enterprise reporting environment that end users can easily utilize, thanks to MicroStrategy’s intuitive, self-service reporting capabilities.

Following an assessment of its current BI environment, Austrian Lotteries conducted an extensive review of potential BI products in early 2008. Many users from the Austrian Lotteries operational departments took part in the evaluation, which included a Proof-of-Concept.

Casinos Austria also conducted an evaluation of multiple BI vendors within its enterprise group. The first step in deploying MicroStrategy at Casinos Austria will be to implement an efficient data warehouse, while integrating the reporting and analysis capabilities. Approximately 160 end users will use the BI solution.

The project leader at Austrian Lotteries and Casinos Austria, Mag. (FH) Matthias Steininger, is pleased with the decision to use MicroStrategy. “MicroStrategy will provide both Austrian Lotteries and Casinos Austria with a uniform, enterprise-wide view of data, while reducing administrative overhead and delivering end user satisfaction,” he stated.

Wolfgang Mayer, MicroStrategy Austria Sales Director, explained, “Austrian Lotteries and Casinos Austria are two important new customers for MicroStrategy Austria. We are pleased to enhance our local customer base and expand into a broader range of industries. We will support Austrian Lotteries and Casinos Austria in their plans to rapidly and successfully implement their BI initiatives.”

About Austrian Lotteries
Austrian Lotteries (Osterreichische Lotterien GmbH) was founded in 1986. The mission of this Vienna-based company is defined in the Austrian statute regulating gaming and the accompanying legislative remarks. Austrian Lotteries currently employs around 470 people and generates annual revenues of significantly more than two billion euros. As an internationally recognized gaming enterprise, Austrian Lotteries operates in a responsible, innovative and partnering-oriented manner. It offers adults interested in gaming a broad range of top-quality games. The portfolio includes traditional betting-slip games like Lotto, Toto or EuroMillionen, instant lotteries and the class lottery, and even electronic lotteries at www.win2day.at. “Responsible gaming” is the touchstone for all actions. Both management and employees are dedicated to this posture toward stakeholders. For more information, please visit our enterprise website at http://www.lotterien.at.

About Casinos Austria
Casinos Austria is a national and international leader in the gaming industry and offers its guests gaming fun in a stylish atmosphere. With twelve casinos in Austria and a further 63 casinos in 18 countries around the world and aboard eleven cruise ships, this enterprise generates annual revenues of 3.5 billion, including shareholding earnings. Its responsibility toward individual gamers is a cornerstone of its corporate culture. This enterprise is founded on absolute soundness, and its commitment far exceeds the legal requirements. For more information, visit our website at http://www.casinos.at.

About MicroStrategy
Founded in 1989, MicroStrategy is a global leader in business intelligence (BI) technology. MicroStrategy provides integrated reporting, analysis, and monitoring software that helps leading organizations worldwide make better business decisions every day. Companies choose MicroStrategy for its advanced technical capabilities, sophisticated analytics, and superior data and user scalability. More information about MicroStrategy (Nasdaq: MSTR) is available at www.microstrategy.com.

MicroStrategy, MicroStrategy Business Intelligence Platform are either trademarks or registered trademarks of MicroStrategy Incorporated in the United States and certain other countries. Other product and company names mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

Wende Cover
MicroStrategy, Incorporated
1-703-770-1646
wcover@microstrategy.com

Source: MicroStrategy

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Ventana Research Names Information Builders Hot Vendor in the 2009 Value Index for Performance Management

Jun 16, 2009 | Computer & Electronics, Computer Software, Internet, Technology | 0 comments

Information Builders Secured a Weighted Top-Ranking for Products and Customer Assurance

NEW YORK, NY (June 16, 2009) –

Information Builders, an independent leader in business intelligence ( BI ) solutions, today announced that Ventana Research, a leading benchmark research and advisory services firm, has selected the company as the overall Hot Vendor in its first-ever Value Index on Performance Management . Information Builders secured a weighted top-ranking position for products and customer assurance supporting performance management . According to Ventana Research, those earning the highest Hot Vendor classification are certified to best represent buyer value based on a thorough evaluation and audit of the company and its products based on research and verified facts.

“I want to congratulate Information Builders for achieving the Hot Vendor rating that is provided to only those vendors whose technology and commitment to help organizations is at the highest level,” said Mark Smith, CEO and executive vice president of Ventana Research. “Our research and assessment covers the complete spectrum of evaluation criteria from usability to manageability and provides a faster and smarter method to evaluate those vendors who were able to handle the scrutiny of our detailed analysis.”

The Ventana Research Value Index for Performance Management in 2009 is an impartial guide that evaluates technology that can be used by business and IT for performance management (PM) in the context of seven categories: adaptability, manageability, reliability, usability, functionality, total cost of ownership (TCO), and return on investment (ROI). It is the result of more than a decade of analysis of technology suppliers’ products and how well they satisfy specific business and IT needs. It is based on research across all vertical industries and organizations of all sizes. The methodology used assesses product functionality, suitability-to-task, and the effectiveness of vendor support for the buying process and customer assurance. The Value Index represents the value of a vendor’s offerings and relevant aspects of its products and services, using both a clear and accessible graphic representation in thermometer form and a precise numerical index.

“Our Performance Management Framework solution is being used in many industry settings and Ventana recognizes the unique value this solution provides,” said David Cook, vice president of Performance Management Solutions at Information Builders. “The ability to rapidly deliver pervasive performance management, and leverage the WebFOCUS and iWay software platforms to do this, is a unique offering in the marketplace.” Information Builders performance management solutions are developed with the belief that everyone in an organization, from CEO to process clerk to supplier, needs access to good information so that everyone can understand and contribute toward strategic goals. Information Builders WebFOCUS Performance Management Framework (PMF) is a flexible, modular PM framework that is easily tailored to help organizations create and manage a culture of performance and accountability. Customization abilities include personalized end user dashboards, metric blogging, print-quality publishing, mobile alerts, deep analytics, strategy authoring, and easy-to-use set-up wizards. With WebFOCUS PMF, each person monitors, analyzes, and manages performance in line with broader corporate objectives.

“The quality of Ventana Research services and research in the business intelligence and performance management markets is second to none,” said Information Builders founder and CEO Gerald Cohen. “Our top ranking is a credit to our investment in helping companies improve efficiency, effective business decision-making, and ROI.”
About Ventana Research

Ventana Research is the leading benchmark research and advisory services firm. We provide expert guidance to help organizations manage and optimize performance – to become not only more efficient, but also more effective. Our unparalleled insights and best practices guidance are based on our rigorous research-based benchmarking indexes of people, processes, information, and technology across business and IT functions worldwide. The combination we offer of benchmark research, rigorous market coverage and in-depth knowledge of hundreds of technology providers means we can deliver business and technology education and expertise to our clients where and when needed. The Ventana Research Indexes – the Value Index and the Benchmark Index family – have redefined the research industry by providing accessible, easy-to-use research-based business and technology guidance to businesses. Ventana Research provides the most comprehensive analyst coverage in the industry; more than 2.5 million business and IT professionals through our community of 85,000 professionals and network of media and association partners around the world benefit from Ventana Research’s insights. Ventana Research focuses on business and technology trends and best practices that maximize organizations’ potential to perform while reducing the time, cost, and risk and still achieve optimal outcomes. To learn how Ventana Research advances the maturity of organizations use of information and technology through benchmark research, market indexes, education, and advisory services, and also where to find us on Facebook or LinkedIn or how to follow us on Twitter or BusinessWeek’s BusinessExchange, visit www.ventanaresearch.com .
About Information Builders

Information Builders’ award-winning combination of business intelligence and enterprise integration software has been providing innovative solutions to more than 12,000 customers for the past 30 years. WebFOCUS is the world’s most widely utilized business intelligence platform. It provides the security, scalability, and flexibility needed at every level of global extended enterprises. Its simplicity helps create executive, analytical, and operational applications that reach dozens to millions of users. Information Builders’ iWay Software suite provides state of the art, multi-purpose, pre-built integration components that address all SOA , application, data, and information management requirements. Its integration adapters have been adopted by the leading software platform providers. Together, these products give Information Builders’ customers the ability to grow and innovate according to their needs.

Information Builders’ customers include most of the Fortune 100 and U.S. federal government agencies. Headquartered in New York City with 90 offices worldwide, the company employs 1,450 people and has more than 350 business partners.

Source: Information Builders

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“Gaming the Clock” Survey Finds That Many Employees Admit to Cheating on Timesheets

Jun 15, 2009 | Computer & Electronics, Computer Software, Internet, Technology | 0 comments

A new survey commissioned by The Workforce Institute at Kronos® Incorporated and conducted by Harris Interactive reveals that 21 percent of hourly workers have cheated on their timesheet to gain extra pay from their employer

CHELMSFORD, Mass. (June 15, 2009) –

A new survey commissioned by The Workforce Institute at Kronos® Incorporated and conducted by Harris Interactive reveals that 21 percent of hourly workers have cheated on their timesheet to gain extra pay from their employer. The “Gaming the Clock” survey indicates that employers who use outdated workforce management methods are at risk of significant payroll inflation.
News Facts

*
21 percent of respondents who are compensated with an hourly wage admit to “gaming the clock” (cheating on their timesheets)
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Of the total number of respondents who state that they game the clock, 69 percent admit to punching in earlier or punching out later than scheduled
*
22 percent admit to adding additional time to their timesheet
*
14 percent say that they don’t punch out for unpaid lunches or breaks
*
Five percent admit to having someone punch them in or out (“buddy punching”)
*
35 percent of respondents who receive an hourly wage stated that their employers use paper timesheets to keep track of employee time worked
*
According to a Nucleus Research report, organizations with manual time and attendance systems typically incur unnecessary payroll costs upwards of 1.2 percent of their total payroll costs due to inaccurate application of pay rules, as well as human errors. For example, an organization that has annual payroll costs of $50 million could save more than $600,000 per year if they automated the collection of employee time.1
*
Along with providing immediate cost savings by reducing time-consuming processes and costly payroll errors, an automated workforce management system can also empower organizations with the information they need to uncover significant labor cost savings. A recent Diagnostic Assessment analysis by Kronos of more than 19 months of timekeeping history for a manufacturer with approximately 6,800 employees uncovered more than $20 million in cost savings overall including $3.6 million in gaming the clock-type abuse.
*
When researching the purchase of a workforce management solution, organizations should ask vendors about the potentially hidden costs of
customization; whether the time and labor data is provided in real-time or in batch fashion; and how intuitive and easy to use the product is.

Supporting Quotes

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Joyce Maroney, director of The Workforce Institute, Kronos
“If 21 percent of workers admit to gaming the clock, the actual percentage of workers engaging in this type of behavior is likely much higher. Employers are not only losing money by paying for time not worked, but may also be increasing their risk of non-compliance with federal labor legislation such as FLSA, FMLA, and state regulations such as California meal and break laws.”
*
Joyce Maroney, director of The Workforce Institute, Kronos
“A workforce management system, properly installed and managed, can lead to greater employee satisfaction and engagement. No one likes to be paid incorrectly and an organization thrives when employees can be assured that everyone is being compensated fairly.”
*
Jim Kizielewicz, senior vice president and chief marketing officer, Kronos
“Not all workforce management solutions are created equal. Organizations that choose an ERP system to manage time and labor may find that payroll inflation remains a problem because these solutions are expensive to customize and only automate a portion of a company’s pay policies. Lack of real-time processing and an awkward user interface also limits the ability to quickly identify problem areas.”

Supporting Resources

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About Harris Interactive

Survey Methodology

This “Gaming the Clock” survey was conducted online within the U.S. by Harris Interactive® via its QuickQuerySM online omnibus service on behalf of The Workforce Institute at Kronos Incorporated between January 30 and February 3, 2009 among a nationwide sample of 2,241 U.S. adults aged 18 and over among whom 1,265 were employed full-time or part-time. 681 of those were compensated with an hourly wage. Data were weighted using propensity score weighting to be representative of the total U.S. adult population on the basis of region, age within gender, education, household income, race/ethnicity, and propensity to be online.
About The Workforce Institute

The Workforce Institute was founded by Kronos Incorporated in 2006 as a think tank to provide research and education on critical workplace issues facing organizations around the globe. By bringing together thought leaders, The Workforce Institute is uniquely positioned to empower organizations with the knowledge and information they need to manage their workforce effectively and provide a voice for employees on important workplace issues. A hallmark of The Workforce Institute’s research is balancing the needs and desires of diverse employee populations with the needs of organizations. For additional information, visit www.workforceinstitute.org.
About Kronos Incorporated

Kronos is the global leader in workforce management solutions that enable organizations to control labor costs, minimize compliance risk, and improve workforce productivity. Tens of thousands of organizations in 60 countries – including more than half of the Fortune 1000® – use Kronos time and attendance, scheduling, absence management, HR and payroll, hiring, and labor analytics applications. To learn how Kronos uniquely delivers complete automation and high-quality information in an easy-to-use solution, visit www.kronos.com.

© 2009 Kronos Incorporated. Kronos is a registered trademark and The Workforce Institute is a trademark of Kronos Incorporated or a related company. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.

Footnote 1. “G45 – ROI Evaluation Report – Kronos Workforce Timekeeper,” Nucleus Research, 2006.

Source: Kronos

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Kronos

Jun 12, 2009 | Computer & Electronics, Computer Software, Internet, Technology | 0 comments

Kronos® Incorporated customers Anna Marie Butrie, vice president of operations improvement and Debbie Coakley, director, at Catholic Health East (CHE), will present a strategic session on how CHE achieved significant efficiencies and cost savings through a successful productivity improvement pr

USA (June 12, 2009) –

What:

Kronos® Incorporated customers Anna Marie Butrie, vice president of operations improvement and Debbie Coakley, director, at Catholic Health East (CHE), will present a strategic session on how CHE achieved significant efficiencies and cost savings through a successful productivity improvement program. Butrie and Coakley will discuss the specific steps that CHE took to achieve labor cost savings.

When:

Monday, June 15th at 2:45 p.m.

Where:

ANI 2009 Healthcare Finance Conference
Washington State Convention and Trade Center, Seattle, Wash.
Kronos is exhibiting in booth #429

Why:

With $1.6 billion in annual acute care hospital salaries and benefits expenses for 54,000 employees across 11 states, CHE’s senior management determined that an enterprise-wide productivity improvement program was needed to manage labor expense. By implementing a system-wide productivity program and facilitating the sharing of comparative reports and best practices, CHE improved workforce productivity and controlled labor costs. The success of the program is based on standardized infrastructure definitions and an automated tool (Kronos Visionware). With the healthcare industry significantly impacted by macro-economic conditions for the first time in decades and labor costs remaining high, attendees will learn about CHE’s effective labor management program.
About Catholic Health East

Catholic Health East is a multi-institutional Catholic health system, which is co-sponsored by 9 religious congregations, and Hope Ministries, a Public Juridic Person within CHE. Based in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania, the System provides the means to ensure the continuation of the Catholic identity and operational strength of the sponsors’ health ministries, which are located within 11 eastern states from Maine to Florida. The System includes 34 acute care hospitals, four long term acute care hospitals, 25 freestanding and hospital-based long term care facilities, 14 assisted living facilities, four continuing care retirement communities, eight behavioral health and rehabilitation facilities, 32 home health/hospice agencies, and numerous ambulatory and community-based health services. CHE facilities employ approximately 54,000 full-time employees as partners in ministry.
About Kronos Incorporated

Kronos is the global leader in workforce management solutions that enable organizations to control labor costs, minimize compliance risk, and improve workforce productivity. Tens of thousands of organizations in 60 countries — including more than half of the Fortune 1000® — use Kronos time and attendance, scheduling, absence management, HR and payroll, hiring, and labor analytics applications. To learn how Kronos uniquely delivers complete automation and high-quality information in an easy-to-use solution, visit www.kronos.com.

© 2009 Kronos Incorporated. Kronos is a registered trademark of Kronos Incorporated or a related company. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.

Source: Kronos

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Survey Highlights Current Challenges in Federal Government Employee Workforce Data Tracking and Reporting

Jun 11, 2009 | Computer & Electronics, Computer Software, Internet, Technology | 0 comments

As ARRA presses more transparency, agencies need to leverage tracking systems for accuracy

CHELMSFORD, Mass. (June 11, 2009) –

Kronos® Incorporated today announced the results of a survey it sponsored with the Government Business Council to explore current issues facing federal agencies that must track and report on funding received through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).
News Facts

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The “American Recovery and Reinvestment Act: New Requirements for Tracking and Reporting Federal Workforce Data” survey found that top concerns among participants include:
o How do we accurately track and report on the ways ARRA funds are used?
o Can the information be audited?
o How difficult is it to gather the information and quickly report it?
o Is the funding spent on contracting resources as well as federal employees?
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Other findings include:
o A majority of respondents agree that accurate reporting is key to successful agency operations and many believe that their agencies will need to overcome new challenges due to the ARRA goals of accountability and transparency.
o Many agencies still rely on multiple, disparate systems to track and report on time and attendance and absenteeism, which can lead to errors, inefficiencies, and missed opportunities to use data strategically.
o Most agencies have a limited ability to track contractors’ time and attendance information.
o The federal workforce is in a state of flux. With a shift in focus on the use of contractors, upcoming retirements, and tightening budgets, agencies are tasked with more difficult decisions within a more demanding timeframe.
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175 federal program managers participated in the survey.
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Kronos is hosting a webinar about ARRA and the tracking and reporting of federal workforce data at 2:00 p.m. on June 18. Register here.

Supporting Quotes

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Jeff Babcock, vice president and general manager, Kronos federal division
“These survey findings confirm what we believe are serious challenges faced by federal agencies today. While ARRA is designed to reinvigorate our economy, it adds a layer of complexity to the tracking and reporting of time and attendance data for federal workers. With 60 federal agency customers and 650,000 federal employees using our workforce management solutions, Kronos is well-positioned to help federal agencies simplify the complexities involved with complying with accountability and transparency requirements.”

Supporting Resources

*
Kronos in the federal government: www.kronos.com/federal.

About the Government Business Council

As Government Executive Media Group’s research and thought leadership division, the Government

Business Council (GBC) is dedicated to advancing the business of government through analysis, insight and the sharing of best practices. By leveraging Government Executive’s proven credibility with senior federal decision-makers and its dedicated research capabilities, the GBC is uniquely positioned to develop comprehensive research on the federal government.
About Kronos Incorporated

Kronos is the global leader in workforce management solutions that enable organizations to control labor costs, minimize compliance risk, and improve workforce productivity. Tens of thousands of organizations in 60 countries — including more than half of the Fortune 1000® — use Kronos time and attendance, scheduling, absence management, HR and payroll, hiring, and labor analytics applications. To learn how Kronos uniquely delivers complete automation and high-quality information in an easy-to-use solution, visit www.kronos.com.

© 2009 Kronos Incorporated. Kronos is a registered trademark of Kronos Incorporated or a related company. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.

Source: Kronos

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MicroStrategy Announces Free Reporting Software Package for Departmental Business Intelligence Applications

Jun 10, 2009 | Computer & Electronics, Computer Software, Internet, Technology | 0 comments

Provides Easy Entry Point for Small Reporting Applications and Seamless Path to Expand BI Environment

McLean, Va. (June 10, 2009) –

MicroStrategy® Incorporated (NASDAQ: MSTR), a leading worldwide provider of business intelligence (BI) software, today announced a free reporting software package for departmental BI applications. MicroStrategy Reporting Suite enables companies to use MicroStrategy’s integrated BI platform to develop and deploy premium, Web-based reporting applications, at no cost.

With this compelling new reporting package, MicroStrategy has eliminated cost and time impediments for departments and workgroups to initiate new reporting applications. Business users can simply visit the MicroStrategy Reporting Suite Web site, www.microstrategy.com/freereportingsoftware , download the free software, and begin building their reporting applications, all in the same day.

MicroStrategy’s easy-to-use reporting software enables business users to quickly create the reports they need to gain critical insights into business data and make timely, analytically-based decisions. Users can view data in detailed tabular grid reports, graph data to analyze information quickly, drill-down to investigate root causes, make ad hoc queries, manage business performance with arithmetic and statistical metrics, and export data to Excel and PDF. When reporting requirements expand, companies can purchase licenses for more advanced report presentation, more interactivity, and additional BI users.

MicroStrategy Reporting Suite gives companies an easy entry point for initiating small, departmental reporting applications, along with a seamless path to build and expand BI deployments without creating independent silos of BI. Some departmental reporting tools create individual islands of BI that cannot be integrated into the larger BI system, resulting in inconsistent data and undermining the system’s credibility. With MicroStrategy, organizations can efficiently merge departmental applications into a cohesive BI environment to ensure data consistency across the enterprise.

Leading Industry Analysts Comment on the MicroStrategy Reporting Suite:

Rita L. Sallam, Research Director, Gartner Inc.
Gartner’s Research Director Rita Sallam recently evaluated the MicroStrategy Reporting Suite. To learn more about Gartner’s findings and how you can benefit from this new software package, visit www.microstrategy.com/GartnerVol3 to read the complete report.

Cindi Howson, Founder, BIScorecard
“Given the product capabilities, migration path, and support, it seems like a deal too good to be true…. The appealing aspect [of the MicroStrategy Reporting Suite free offering] is that it provides customers with an easy entrée into BI, without that entrée being a total throw away. If customers later want to add dashboards or multi-source, for example, they don’t have to start over or migrate to a new product as is often the case with many departmental BI tools.”

Wayne Eckerson, Director, TDWI Research
“MicroStrategy recently created a major stir in the industry by offering its fully functional MicroStrategy Reporting Suite for up to 100 business users at no charge! This bold move will allow MicroStrategy to change the market perception that it only offers high-end BI tools, expand its footprint into smaller applications, and thereby grow the number of companies it does business with.”

Mark Smith, CEO and EVP Research, Ventana Research
“MicroStrategy is dramatically simplifying the adoption of enterprise strength reporting by providing organizations the ability to download and quickly deploy a set of free reporting software that is easy to use. By providing departments and workgroups with a reporting package that is quick and easy to deploy, MicroStrategy allows organizations to start small and easily transition to more advanced and sophisticated BI applications as their needs grow beyond their initial deployment and require more robust analytics.”

Boris Evelson, Principal Analyst, Forrester Research
“Now MicroStrategy is taking the concept of free BI one step further. MicroStrategy announced that it is making its Release 9 software available for up to 100 users/consumers of info at no cost! Now that’s a whole different story. Now we are talking about not just individual components, but a complete BI solution. We are also not talking about a small use case for just testing groups or QA or prototyping. With 100 users you can roll a BI application out for free to a whole department in a large enterprise or to a small business.” Excerpt from April 17, 2009 Forrester Blog: http://blogs.forrester.com/information_management/2009/04/free-bi-is-still-no-free-lunch.html

The MicroStrategy Reporting Suite Includes the Following:

* Up to 100 named user licenses of the MicroStrategy Reporting Suite: MicroStrategy Intelligence Server and MicroStrategy Web Reporter – with a 1 CPU limit
* Two named user licenses of development software: MicroStrategy Desktop and MicroStrategy Architect
* Two named user licenses of many of MicroStrategy’s most popular products and services: MicroStrategy Web Analyst and Professional, MicroStrategy Mobile, MicroStrategy Office, MicroStrategy Report Services, MicroStrategy Distribution Services, and MicroStrategy OLAP Services
* Free online support, which includes access to MicroStrategy’s extensive online searchable knowledge repository, online community forum, video guides, and online education
* Free e-mail support for 60 days for two named support liaisons to interact one-on-one with MicroStrategy Technical Support representatives via e-mail
* A Quick Start Guide and access to product documentation

“In today’s competitive business environment, companies are searching for new ways to minimize costs while maximizing employee productivity,” said MicroStrategy COO Sanju Bansal. “Our exciting new Reporting Suite delivers premium reporting software at no cost, along with online support and tools to help users get their reporting applications up and running very quickly. With MicroStrategy, companies can start with small applications and easily migrate them into a cohesive and consistent enterprise BI framework.”

To learn more about the MicroStrategy Reporting Suite, visit www.microstrategy.com/freereportingsoftware.

About MicroStrategy
Founded in 1989, MicroStrategy is a global leader in business intelligence (BI) technology. MicroStrategy provides integrated reporting, analysis, and monitoring software that helps leading organizations worldwide make better business decisions every day. Companies choose MicroStrategy for its advanced technical capabilities, sophisticated analytics, and superior data and user scalability. More information about MicroStrategy (NASDAQ: MSTR) is available at www.microstrategy.com.

MicroStrategy, MicroStrategy OLAP Provider, MicroStrategy Intelligence Server, MicroStrategy Business Intelligence Platform, MicroStrategy Report Services, MicroStrategy Reporting Suite, MicroStrategy Architect, MicroStrategy Web, MicroStrategy Mobile, MicroStrategy Office, MicroStrategy Distribution Services are either trademarks or registered trademarks of MicroStrategy Incorporated in the United States and certain other countries. Other product and company names mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

Wende Cover
MicroStrategy, Incorporated
1-703-770-1646
wcover@microstrategy.com

Source: MicroStrategy

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World’s Largest Paint Company Uses iWay to Optimize B2B Relationships

Jun 09, 2009 | Computer & Electronics, Computer Software, Internet, Technology | 0 comments

AkzoNobel Connects Easily With Business Units, Partners, and Suppliers Worldwide Via iWay Trading Partner Manager

NASHVILLE, TN (June 09, 2009) –

Integration technology and services from iWay Software are helping global industrial manufacturing leader AkzoNobel build its business the old fashioned way: by forging stronger relationships with customers and suppliers. The world’s largest paints and coatings company depends on iWay Trading Partner Manager to set up, manage, and monitor online relationships with partners and distributors across multiple trading networks. iWay Software, an Information Builders division and an innovator of enterprise integration solutions, deployed its Business-to-Business (B2B) Suite to help AkzoNobel manage this vast and diverse information landscape, simplifying exchanges among many different trading networks, message sets, and protocols while also connecting AkzoNobel’s internal business units worldwide.

“Our overriding objective is to make it easier for our partners to do business with us,” said Bas Van Amerom, eSupply chain manager at AkzoNobel. “iWay Trading Partner Manager simplifies our relationships. Now we can easily connect to partners no matter what kinds of systems they are using. iWay is boosting productivity and reducing costs for us.”

iWay Trading Partner Manager manages information among trading partners by making B2B interactions a natural extension of an organization’s SOA efforts. AkzoNobel also uses iWay Business Activity Monitor (BAM) to supply real-time information about the status and results of partner processes and transactions.

With help from Information Builders Professional Services, AkzoNobel standardized on iWay to streamline its vendor-managed inventory (VMI) processes, enabling materials suppliers to take responsibility for raw materials inventory. The integration initiative has had a positive impact on the bottom line by freeing up working capital and minimizing inventory carrying costs. Using iWay, suppliers can schedule deliveries whenever they want. This enables them to optimize quantities of on-hand materials based on real-time forecasts of manufacturing schedules and production runs. “Lowering the required physical stock has advantages to everybody in the supply chain, but we need to be able to reliably share information to make it happen,” said Van Amerom. “iWay Software helped us construct a B2B gateway to set up and maintain thousands of partner relationships in a highly reliable framework.”

AkzoNobel is globally organized into 18 business units. Suppliers and customers connect to these business units via a variety of enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems. AkzoNobel needed a central hub to facilitate these connections. Within six months, the Amsterdam, Netherlands-based company was testing system-to-system interfaces via iWay Trading Partner Manager and monitoring those connections with iWay’s BAM. Formerly, establishing an interface with a new vendor could take AkzoNobel many days of coding. According to Van Amerom, iWay has cut that time nearly in half.

“iWay has a successful history of helping customers tackle extraordinarily complex infrastructure challenges with our B2B solutions,” said Gerald Cohen, founder and CEO of Information Builders. “As AkzoNobel has learned, having the right technical infrastructure in place allows a company to focus on relationships rather than wrestling with technology.”
About AkzoNobel

Based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, AkzoNobel makes and supplies a huge range of paints, coatings and specialty chemicals. As a major producer of specialty chemicals, AkzoNobel supplies industries worldwide with quality ingredients for life’s essentials. The company has 60,000 employees in more than 80 countries. Its pro forma 2007 revenue totaled EUR 14.4 bln.
About iWay Software

iWay Software’s integration methodology is simple: it uses a single, integrated set of graphical design tools to assemble powerful pre-built components for enterprise-class business-to-business (B2B) integration, business process automation (BPA), or enterprise information management (EIM) integration scenarios – without the use of custom code. Integration configurations can be deployed in a stand-alone manner to any environment supporting a JVM – or to Web application servers from any vendor. iWay delivers the fastest, most cost-effective, and simplest way to integrate and streamline critical business processes. iWay Software’s vendor-, platform-, and protocol-neutral solutions achieve the promise of SOA: true reusability.
About Information Builders

Information Builders’ award-winning combination of business intelligence and enterprise integration software has been providing innovative solutions to more than 12,000 customers for the past 30 years. WebFOCUS is the world’s most widely utilized business intelligence platform. It provides the security, scalability and flexibility needed at every level of global extended enterprises. Its simplicity helps create executive, analytical, and operational applications that reach dozens to millions of users. Information Builders’ iWay Software suite provides state of the art, multi-purpose, pre-built integration components that address all SOA, application, data and information management requirements. Its integration adapters have been adopted by the leading software platform providers. Together, these products give Information Builders’ customers the ability to grow and innovate according to their needs.

Information Builders’ customers include most of the Fortune 100 and U.S. federal government agencies. Headquartered in New York City with 90 offices worldwide, the company employs 1,450 people and has more than 350 business partners.

Source: Information Builders

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Business Intelligence Leader Information Builders Showcases New Release of WebFOCUS

Jun 09, 2009 | Computer & Electronics, Computer Software, Internet, Technology | 0 comments

Includes More Than 100 Updates Driving the Expanding Scope of BI

NASHVILLE, TN (June 09, 2009) –

Information Builders, an independent leader in business intelligence (BI) solutions, today announced new products and updates to its WebFOCUS portfolio, including more than 100 functionality enhancements focused on driving the expanding role of BI at leading enterprise and government organizations worldwide.

According to the 2009 Gartner Executive Programs CIO Survey, BI remains a top-five technology priority for the fourth year in a row. Yet many organizations are still struggling to get BI into the hands of the people who need it. BI technology helps organizations drive value from IT investments in tangible ways like making business processes more efficient and information-management processes less complicated.

As the scope of business intelligence expands beyond dashboards, OLAP, and report distribution, Information Builders is continually adding new components to WebFOCUS that bolster essential BI capabilities without the need to buy add-on products. By adhering to standards and leveraging open source software, Information Builders has incorporated search, predictive analytics, electronic publishing, performance management, and mobile BI, to give customers BI applications that are pervasive, inexpensive, and easy to deploy.

“Information Builders has led the market in bringing BI to more people by delivering rich functionality on a budget,” said Information Builders founder and CEO Gerald Cohen. “We have added new features that actively help customers push BI to support more applications, touch more facets of their business, and deliver BI to 100 percent of the people that need it. These add-on components alleviate the need for customers to buy separate BI products, not only reducing license costs, but also making the entire BI environment easier to learn, upgrade, and maintain.”

Key highlights include enhancements that help organizations understand what has happened, what is happening, and what will happen through BI.
Active PDF and InfoAssist: Insight on What Has Happened

Part of the latest version of WebFOCUS, Active PDF extends the platform’s current Active Technologies capability to give users the ability to quickly and easily navigate and filter large documents and complex analytical dashboards. Rather than scouring hundreds of printed pages, users are able to consume and print only the most relevant business information from anywhere, on any smart device, saving time and money.

End users who currently leverage Active Reports and WebFOCUS Enable for Adobe® FLEX® can now access custom interactive and animated analytic dashboards in PDF format for free. This new interactivity builds on the coordinated, print-ready PDF capabilities that WebFOCUS already provides. In addition to dashboards, Active PDF can be used for bank and investment statements, inventory reports, invoices, and more.

Introduced in November 2008, InfoAssist is an intuitive ad hoc reporting solution that provides business users with the easy-to-use, robust query and analysis tool they need to make faster business and operational decisions. Information Builders has added more than a dozen enhancements to make report building even easier, including:

* Compose View combines the features of query building with the ability to style and present customized documents, and allows users to build multiple reports and charts on the same canvas
* New Cube Browsing capabilities allow users to browse any cube or database in the InfoAssist Interactive Design view and see a live preview of the query output as they add and remove objects and formatting in the Layout Canvas
* Configuration of global preferences and default values for things, such as record limits or choosing to remove functionality

WebFOCUS Activity Monitor and Magnify Search: Visibility Into What Is Happening

WebFOCUS Activity Monitor provides visibility into automated business processes by integrating business activity monitoring (BAM) and business intelligence. This BI/BAM solution captures end-to-end transaction and workflow data across multiple applications and business units, summarizing and displaying trading partner metrics to help managers make informed decisions. Using a multitude of iWay adapters, WebFOCUS Activity Monitor can now channel real-time events, like cash register transactions, directly to an in-memory database. There they connect to display and analysis facilities as well as to the Information Builders performance management console for real-time KPI comparison with prior data.

Enabling users to query, report, analyze, deliver, and display electronic trading data in any way they choose, WebFOCUS Activity Monitor delivers dashboards with embedded BI capabilities to help administrators quickly troubleshoot problems, detect anomalies, and conduct capacity planning exercises. WebFOCUS Activity Monitor can alert individuals to changes and exceptions that may require action, as well as provide aggregated insight for strategic planning.

WebFOCUS Magnify(TM) the industry’s first search navigation tool that dynamically categorizes search results and supplements them with analysis and reporting capabilities has been updated with new features designed to enhance both usability and security. Highlights include:

* Collections, enabling users to select a collection that narrows their search to a specific part of the index, prior to their submission
* Magnify iWay Wizard, helping users to quickly set up a Magnify environment, instructing them how to handle each field when transforming a record into a search result
* New security features including single sign-on integration, multiple credential support, the ability to hide entire results and parts of results, and present alternate-result rendering as well as a security API

WebFOCUS RStat: Predicting What Will Happen

WebFOCUS RStat is the first BI platform to enable data miners, statisticians, BI developers, and analysts to collaboratively build predictive applications for field and operational employees. Now shipping with WebFOCUS, RStat extends the value and accessibility of predictive analytics in production BI applications across the enterprise. RStat now offers even more predictive models and robust statistical sampling routines, including random and stratified sampling with user-defined strata. Its easy and intuitive user interface also includes a built-in calculator for sample sizes. RStat allows data miners and BI developers to work collaboratively with the same tools to access, manipulate, or transform data; develop predictive models; and create and deploy Web applications to any worker within their organization.

All new product features and functionality are being showcased at Information Builders Annual Summit User Conference, held this week in Nashville, TN. For more information, visit www.informationbuilders.com/summit.
About Information Builders

Information Builders’ award-winning combination of business intelligence and enterprise integration software has been providing innovative solutions to more than 12,000 customers for the past 30 years. WebFOCUS is the world’s most widely utilized business intelligence platform. It provides the security, scalability, and flexibility needed at every level of global extended enterprises. Its simplicity helps create executive, analytical, and operational applications that reach dozens to millions of users. Information Builders’ iWay Software suite provides state of the art, multi-purpose, pre-built integration components that address all SOA, application, data and information management requirements. Its integration adapters have been adopted by the leading software platform providers. Together, these products give Information Builders’ customers the ability to grow and innovate according to their needs.

Information Builders’ customers include most of the Fortune 100 and U.S. federal government agencies. Headquartered in New York City with 90 offices worldwide, the company employs 1,450 people and has more than 350 business partners.

Source: Information Builders

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