Lost in Translation
If your organization was a celebutante, who would it be? Well, comely or not, let’s hope that when it comes to BI, you’re not a bemused, glassy-eyed Scarlett Johansson à la Lost in Translation http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0335266. If so, there’s a cure and it’s not acting lessons.
It’s a lesson in collaboration; ensuring that both your IT and business teams are speaking the same language so that technology is aligned with your core objectives, versus a “smile and nod” approach to organizational change and growth via BI. And oh, what a lot of complicated language to describe all things business intelligence. Terminology abounds: dashboards, data marts, data integration, data architecture, enterprise analytics, enterprise architecture, master data management, data governance, blah blah blah.
But wading through the jargon and the necessary complexities can be daunting.

So, how can mid-market companies put the obvious benefits of BI to good use? One way is to make sure all stakeholders are speaking the same language when looking at a BI selection or implementation.

BI is soooo hot right now Read the rest of this entry »

The Guardian’s excellent article How to Do Business Like the Mafia lists 7 rules for running a successful business—legitimate or otherwise.

And where there are business rules, of course, there’s enterprise software.

Which led me to wonder just how the Mafia would go about the enterprise software selection process. Read the rest of this entry »

I never thought I’d ever make an analogy such as this, but as we head into spring (the season of change—and love in bloom), I figured, “what the heck”…

When you really think about it, selecting ERP software does have many similarities to planning a wedding—right down to the uncertainty of whether or not you’ve chosen the right solution or, in the case of your wedding, partner to spend a lifetime with. While I’m hoping that your marriage lasts longer than your software solution does, I’m also hoping that the solution you’ll choose will last your business well into the future.

Now let’s get to planning that ERP software selection shall we? Read the rest of this entry »

Come on, admit it: you read your horoscope. Maybe not every morning. But you do read it, even if just for comic relief, or because it allows you to feel a surge of superiority before you head out the door to scrape your car or pummel your way onto public transport. Either way, reading your horoscope is a pleasant diversion.

But here’s a horoscope for the new year that provides you with more than just coffee-side chuckles. If you read between the lines, you’ll find useful tips about the software selection process, and links to valuable software evaluation resources.

Aries: Don’t just start that software selection process— finish it. But you’ve got to realize that sending out request for proposal (RFP) templates to the vendors on your shortlist, and creating a scripted demo may be more than you can handle alone, no matter how independent you are. Exercise your brilliant leadership skills: delegate to your nearest and dearest Libra.

Read the rest of this entry »