EMPOWERING YOUR BI INVESTMENT

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1 EMPOWERING YOUR BI INVESTMENT BI Costs Containment, Risk Mitigation In today's economic climate, the importance of cost containment and risk mitigation has increased, even as staffing levels have been reduced and the demand for increased market responsiveness and functionality skyrockets. Essential to keeping on that course is the understanding of the risks and possible benefits of the planned course. Conflux Systems Inc. (Conflux) and Solitaire Interglobal Ltd. (SIL) offers a fully integrated set of Business Intelligence (BI) services with a focus on rapid return on investment. Our services include BI Health Check, BI Security Posture Assessment, BI Benefit Realization, hardware sizing, implementation support, predictive performance analysis, and capacity planning. Having Conflux and SIL join your team will give you the depth of expertise you need to maximize your BI investments and give your organization a competitive edge in your marketplace. Unbiased and objective, SIL can help, with an unmatched knowledge repository, years of detailed risk and cost data and the ability to extract meaningful analysis on a short schedule. SIL do not sell hardware or software, instead we provide quick and meaningful business analysis and data for thousands of companies worldwide.

2 LIMITED OFFER FREE BI HEALTH CHECK!!! BI Health Check When was the last time you had your BI tools and infrastructure evaluated? Business intelligence systems are changing rapidly by necessity. Visibility into the overall structure, control and change within the system is frequently difficult to maintain. Understanding appropriate, effective and efficient practices can be difficult for management. When the executives tasked with providing strategic leadership do not have a clear understanding of what are essential controls and expenditures, uninformed reductions in staff or budget can cripple the effectiveness of the business intelligence effort. If a BI system is damaged within an organization, its function may never recover. Loss of credibility and trust, and damage to the underlying data contributes to this reduced effectiveness. Conversely, lack of governance and uncontrolled spending does not increase the effectiveness of a BI system. Without intelligent oversight as to expenditures, processes and incorporation into critical thinking, the business analytics area becomes a drain on organizational resources. The Business Intelligence (BI) Health Check examines the strategic positioning of an organization in reference to this technology. It provides concrete information on the challenges and opportunities, as well as the risks and benefits of BI. The BI Health Check allows companies to focus on a strategic approach to move to a more leveraged and competitive BI deployment. Clear and concise information is provided on the assets, limitations, obstacles and prospects for BI within an organization. Also included is a specific list of actionable next steps for the effort to transform an organization s current position toward a vital BI implementation. This service articulates an organization's current posture on BI and forecasts the risk, exposure and critical amendment points. With this review, an organization can better leverage a BI deployment when considering its analytics. The BI Health Check requires minimal client resources and time (hours rather than weeks) to provide the needed data.

3 Specification Engagement Model Data Collection Update Frequency Project Form Execution Output Form Size Range Media Level of Detail Timing and Schedule Client Time Contribution Project Length Presentation Delivery Mechanism FTP and Single Single execution pages Electronic, limited hardcopy Company and situation specific <10 total hours for data collection 2-3 weeks Remote meeting with screen display Standard Deliverables Deliverable Challenges Opportunities Strengths Weaknesses Challenge identification targets the areas that can be managed to a successful conclusion with organizational effort. The identification of possible opportunities for increased market share and revenue is an extension of the view of organization health. By knowing the possible opportunities, the BI Health Check analysis provides detailed information on both remediation and forward progress. In this process, opportunities are built against larger information pools than are normally available to an organization, providing an overall worldwide perspective and experience base for strategic evaluation. Recognizing an organization s strengths gives a clear delineation of those areas that have implemented best practices. This provides the positive comparisons against the organization s general industry. Acknowledging weaknesses is the first step in addressing shortfalls. The inclusion of this area in the health check allows an organization to understand where they are behind their peers and where they are at a competitive disadvantage.

4 Deliverable Focus area risks Focus area benefits Estimated implementation costs Implementation timing estimates Critical actions Identifying the risks within the BI focus provides strategic insight. This risk profile has been developed from a large data pool of real-world experience and has a substantial benefit in that other s difficulties and organizational pain can be leveraged to avoid similar experiences. Comprehending the benefits of a specific focus area, in this case business intelligence, gives a clear quantification of the return on investment and the strategic positioning which other organizations have found when implementing similar strategies. The benefits are gathered from real-world data and are backed by a considerable number of data points, which results in realistic expectation setting. Estimated implementation costs are projections based on a large pool of worldwide production deployments. The cost figures are adjusted for geographic location but are not based on list prices or quotes. Instead, they are grounded in actual payments for staff, extra services, contract personnel, equipment, overhead, etc. The projected schedule and timing estimates needed to successfully implement the strategy are garnered from a large experiential pool. By using a deep set of real-world implementations, the resulting timing provides accurate requirements. The data points also highlight shortfalls in understanding the difficulties and challenges of carrying out strategic plans. Success and failure factors are examined to provide a list of critical actions and optional choices for implementation. Limited Offer Click here to get more information

5 BI Security Posture Assessment Have you ever had an incursion on your BI data? how do you know? Business intelligence data and process forms a pool of highly proprietary intellectual capital for an organization. By its very nature, this type of information is drawn from a variety of sources. The multitude of population feeds carries a corresponding security risk. The aggregate of these valuable pools of intellectual assets creates a very attractive target for theft and sabotage. Standard security postures do not address the complexity and rapidly changing form of threat for a business intelligence system. This area is the most quickly growing source of incursions in the market today. Failure to accurately act and effectively incorporate this aspect of business into the overall security posture provides a huge exposure to theft, damage and loss. Business Intelligence (BI) is a disruptive technology with its own set of security problems and concerns. The BI Security Posture Assessment (BISPA) reviews the strategic positioning of an organization and provides a rapid analysis of the security controls and structures that are essential for an organization using BI. It examines all non-physical security aspects within the environment. By being comprehensive in nature, a clear summary of the issues facing the organization can be prioritized and addressed. If an organization is trying to understand how a BI system can be affected by the exposure to IP theft, susceptibility to intrusion, exposure to malware and viral infections, a BISPA analysis and summation can be used to understand the main security vulnerabilities, projected remediation costs, timelines and priority categories. These factors can be used to provide a clear business case for the deployment of a security structure. The BISPA service finds vulnerabilities in IT operations, such as: Application storage of unsecured data Lack of governance structures Weaknesses in application deployment routines Lack of disaster recovery planning, testing and execution Shortfalls in IT process monitoring, with attendant analysis A BISPA service includes a general analysis of problem areas, including risk and exposure. The normal timeframe for the BISPA project is 3-4 weeks, with little effort needed on the part of the client staff and minimally invasive information gathering. The results of the BISPA are suitable for handoff to an implementing team. The report comes complete with project plan, resource and skill lists and task completion metrics.

6 Specification Engagement Model Data Collection Update Frequency Project Form Execution Output Form Size Range Media Level of Detail Timing and Schedule Client Time Contribution Project Length Presentation Delivery Mechanism FTP and Single Single execution pages Electronic, limited hardcopy Company and situation specific <10 total hours for data collection 1-3 weeks Remote meeting with screen display Standard Deliverables Deliverable General analysis of problem areas, risk and exposure hot spots, and procedural shortfalls Critical functionality, structure and controls Definition of terms Resource and skill lists The challenges and weaknesses that are present in the current BI Security Posture Assessment are covered to provide focus on the intersection of technology, business process and management. There are many possible architectures of functionality and control for BI security. A detailed analysis of the relative success or failure of organizations that have either implemented or omitted the critical components provides an expanded understanding of the factors which are best suited for retention or modification. A list of term definitions used within the assessment provides for a common understanding among diverse groups within the organization. This is especially true where security technologists need to communicate with executive management and business personnel. The report provides a scorecard of the necessary personnel and the needed skills that other organizations found to be critical. The comparison pool is extensive, spanning millions of organizations and providing an analysis depth for personnel requests within the framework of associated costs and benefits.

7 Deliverable Task completion metrics Project plan Prioritized issue summary Ranked list of solutions Metrics and measurements Where there are critical components or practices that are not currently existing at an organization, thoughtful planning requires understanding of both what tasks need to be executed and how to identify when those tasks are completed. For each of the tasks identified within the posture analysis, the SIL heuristic database provides realistic information on what metrics are most effective for control and communication. Any remediation or shortfall addressed in the report will include an example project plan. The plan highlights known dependencies, critical time frames and other factors that should be considered for due diligence project management. The project plan is derived from a large number of successful projects, with critical failure factors identified for risk mitigation. The articulation of importance in an issue list allows effective strategies to be built. The SIL heuristic database provides a strong experiential base for a prioritization, which can be leveraged to build effective and efficient organization strategies. The detailed information for each of the possible scenarios can be complex and somewhat overwhelming. A summarization of the business cases for each of the solutions is included for an effective incorporation into organizational critical thinking. BI Security requires a flexible set of metrics and measures. The up-to-date best practice evolution for these metrics and measurements require trial, error and frustration. The assessment can help mitigate some of those challenges.

8 BI Benefit Realization How do you measure the effectiveness of your business intelligence systems? Managing an organization requires constant evaluation of costs and benefits. One of the challenges with business intelligence systems is that the understanding of benefit is frequently clouded. Unfortunately, the result of this unclear vision is that the reduction or increase in funding and staff levels becomes more of an instinctual response rather than a clear business case. Injudicious or unknowing allocation or deallocation of organizational resources can result in a significant loss of benefit. In the current marketplace, business intelligence is a major contributor to organizational viability. The loss of this valuable contribution hampers growth and imperils strategic objectives. When and how is it known that a Business Intelligence system has really produced results? Did the BI implementation add to the success of the organization s strategic goals? How can the organization know? Benefit Realization is one of the hardest and most elusive metrics to track and allocate. This service provides an extremely experienced perspective on how business analytics can effectively and efficiently be tracked and measured. This methodology goes beyond simplistic, subjective measurements. It covers the areas that have been shown to be critical to accurate and effective success tracking for analytics in depth, including the major forms of metric-gathering methods and protocols. The results of this practice will be the creation of accurate and agreed upon benefit realization. Patterns of pivotal decision points, scope control, information needs and process isolation for success metric collection and socialization. Organization s successes and failures. Different forms of metric and measurement establishment and tracking. Definitions of the normal terms used in success metric tracking Exploration of different metrics and measurements that are useful in monitoring analytics, including strengths and weaknesses of each.

9 Specification Engagement Model Data Collection Update Frequency Project Form Execution Output Form Size Range Media Level of Detail Timing and Schedule Client Time Contribution Project Length Presentation Delivery Mechanism FTP and Single Single execution pages Electronic, limited hardcopy Company and situation specific <10 total hours for data collection 3-4 weeks Remote meeting with screen display Standard Deliverables Deliverable General analysis of problem areas, risk and exposure hot spots, and procedural shortfalls Critical functionality, structure and controls Definition of terms Resource and skill lists The challenges and weaknesses that are present in the BI Benefit Realization analysis are covered to provide focus on the intersection of technology, business process and management. A detailed analysis of the relative success or failure of organizations that have either implemented or omitted the critical components provides an expanded understanding of the factors that affect the interpretation of the benefits of a BI deployment. A list of term definitions used within the assessment provides for a common understanding among diverse groups within the organization. This is especially true where technologists and analysts need to communicate with executive management and business personnel. The report provides a scorecard of the necessary personnel and the needed skills that other organizations found to be critical. The comparison pool is extensive, spanning millions of organizations and providing an analysis depth for personnel requests within the framework of associated costs and benefits.

10 Deliverable Task completion metrics Metrics and measurements Benefit realization metrics are dependent upon the completion of the critical components or practices of a BI deployment. Thoughtful planning requires an understanding of both what tasks need to be executed and how to identify when those tasks are completed. For each of the identified and required tasks, the SIL heuristic database provides realistic information on what metrics are most effective for control and communication. The benefit realization of BI analysis and usage requires a flexible set of metrics and measures. The up-to-date best practice evolution for these metrics and measurements require trial, error and frustration. The assessment can help mitigate some of those challenges.