BI Time is Now

http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/mar2009/tc2009032_101762.htm

This is an article titled "Business Intelligence Software's Time is Now" by Rachael King. The story discusses how the recession is sparking interest in BI software because it helps companies analyze the data they collect for sales opportunities and cost-cutting ideas. There is a discussion on food industries since the current economy is pushing customers to eat at home more often and spend less on going out to eat. It is becoming more urgent for companies to make smart use of important information. Business Intelligence software can bring together data from disparate parts of the company and then the companies can do analysis, run reports, and make predictions based on past performance. Using BI software is becoming a top priority for CIOs today because it can even provide external information such as the unemployment rate and gas prices in different regions. BI can help the challenges the food industry is facing by determining how many staff should work certain shifts based on sales. The story goes on to discuss the cost associated with BI and the necessary pains to ensure it works properly. However, about two-thirds of large companies in the U.S. believe they are not spending enough on business analytics and that they need to improve their analytical capabilities.