Enterprise Information Management

We forgot the fact BI is a business solution first and then a technology implementation. BI solution has its value if it can facilitate in taking profitable business decision. Implementation of latest BI tool will have little value if the program is not driven by strategic goals of an Enterprise.
Realizing this Gartner coined the term Corporate Performance Management (CPM) to describe a framework of strategizing, monitoring and improvement of Business Performance of an enterprise.

So what’s new about it? All enterprises all along were striving for it.

The difference which CPM brings is that it proposes a structured way of strategizing corporate goals, device metrics to measure it, processes and methodologies of monitoring and improving upon it. It is a framework which links the financial results (effects) to the business processes and drivers of the enterprise (causes). And this can be aided by technology rather than entirely on experience and gut feel of managers.

Realizing the rationale behind the CPM approach, leading pureplay BI product vendors started building CPM suite of products and almost all leading vendors have one such suite. Gartner predicted that market for CPM will grow at CAGR of 14.4% between 2006 and 2011 to make it a $3b market. Unfortunately, CPM is yet to become the preferred BI solution for enterprises.

So is it another hype created by Analyst and product vendors?

But as the saying goes “History repeats itself”, it is happening again. CPM is again seen as implementation of a particular CPM product suite rather than a business solution. This is where the roles of enterprises and System integrators have to change. Enterprises will have to bring in a structure into their performance management before jumping to implement a suite of product while System integrators need to appreciate the fact that BI is all about business solution before it is a technology implementation. System integrators will have to play bigger role in understanding defining BI solution needs of enterprises and be a bridge between business enterprises and product vendors. Till then CPM will remain hype rather than an effective BI solution.