Business intelligence systems enable users to interactively view and analyze their data to make timely, accurate, information-based decision.

They give you in-depth knowledge of your business, at your fingertips; at the exact moment you need it. It transforms your data to help you make better decisions, lower expenses and increase your competitive advantage.

Hewlett-Packard

Breakthrough Improvements For Forecasting (BIFF)

The Integrated Circuit Business Division (ICBD) at Hewlett Packard urgently wanted to upgrade their existing Excel based forecast process which was used to support demand capacity planning decisions for semiconductor manufacturing.

CarpeDatum Consulting helped construct a system that facilitated advanced forecasting analysis and dramatically decreased the cycle times necessary for analysis, reporting and maintenance.

The Integrated Circuit Business Division (ICBD) forecast needed to support capacity-planning decisions for several internal and external manufacturing facilities in Southeast Asia. Plagued with the typical data integrity issues associated with an Excel based process, the current forecasting process was also difficult to learn and maintain. More importantly, organizational changes and growing pains were killing the ability to continue with the current system. All of this led to poor productivity and left little time for the group to analyze the business.

CarpeDatum worked closely with Breakthrough Improvements For Forecasting (BIFF) team members to map a forecasting solution using iTM1 as the backbone. After creating a 90% proof of concept in 3 weeks, the project moved ahead quickly with full management backing. Upgrades included on-demand real-time analysis, standard reporting templates, enhanced scenario management and links to the existing data warehouse. Significant improvements in data integrity included inherent database safeguards as well as extrinsic rule-driven checks.

Another bright spot was the high quality support and training for team members that enabled BIFF members to become self-sufficient. By teaching trouble-shooting skills to manage their own system, HP substantially decreased IT involvement. This not only limited the need for future CarpeDatum involvement with this system, but also substantially decreased the overall costs of the project and allowed future OLAP projects within the organization.