IBM Expands Software Portfolio to Help Clients Keep Pace with Information Explosion

Unveils Industry-Specific Products, Services Enabling Businesses to Make Quicker, Smarter Decisions

BERLIN, June 3 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- IBM INFORMATION ON DEMAND CONFERENCE -- During the IBM Information on Demand Conference today, IBM (NYSE: IBM) announced a global expansion of its Information on Demand strategy with the addition of new software and services designed to derive new intelligence from business information. To support this effort, IBM is expanding its Information Management capabilities and providing industry specific, analytic applications in the areas of financial performance, human capital management and customer management. Additionally, IBM will add professionals to work closely with customers on advanced business information projects.

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New Technology and Services Helps Clients Capture Critical Business Information

The new offerings provide industry specific, information intensive analytic applications. These solutions go beyond business intelligence to help clients plan, analyze and manage performance in real time as information is being fed in massive amounts from different sources.

IBM financial performance analytics applications can consolidate information from disparate financial data sources such as general ledger, accounts receivable, accounts payable and inventory into standard reporting formats, arming managers with insights into key analysis areas such as planning and performance effectiveness, receivables and payable risk, cash management, and invoice activity. For example, a CFO of an equipment manufacturing company can use the software to take a daily snapshot of accounts receivable for new products shipped across divisions or regions and instantly see how the company is performing overall to plan.

Companies worldwide are turning to IBM to help tap the wealth of information that already exists in their enterprise. For example, DHL Express Germany, the market leader in the global air and ground express industry, is using business analytics to help transform its global business operations. Now, DHL can analyze more than 30 million customer records in just seconds instead of hours. They can also tap into multiple sources of information via a single platform to get a complete view of the company.

MedAssets, a leading healthcare solutions provider, is using IBM business analytics for financial planning and to help measure overall company performance. Executives at MedAssets are able to make quick, informed decisions based on flexible, automated reporting using a new forecasting process that allows for improved accuracy and rapid integration with actual results.

"With IBM analytics we can be proactive versus reactive," said Susan Dean, director, business intelligence, MedAssets. "A more streamlined approach to forecasting allows us quicker access to financial information and flexible financial reporting and analyses for our users."

New Industry Specific Solutions - Information Agenda Gaining Momentum

Today's news builds on IBM's efforts in helping clients create an Information Agenda that enables them to develop a business-focused information strategy and use information as a strategic asset. Since the launch of Information Agenda less than eight months ago, IBM has already engaged with more than 400 clients, helping them put information at the center of their business processes. Meanwhile, IBM has also conducted some 350 industry-specific Information Agenda workshops this year to help clients define their information strategy.

IBM Industry Models for Financial Services - New industry models help financial services organizations use deep expertise and industry best practices to support regulatory and compliance requirements. New models now support new rules from the Securities and Exchange Commission, International Financial Reporting Standards and International Accounting Standards.

InfoSphere Clinical Analytics for Healthcare Providers - This analytics software integrates healthcare information from a variety of sources, helping providers improve the quality of care and efficiency of treatment to their patients. By tapping into clinical, operational and financial systems, including billing, lab, pharmacy and electronic medical record systems it can gather large amounts of patient information from different healthcare organizations, departments and physicians to create insights into best practices. For example, it can be used on a hospital-wide basis to identify the forms of treatment that are working best among large groups of patients with similar symptoms, the drug combinations or therapies that are most effective, or identifying trends and best practices among caregivers.

Analytics for Life Sciences, Financial Services and Government Sector - To help financial services and other industries monitor and analyze complex relationships to better anticipate change, new statistical analysis capabilities from PASW Statistics, the statistical software suite from SPSS Inc. (Nasdaq: SPSS), will be embedded into upcoming versions of Cognos BI and Performance Management software. This helps organizations obtain deeper insight into business performance by spotting trends and anomalies in key products, programs, services and the processes that govern them. These findings can be widely disseminated throughout the organization for better decision-making.

"One of the foremost issues facing enterprises today is the waste, inaccuracy and volume of missed opportunities that stem from information overload," said Ambuj Goyal, general manager, information management, IBM Software Group. "Enterprises are handling more information than ever before, but are actually using less of that information for strategic insight since it is often difficult to effectively capture and manage."

Today's announcements, along with IBM's strategy for delivering information on demand, supports IBM's recent announcement to create new Business Analytics and Optimization Services. Over 23,000 customers in more than 135 countries around the world choose IBM Information Management solutions.

Further information on IBM Business Analytics and Optimization Services are available, please visit: www.ibm.com/gbs/analytics.

    Contact:
    Kaveri Camire, IBM
    917-472-3440
    Mobile:  914-625-6395
    kcamire@us.ibm.com

SOURCE IBM Corporation