Because enterprise resource planning (ERP) came from the world of materials planning for repetitive manufacturing, these applications cannot address the more anecdotal, complex, and dynamic requirements of real-time enterprise project management. Even tier one ERP products cannot meet the needs of some companies—engineer-to-order manufacturers, engineering procurement and construction contractors, and even process manufacturers. Read this white paper to learn more.
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When implementing and running solution landscapes that drive mission-critical business processes, solution integration can be complex and challenging. Implementation work, typically distributed across many teams and many stakeholders, may include custom-built and third-party software. This paper discusses how you can make sure your solutions are integrated correctly so they run smoothly, without technical interruption.
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Surveys show that enterprise architecture (EA) programs often lack support from business and information technology (IT) stakeholders for several reasons, including the lack of business support for aligning business goals with IT strategy. The Enterprise Architecture Best Practice Survey was launched to examine the impact of EA initiatives on business performance around the globe. Read this white paper to understand how this survey can bring an outside perspective to your company as you build business cases for change and design a road map for EA maturity.
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To satisfy customer requirements profitably, food and beverage (F&B) manufacturers must work at the pace of change, which has accelerated in regulations, consumer buying patterns, and the needs of retail, restaurant, and industrial foodservice customers. Know the three major challenges facing F&B manufacturers today and what they need to do to streamline their operations for greater efficiencies and waste reduction in order to survive.
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Most ERP products have been designed from repetitive manufacturing, and thus lack the powerful asset management and project management functionality that mining companies require. But ERP is becoming a higher priority for these organizations. This white paper offers tips on selecting ERP software for the mining industry. Learn how you can you select ERP that can handle the entire mining project and asset lifecycle.
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The successful and timely implementation of a new enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution is not a process to be taken lightly. A highly-skilled team of application specialists has gathered together in this whitepaper key advice and best practices for your implementation process. Learn how to keep your implementation on time and on budget from specialists who triumph every day on the implementation front lines.
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If you want to maximize project and company profitability, you need to examine your current resource utilization processes to identify profitability “leakage” in your labor utilization management. Review the Labor Utilization Scorecard to determine where you currently experience gaps and see how a business automation system can help you close those gaps and maximize project and company resource and services profitability.
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A growing number of organizations are moving toward having more pervasive business intelligence (BI) by turning to evidence-based decision making supported by a range of BI and analytics technology and processes that enable decision makers to have the best possible intelligence about customers, finances, operations, suppliers, and the market. This white paper addresses several questions that BI customers are facing.
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Regardless of the size of the organization, embedding governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) management into all business process is imperative. But most organizations are reactive rather than proactive when it comes to undertaking a risk management initiative. Leading companies identify building a risk-aware culture as a key strategy. Read on to find out more about ways to enable effective access risk management.
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A core responsibility among company leaders is to understand the potential return on any investment. So how do executives justify budgeting and spending on governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) management when the return on investment (ROI) is not clear? This paper presents survey results showing that executives are viewing effective GRC management as opportunities for corporate growth.
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PROMYS (version 4.9) is now TEC Certified for online evaluation of project portfolio management (PPM) for professional services automation (PSA) solutions in TEC's Evaluation Centers. Download this report for product highlights, competitive analysis, product analysis, and in-depth analyst commentary.
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Simon Ellis, practice director of supply chain strategies at IDC Manufacturing Insights, responds to questions regarding the business processes of wholesale distributors and customer relationship management (CRM) tools, and discusses how new technology trends—cloud, mobility, social business, and big data—are affecting wholesale distributors.
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Cloud services will be a leading driver of productivity for manufacturers over the next decade. Businesses focused on reducing costs and improving the quality of manufacturing solutions will increasingly turn to the cloud for SaaS solutions. Read this white paper by president and CEO of inKumo, Inc., and find out how this new era of technology will dramatically improve productivity and cost savings in the industry.
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In the coming years, a new Internet protocol, IPv6, will gradually succeed IPv4. The two Internet protocols aren’t interchangeable or compatible, so organizations will have to run them both in parallel on their networks for some time. This checklist offers five steps as a phased, cost-effective approach to move to the next-generation Internet protocol.
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Selecting the right software provider for your business can be a daunting. The last thing any person or company wants is to invest in the wrong technology and choose the wrong partnership. This white paper identifies five common mistakes distributors make when embarking on the software selection process and provides tips for keeping your enterprise resource planning (ERP) system replacement on track.
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Sophisticated enterprise resource planning (ERP) and business intelligence tools have made it possible to quickly calculate and report key performance indicators and metrics. In this white paper, learn about a balanced approach, applying lean and Six Sigma concepts, to business process re-engineering, assessing the alignment of your policies and strategic goals, and implementing systems and organizational structures, to support a culture of measurable improvement.
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Semiconductor manufacturers can work more closely with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and expand into new markets by using Web 2.0 technologies. Infosys' experts reveal "white spaces" in semiconductor marketing strategies that can be addressed by digital and mobile capabilities. They demonstrate how best practices in information and customer experience embedded in Infosys' Semiconductor Digital Engagement Maturity Model can deliver a competitive advantage.
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Tenrox Project Workforce Management is now TEC Certified for online evaluation of PPM solutions in the Project and Process Management Evaluation Center. The certification seal is a valuable indicator for organizations relying on the integrity of TEC research for assistance with their software selection projects. Download this report for product highlights, competitive analysis, product analysis, and in-depth analyst commentary.
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Over 190 companies were surveyed regarding their challenges within demand-supply networks and the top priorities for managing these networks. This paper is based on an analysis of that survey and highlights the need for companies to focus on intelligent response management strategies that bridge planning and execution.
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Establishing the right metrics framework as part of an overall performance management strategy means companies can break down enterprise-level goals—such as order fulfillment and forecast accuracy—into department-level metrics such as on-time delivery and plant utilization. Read about a model that makes it easier to identify, communicate, and replicate the most effective practices.
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For small staffing agencies, background screening of temporary employees is not only a key component in protecting their customers and their business, but also necessary to compete with large staffing agencies that typically employ such vetting procedures as a matter of course. This industry brief outlines the risks that arise from bad hires and how careful background screening can mitigate those risks. Read the white paper.
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Armed with the information provided in this white paper from HireRight about the risks of inadequate employee vetting and the benefits provided by background screenings, in-home service companies can take steps to better ensure the safety of their customers, employees, and property. Background screening—in partnership with a trustworthy background check agency—is a solid investment in your company’s success. Read more.
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As background screening and drug testing have become commonplace, many employers have shifted the focus toward making their screening programs and practices better—more efficient, more accurate, more flexible, faster and more appealing to both hiring professionals and applicants. The HireRight 2011 Employment Screening Benchmarking Report points to an array of best practices that can help organizations achieve these goals.
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Volunteer organizations recognize the importance of carefully vetting their volunteers before trusting them with the welfare of the various communities they serve (youth, elderly, disabled). Background screening is a key component in protecting their organization and their community members. This industry brief outlines the risks that arise from bad volunteers and how careful background screening can mitigate those risks.
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With the recent economic recession, small business owners who providing health care services have undertaken steps to reduce unnecessary overhead and expenses. But health care providers recognize the importance of carefully vetting their employees before trusting them with the welfare of their patients. This industry brief outlines the risks that arise from bad hires and how careful background screening can mitigate those risks.
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Although most businesses have high standards, they also are challenged by limited resources. In addition, they frequently need to move quickly when the time comes to make a hire. Yet each applicant and employee adds business and security risk. Fortunately, performing background checks on applicants and employees is an effective way to discover potential issues that could affect your business. Read this business guide.
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Many companies are now critically examining procedures for hiring new employees. This white paper outlines and explains seven “best practice” recommendations for fortifying any company’s workforce screening program. These recommendations are derived from HireRight’s experience providing guidance to, and defending, employers and background check providers of all types and sizes in every jurisdiction in the United States.
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Employee screening is a critical capability for organizations today. No longer just a part of the hiring process, employee background checks, eligibility verification, and even tax credit screening are increasingly part of the ongoing talent lifecycle. This Research Brief by the Aberdeen Group looks at best practices used and results delivered through the use of employee screening tools and solutions. Get the key insights now.
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While new technology trends are invading the business intelligence (BI) space, technology shifts and hype do not necessarily equate to the ability to exploit the best tools for enhancing business performance. To select a best-fit BI solution, an organization needs to be able to realistically assess the maturity of its BI infrastructure. This allows them to discover where they are, what their BI requirements are, and how to determine the best BI solution or strategy. Download the full report now.
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Retailers today need to acquire ability to quickly adapt to changing market conditions or customer trends. They also need to plan for the future. One technology that can assist retailers is wireless. Wireless technology can be used not only to address business problems such as quick price changes, but can also help retailers make internal operations more efficient. They need a comprehensive wireless strategy that supports all aspects of the retail organization, from store operations, to warehouse or distribution centers, to corporate offices. Download this white paper to learn more.
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Organizations usually rely on historical data and transactions to determine their pricing strategy. However, this data is typically insufficient to arrive at a competitive price. Moreover, customers these days are well informed about the value of products they want to purchase. That's why organizations need to arrive at their pricing strategy only after taking into consideration external intelligence and competitive data. E-procurement systems and price comparison websites have put customers in the bargaining position with the availability of real-time information. This is the type and speed of data organizations need to obtain. Leveraging such information can help an organization counter the threats of new entrants, competitive rivalry, and substitutes with a strong pricing strategy.
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In successful contact centers, top agents provide a superior experience for customers and ultimately help grow revenue for a company. How does your contact center stack up to the competition? Are you doing all you can to run a high-performing contact center that keeps customers happy and builds long-term relationships? In this guide, experts share their top 6 best practices for improving contact center performance.
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Welcome to TEC's Vendor Spotlight series. This installment focuses on KANA Software, a company founded in 1996 that has evolved from e-mail management into service experience management. See how KANA's software and service offerings help more than 600 customers manage the entire customer service lifecycle, from initial customer contact through to satisfaction survey responses or peer-to-peer sharing of the customer experience.
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Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)/Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) usability is a challenge for the electric energy industry according to a study conducted for IFS North America. This paper outlines study results of 100 electric energy industry executives and offers advice for selecting ERP and EAM for maximum usability. ERP and EAM with enhanced usability increases productivity and system usage, maximizing value realized.
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Engineer-to-order (ETO) companies can use enterprise software to implement eCommerce strategies in order to improve customer service, reduce waste, and increase profits. This white paper outlines the ways that enterprise resource planning (ERP) software can facilitate ETO eCommerce by opening portals to suppliers, project collaborators, and customers. Realize the benefits of eCommerce in the ETO setting with ERP software.
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TheMIGroup is a provider of relocation and assignment management programs for companies relocating their employees nationally and internationally. While the company had made some standard reports available online, it needed to enable clients to tailor both reporting formats and the information presented to their changing needs. See how the Illumiti-implemented solutions helped TheMIGroup deliver outstanding customer experience.
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GlassCell Isofab Inc. offers diverse products, from glass fiber to mineral fiber and sound-deadening metal, and operates eight distribution and manufacturing facilities in Canada. After a merger, the company decided to standardize and unify its business processes. See how this SAP® Business All-in-One solution helped GlassCell get an integrated view of the business and more easily scale and adapt to meet changing needs.
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Are you getting all the information you need to really understand how well your company is performing right now? How quickly do you get the information you need? Having timely and complete information allows people with good judgment to make better decisions more consistently. Know the options that can help executives in mid-size companies get the information about their businesses faster and more reliably than they can today.
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Planning and budgeting are critical components of any company’s performance management initiative, as they are a means of translating strategy into a coherent set of initiatives and provide a basis for objective assessment and alignment. But how well are companies achieving this? Read this benchmark research that examined the process, technology, and other components that reveal how effective planning and budgeting are.
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Planning, forecasting, and reporting are among the business processes that, if strengthened with analytic software, can help companies improve their performance. Due to time and expense of implementation, many mid-sized have been slow to aggressively adopt business performance management (BPM) solutions. See how on-demand BPM software is a low-cost, low-risk BPM solution that is likely to lead to an “early payback.”
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Business performance management (BPM) applications, particularly budgeting, forecasting, and reporting (BFR) solutions, bring high value to a mid-size company. But embarking upon a BPM initiative can seem daunting. There are many factors to consider, including potential benefits, expected costs, etc. Read this step-by-step guide that helps these companies navigate through these factors and move forward with a BPM solution.
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Corporate budgeting, forecasting, and reporting presents a formidable challenge to most companies, regardless of size or industry. Companies that are able to address budgeting obstacles and improve their process will not only be rewarded with more accurate budgets, more timely re-forecasts, and improved decision-making, but also foster a disciplined financial management culture that will deliver a true competitive advantage
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Most companies are not operating at a high-quality financial management. Budgeting is slow, re-forecasting is infrequent, monthly reports lack key information, and what-if analyses are incomplete or impossible. With Adaptive Planning, companies can elevate their financial management by creating better connections—within financial plans and reports, between organizations and teams, and among professionals across the globe.
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A volatile economy demands superior financial planning and management. Adaptive Planning’s Recession Survival Kit is designed for planning during difficult times. It allows companies to quickly and successfully gain control of their financial outlook, evaluate the potential business and cash impacts of strategic and tactical actions, and reset financial plans to deal with a global downturn. And it goes live in under a week.
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Why aren’t most companies able to achieve exceptional performance given that they have standard budgeting, analysis, and forecasting processes in place? It is because they don’t have a unified, integrated financial management process. Discover the benefits of a unified approach and the technologies that enable companies to adopt business performance management (BPM) best practices in just days or weeks, at an affordable price.
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Mid-size organizations have been conducting their budgeting and forecasting through a readily-available, inexpensive, and easy-to-use application—the spreadsheet. But spreadsheets fail to support complex planning processes, which involve multiple people, require real-time access to data, and demand comprehensive security. Discover how the Adaptive Planning budgeting and planning application can help you meet these needs.
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Today’s manufacturer is challenged by static enterprise resource planning (ERP) with annual complex upgrades. See how powerful change-on-demand capabilities allow companies to instantly align their ERP and business processes without a time-consuming IT effort. With a community-driven development approach, enhancements are driven by a community of users, and the system constantly improves in the exact way a user requires.
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Fast becoming the preferred delivery model for companies in other manufacturing industries, software as a service (SaaS) is being adopted by food and beverage processing companies using inadequate management systems. See how a SaaS-based enterprise resource planning (ERP) system helps processors operate more efficiently and profitably, and enables world-class security, disaster recovery, and an expandable storage capacity.
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Today’s ever-increasing frequency and cost of food and beverage recalls harm not only the companies directly affected, but all processors in the industry. See how leading food processors are turning to innovative software solutions, like Plex Online, to develop a complete food safety management system that enables them to achieve best practices in food and beverage processing quality and a high level of traceability.
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Forward-looking wholesale distributors are evolving from just inventory managers to information managers. This white paper reviews how these companies are leveraging enabling technology to break down the silos that exist within the enterprise and extend themselves beyond their company’s four walls to collaborate with trading partners and drive business value, in addition to increasing productivity and profits.
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Wholesale distributors face two fundamental challenges. The first: to create an environment where processes and services can be rapidly tailored to the changing needs of customers and suppliers. The second deals with technology. To stay competitive, distributors must view their business models from a customer perspective, and build a technology stack that enhances their trading partners’ performance as well as their own.
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Consumer products (CP) has long been held up as the "poster industry" for supply chain planning challenges. In this paper, Simon Ellis, practice director of Supply Chain Strategies at Manufacturing Insights, responds to questions concerning emerging supply chain challenges, collaboration between and among supply chain processes, and current supply chain best practices in the consumer packaged goods industry.
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For manufacturers that lack a well-structured product lifecycle management (PLM) program, the instantaneous flow of information only speeds up confusion, duplication of effort, and poor decision making. Find out how a SaaS-based ERP solution is essential for creating an effective, comprehensive integrated PLM program that improves productivity, accuracy, and decision making—and ultimately increases company profitability.
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While much of the interest in data quality (DQ) solutions had focused on avoiding failure of data management-related initiatives, organizations now look to DQ efforts to improve operational efficiencies, reduce wasted costs, optimize critical business processes, provide data transparency, and improve customer experiences. Read what DQ purchase and usage trends across UK and US companies reveal about DQ goals and drivers.
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Today’s small and midsize companies are destined to make uninformed decisions on an alarmingly regular basis. Executives simply do not have the relevant information to make the best decisions in a timely manner. Read this paper to know how gaining real-time visibility of the enterprise helps small and midsize companies leverage consistency, accuracy, and timeliness via a single data source to make better, faster decisions.
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How can management communicate the organization’s strategy effectively and assure that the entire organization has bought into it and is aligned with it? Business performance optimization systems are an important tool for success. By using business performance optimization systems, employees are empowered to confidently make timely, strategically-aligned decisions based upon facts, not intuition or corporate politics. See how.
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Customer experience is now a competitive differentiator. As customers become more informed and more demanding, companies need to step outside of their comfort zone and explore non-traditional customer relationship management (CRM) areas. This paper explores a sampling of CRM improvements that allow companies to deliver a consistent customer experience to gain a competitive advantage.
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Organizations today are looking for low-risk solutions that provide immediate value. This paper introduces a set of solutions that offers a range of processes to address major phases of the customer life cycle. These rapid deployment customer relationship management (CRM) solutions give companies a live, preconfigured CRM environment that leverages CRM best practices. They also include a unique implementation methodology.
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Profitable customer experience (CE) strategies are holistic, sustainable, and focused on creating competitive differentiation. If you can deliver highly valuable experiences to your customers, in a sustainable way, the reward will be loyal, engaged advocates who help you grow your business. Read more to better understand how companies can provide a superlative customer experience and still make a profit.
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Customer churn is very costly—it’s many times more expensive to acquire a new customer than to keep an existing one—so retaining customers by offering a superior experience is a top priority. Also, delivering unique experiences to different customer segments is a valuable strategy. Read about how to increase brand equity and retain customers by offering a better experience.
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Learn how communication-enabled business processes (CEBPs)—processes enabled by communication systems that are tightly integrated with business applications—can help resolve customer relationship management (CRM) issues by reducing latency, providing recording of and visibility into interactions, and better enabling end-to-end processes involving employees, customers, suppliers, and partners.
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This paper explores the following best practices for leverage price management and optimization: Fine-tune prices for all products and services. Analyze historical and live transaction-level data. Develop and implement effective cost-to-serve strategies. Establish well-defined customer segments. Empower your sales force with rich customer information and enforce negotiation policies.
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Organizations need technology that can unlock the value of information. Information can drive new insights to help transform and significantly improve the business, especially critical in an uncertain economy. This paper highlights common mistakes companies make in a down economy and discusses how organizations can use business intelligence to avoid them. A self-assessment questionnaire is included.
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Empirical research has revealed that improving human resources (HR) process, technology, and data integration to eliminate silos and facilitate cross-functional reporting affords significant business benefits. Based on SumTotal’s global survey data, this white paper dives into the top five HR process integrations that provide organizations with the most business value. Find out what they are.
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Chief financial officers (CFOs) and other senior managers are under tremendous pressure to maximize profitability, reduce operational costs, minimize risk, and improve stakeholder confidence. Read about an application that can help you streamline operations, instill confidence, and reduce risk. The solution provides planning, budgeting, and forecasting and supports financial consolidation and reporting operations.
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Business intelligence (BI) functionality can help your company gains visibility, insight, operational alignment, and accountability to increase revenue, margins, and liquidity; streamline processes; improve agility; and become a best-run business. Find out more in this report about a preconfigured solution.
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The three themes of governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) have been central to the management agenda for a decade. But whereas years ago it was the “C” in GRC that kept executives awake at night (and indeed was the impetus behind the development of GRC in the first place), in the post-crisis world it is the “R” that has risen to the top of the agenda. Learn about a more efficient approach to managing risk and compliance.
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Best-in-class retailers are turning to pervasive business intelligence (BI) to increase consumer-centric data accessibility. This report examines how retailers are incorporating BI tools into their standard processes to establish a company-wide view into constantly changing customer buying trends, and how internal departments are using this data to make processes more efficient and effective throughout the enterprise.
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By developing, communicating, and implementing an actionable yet flexible enterprise mobility strategy, an organization can unlock new business value from its investments. Having a mobility strategy enables the organization to quickly adopt state-of-the-art, innovative mobile technologies and transform itself into a “mobile enterprise” in a sustainable and secure manner—now and in the increasingly mobile future.
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Increased regulatory requirements, the need for transparency, and the desire to better manage and mitigate risks together make governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) top of mind for both business and information technology (IT) executives. Business managers and IT security managers must work collaboratively to control access and authorization to guard against fraud and mistakes, while ensuring profitability and compliance.
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Best-practice performance management requires processes to run seamlessly across enterprise performance management applications. This permits the sharing of data, enabling business managers to collaborate and make better and quicker decisions that give the organization the agility it needs in today’s increased uncertainty. This paper sets out how one enterprise performance management (EPM) solution delivers.
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The short list of what retailers need from first-generation mobile capabilities is surprisingly long, spanning deep product information, ratings and reviews, scanning capabilities, full commerce, and more. Download this white paper to learn more about the state of consumer mobile in retail today, as well as the mobile use cases that retailers have currently deployed. Download now.
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Project-based solutions (PBS) is a new type of enterprise resource planning (ERP) system for complex, engineer-to-order companies and companies facing rapid change. And these days, most companies do face change, and their legacy ERP systems strain to keep up. Is PBS a better choice for you than traditional ERP?
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Various scenarios can impact the resources for a rollout delivery team when utilized for large technology infrastructure rollouts at multiple locations. Shifting processes, methodologies, and resources can streamline the technology rollout at each site. This paper explains how alterations to the rollout delivery team configuration, as determined by project variables, can impact site delivery and your business. Read more.
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Promoting band image, improving overall business performance, and keeping customers happy is a main concern of many businesses. This paper demonstrates how the Extended Enterprise platform can help specific verticals to promote and sell their products to external audiences. Know the value of the Extended Enterprise solution in financial services, insurance, government, retail, manufacturing, healthcare, and associations.
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The administration and management of printing can be time-consuming, often relying on manual processes. Many businesses are rethinking their approach to managing the print environment, by either adopting a managed service or implementing centralized print management tools. This can ensure the high availability, reliability and manageability of printing resources, while leaving IT staff free to focus on core activities.
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Successfully meeting today’s business challenges requires effective project management. How well your organization manages projects, tracks costs, and identifies and addresses project-related issues can have a big impact on your bottom line. But if your company still relies on traditional, stand-alone project management applications, most likely you lack the end-to-end process support you need to ensure success.
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The model of software delivery is in the midst of transition from traditional on-premise server−based software to software deployed over the Internet. This is in interplay with the emergence of new mobile technologies; a business environment where companies have to work in a distributed network of teams, partners, and clients; and changed end user needs and expectations. Read here to see how these changes can impact you.
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Improving business efficiency is a perennial concern for any company. While many companies employ siloed applications and manual business processes to improve efficiency, “best-in-class” companies are more likely to exploit enterprise resource planning (ERP) technology to improve their operational efficiency to reduce costs and enhance profitability, and make more resources available for strategic planning. Find out how.
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Universities and other higher education establishments have to address the need for savings across the board. One area is expenses from faculty members and other associated with faculty. The complex mix of expense types needs a flexible yet solid means of managing spend as close as possible to the point of expense that encourages the individual to participate in the process without it being seen as an imposition. Know how.
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The case company decided to carry out an information technology infrastructure library (ITIL) implementation, and in so doing hoped to make production in IT more visible, increase customer satisfaction, and maintain or increase employee satisfaction in IT. Implement Consulting Group facilitated the process selection and design and managed the requirement collection, selection, and implementation phases of the project.
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The case company implemented an information technology services management (ITSM) system to support information technology infrastructure library (ITIL)–inspired processes. Implement Consulting Group had the project management responsibility during the entire process—from the preliminary requirement collection to selection and implementation to testing and go-live.
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Our global study of small and medium-sized discrete manufacturers worldwide revealed the industry is struggling with increasing complexity, global competition, rapidly changing business environments, and volatile raw materials prices. While manufacturers worldwide face similar challenges, this study clarifies how strategic initiatives and priorities vary by sector, geography, and job description.
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Enterprise resource planning (ERP) provides the necessary infrastructure that forms the operations and transactional system of record for manufacturers of all types and sizes. Now decades old, as it has become more pervasive, there is risk in perceiving it as a given and neglecting to measure its business benefits. This research explores best-in-class approaches to realizing the greatest business benefit possible from ERP.
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Understanding, measuring, and managing against return on investment of a company’s IT investment (ROIT) enables IT leaders to quantitatively frame their contribution to the business and justify initiatives they seek to undertake. Read about concrete practices, processes, and recommendations to drive ROIT investment via key areas for improvement, the value of improvement, and guidelines for evaluating potential projects.
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Midsize companies today more than ever face the challenge of improving operational efficiency to meet objectives. This paper examines integrated, proven business solutions with deep, industry-specific functionalities that adapt to the unique needs of midsize companies in an affordable, predictable way. Read how these solutions enhance business agility, improve operational efficiency, and strengthen customer relationships.
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Rapid implementation is key to achieving rapid benefits. How can an industry that expects a slow return on investment speed up the process? Centric believes that customers should expect to see meaningful returns on product lifecycle management (PLM) investments within a product cycle, or four to six months. Learn the principles behind Centric’s rapid implementation methodology and how one customer reaped rapid benefits.
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Loss of strategic vision and leadership can pose a greater threat to organizations than dramatic economic downturn. Companies that invest in technology wisely will gain a competitive advantage and even prosper during hard times. Achieving financial results hinges on finding a product lifecycle management (PLM) solution that delivers business benefits not only in the short-term but also long into the future. Read how now.
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This white paper discusses solutions that can be leveraged to help support lean initiatives and foster the growth of a lean business. It explores how a lean business can benefit greatly from effective modeling, and provides a detailed example of how one software solution can be effectively adapted to a lean approach.
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A simulation project is much more than building a model. And the skills required go well beyond knowing a particular simulation tool. This paper discusses some important steps to enable project success and some cautions and tips to help avoid common traps.
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When it comes to business process management (BPM), it makes sense to “look before you leap.” Organizations considering using BPM to automate or streamline business processes should step back and understand what is at the core of each process. Is it a well-defined workflow? Does it have a set of related tasks or steps? Find out how answering these questions can help you define the right BPM solution for your organization.
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Today’s project management offices (PMOs) must optimize their project plans while managing complex projects concurrently, respecting delivery dates, and reducing resource costs. Decisions made based on the construction and interpretation of these plans have crucial consequences for the projects themselves, for the people involved, and for profits. Discover eight strategies to improve your project plans.
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For managed services providers (MSPs) aiming to serve small and medium-sized businesses, the ability to capture and retain lasting customer relationships is a determining factor for long-term profitability. Only by clearly and consistently communicating your value to your customer can you hope to attain the role of trusted advisor—a position that will help protect you from losing business to lower-priced competitors. Learn how an integrated, offline reporting solution can help ensure that your customers perceive your value in the ways that matter most to all managers within the customer organization.
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A business' success delivering managed services depends on its ability to improve the delivery of effective and efficient services to its customer base. Learn about ways that managed services providers (MSPs) can develop a higher-value business by improving their ability to attract and retain high-quality customers and provide IT services in an effective manner.
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Service companies that want to thrive need to find a better way to deliver services and run their business. Automating IT services is the answer, and it should be the immediate goal of any company that aims to stay in business as market pressures increase. Looking beyond basic automation, becoming a managed services provider (MSP) should be the long-term goal. Discover ways to ensure your service company's survival in today’s competitive IT services market.
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For all but the smallest companies, an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system promises big gains, by helping to grow revenue, increase productivity, improve efficiency, and manage costs. Right now, ERP for the midmarket is a hot topic. More and more midsized companies are replacing outdated ERP software or are jumping into ERP technology for the first time. Find out about what midmarket ERP buyers need to know.
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Business process management (BPM) and process improvement support the management and continuous improvement of business processes, both cross-departmental and enterprise-wide. How can you empower the transformation to lean and manage business operations in the various stages of its transformation, and manage the transition to lean? Learn about a BPM solution that employs lean Six Sigma for faster process improvements.
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As you begin a customer relationship management (CRM) initiative, software selection is only one facet of a successful project. You may consider implementing your new CRM system with internal resources. But even in providing a simple CRM solution in your company, a number of steps need to take place, including requirements gathering, configuration, and more. Discover the benefits of selecting a CRM implementation partner.
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Business process management (BPM) is an approach to administering business processes that involves people, organizations, and technologies—and can be carried out using varying levels of automation. Sadly, BPM often falls short of what it is intended to achieve. But there’s a fresh evolution of current BPM: goal-oriented autonomic BPM. Learn about the ideas, techniques, and benefits of autonomic and goal-oriented BPM.
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Change management is an inherent part of software implementation. Ideally, you want new business processes and the software to support them. However, companies still often compromise, due to their implementation approach and technology limitations—resulting in needless expense. There is a more rapid approach to implementation and change management, with reduced risk, greater value, and lower total cost of ownership (TCO).
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Sales at F.J. Westcott began to grow, placing a greater demand on its legacy enterprise resource planning (ERP) system’s inventory capabilities. Unrelieved inventory and other challenges led Westcott to seek a new ERP system—and a software evaluation and comparison methodology within the company’s budget. See how Technology Evaluation Centers’ Software Selection Services provided the resources for a confident decision.
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This may be a challenging economic period, but smart companies will use it as an opportunity to examine operational efficiency and best practices to reap benefits once the market improves. Your warehouse management system (WMS), a vital component of the supply chain execution suite, should be a key contributor in the search for cost-saving efficiencies—as well as the integration of your global supply chains. Learn more.
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International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) are the reporting standards developed by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). IFRS is now required or permitted in nearly 100 countries, while others plan to adopt or align with IFRS soon. In the US, Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) will soon be aligned with IFRS. Find out how this will affect your company, and what you can do about it.
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The implementation of an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system to automate business processes is a strategic investment. Buying the right system and choosing the best vendor for you are critical to a successful ERP implementation. As a decision maker, you need to quickly identify your ERP requirements, effectively communicate these needs to vendors, and successfully compare various product alternatives. Learn how.
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Is a total ban on workplace social networking a good idea? Companies should take more calculating points of view and look at how to turn the negative effects of social networking into positive effects. Employers can manage employee social networking to maximize the positives. The strategy combines employee education, well-thought-out acceptable use policies (AUPs), and—critically—effective Web filtering technology.
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Process improvement efforts often go hand in hand with a balanced scorecard (BSC). A BSC provides management with a set of key result indicators (KRI) to assess how the company is progressing toward strategic goals, such as “increase customer base.” For this type of goal, the KRI are tied to key performance indicators (KPIs). Explore how an application intelligence platform (AIP) can support a process improvement program.
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The idea that tier-one systems are difficult to maintain and upgrade is based on outdated notions about their complexity and flexibility. Although tier-one systems are more complex internally than tier-two or tier-three systems, tier-one systems are often easier to maintain: for one thing, one enterprise system is easier to maintain than several. Learn more about this and other reasons for upgrading to a tier-one system.
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Sole-sourcing business intelligence (BI) software from enterprise resource planning (ERP) vendors is an alluring option for many companies. But in addition to the benefits, there are drawbacks. A study of 100 enterprises from the United States and the European Union that have deployed BI and ERP from the same vendor investigates whether customers are experiencing what sole-sourcing promised to deliver. Learn more.
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Many successful midsized companies reach a point when transitioning to a tier-one enterprise application system is necessary. Transitioning to a new enterprise resource planning (ERP) system is a challenge—but it may not be as complex as you think. Learn common myths about tier-one ERP systems, as well as how ERP solutions can help you manage regulatory compliance and track performance with key performance indicators.
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Everything manufacturing executives thought they knew about project management and operations management is changing. Now, project managers may be connecting elements of an ongoing enterprise with a project in order to achieve certain defined goals, or use projects in a recurring way. Discover the many benefits manufacturers can realize by adopting a management-by-project approach with project-centric ERP software.
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To drive improvements in operating profit and customer service, you need to use business intelligence (BI) dashboard tools both tactically for operational visibility—and strategically for more forward-looking analysis. But you also need to ensure the use of BI is pervasive across the enterprise. Get insight into three discrete datasets that can help you examine the value of pervasive BI and drive business improvement.
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Have you come to the conclusion that your company needs a supply chain planning system? Do you need to provide management and other key decision makers with reasons why you need a supply chain planning system? One way that a supply chain planning system can help you is by enforcing best practices and processes. Get more details on this and 10 other reasons why you should implement a supply chain system that works for you.
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In today’s competitive global business environment, nearly all firms work hard to analyze alternatives and create strategies that enable competitive advantage. But 9 out of 10 companies fail to implement strategy effectively. How can you communicate the strategy effectively and assure that the entire company is aligned behind it? Discover how business performance optimization systems can help you make better decisions.
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Financial pressures can strain even the most efficient and lean company. So forward-thinking companies should now turn to the chief financial officer (CFO). The strategic CFO is equipped with the tools, plans, and fiscal philosophy that can transform the CFO’s role into a strategic business asset. Discover the processes that allow the CFO to break away from the old paradigm toward better financial and risk management.
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Get insight into manufacturing production metrics and best practices in the US, and benchmark your operations to better understand how to improve in today’s difficult economic climate. The Manufacturing Performance Institute (MPI) presents its findings, comparing and contrasting the responses of plants that rate themselves closest to—and furthest from—world-class status. See how your manufacturing facility stacks up.
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Part one of the “Lean Simplified” series looked at manufacturing wastes, lean principles, and the benefits of lean manufacturing. Here, in Part two, you’ll be taken through the action stage of lean practices: implementing lean. Understand the “5S” program toward implementing lean and begin laying the foundation of a discipline that is necessary for effective implementation of more complicated lean tools such as kanban.
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In today’s demanding project delivery environment, meeting contract deadlines is paramount. Companies are under pressure to rapidly establish plans, isolate deliverables, and deliver quality products. Learn about a project delivery management system that can help you streamline collaboration between business units, ensuring each step is monitored and controlled so you can deliver your project on time and on budget.
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The first role of the corporate controller has been to ensure corporate financial controls and—as a distant second—make strategic business contributions. But the installation of on-premise enterprise resource planning (ERP) and accounting software meant that controllers’ roles now involve financial software know-how. To achieve financial transformation, controllers need guidance and practical strategies. Learn more.
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In today’s challenging economic environment, companies require effective IT executive leadership. As part of the executive team, the chief information officer (CIO) develops and executes strategies that create competitive advantages for revenue growth. But knowing which tools to use—and when and how to use them—to protect current assets is key to a CIO coach’s success. Learn more about making better IT decisions.
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The term program management office (PMO) has been around for some time. Its core concepts, methods, and benefits have remained constant, while resources and tools have changed somewhat over the years. But not understanding what a program office is and when it should be leveraged is a common pitfall and reason for failure. Find out more about the program office, and its roles, processes, and responsibilities.
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During a recession, successful businesses change their approach to managing information technology (IT) sourcing. The challenge is to become more efficient and invest in IT so the return on investment (ROI) is realized quickly and business competitiveness is improved at lower cost. IT vendor management allows you to build a mutually beneficial relationship with your suppliers and service providers. Find out how.
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In 2006, Poudre Valley Health System (PVHS) was about to open a new hospital in Colorado (US). PVHS’s human resources (HR) department saw the need to change some existing processes, including the method of referencing job candidates. After one year of using a new HR hiring process solution, PVHS was able to predict supervisor evaluations of new hires and had the potential to save over $850,000 (USD). Learn more.
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Unfortunately, leaders often lack the visibility to predict workforce needs in difficult times, and human resources (HR) professionals often lack the business acumen to answer detailed data-driven workforce questions. As a result, many companies are currently operating in crisis mode, reacting to economic turmoil by downsizing their workforce. Find out how you can use workforce analytics for strategic workforce planning.
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Most enterprises have accumulated a surfeit of workforce and employee data. Only leading-edge companies are making extensive use of data to drive human capital management (HCM) decisions the way most companies use financial and marketing data to make strategic business decisions. Learn more about why—and how—you should be making fact-based workforce planning decisions that will help you survive the current recession.
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To succeed in ever-changing market conditions, you must manage and navigate an information network of business partners. Though you may have long focused your IT efforts on automating internal processes to save money, now you need to rethink how technology can support and transform the way decisions are made and business is conducted—both within and across your boundaries, focusing on key business processes. Learn more.
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Large enterprises have different warehouse management and inventory management needs than do small and mid-market companies. Find out about the key factors to success for mid-market companies, identify big-picture trends and needs that can help you overcome barriers to enjoy inventory management as a true strategic advantage—and learn about an inventory management solution specially designed for the mid-market.
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There’s no magic bullet for compliance success—even the most experienced organizations use a combination of reliable processes and proven technologies to get the job done. But identifying, designing, and executing the right internal controls to meet compliance standards in a large, global company can be arduous and expensive. The systems you use to support compliance efforts must be implemented well. Find out more.
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To many managers, the words “business process management” (BPM) conjure up images of complexity—months of planning, meetings, and more meetings. While BPM can be complex, it needn’t be. You can move quickly to implement process automation for your company. Learn what to consider and act on as you contemplate how to automate your business processes and increase competitive advantage and customer loyalty.
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The US and world markets are facing dramatic economic challenges. You may be questioning whether the business practices that worked for you before will continue to provide the same levels of profitability. To improve your operations or profitability, you need to take advantage of new technologies. But to get started, you need to know where you stand, and in which direction to move. Find out more about leadership strategy.
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As the economic downturn deepens, there’s no shortage of advice on how your company is to survive—where to cut costs and how to retrench the business. But despite the natural inclination to spend as little as possible, a recession might actually be a great time to use market conditions to your advantage. Find out why now is the time to invest in talent, increase your market presence, perk up your processes, and more.
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Survey data shows that companies want to improve their strategic business partnerships. Reflecting on lessons learned from past business relationships, 60 percent of respondents say that in future they’ll place more emphasis on developing personal relationships and setting expectations with business partners. Find out how these companies are creating collaborative networks that include business partners and consumers.
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Better. Faster. Cheaper. Every company is grappling with these concepts today as economic uncertainty spreads. Though many are focusing on what to eliminate in their operations, leading firms are redoubling their efforts to find new ways to execute with greater efficiency—to achieve operational excellence without sacrificing the value their customers expect. Learn more about improving your strategic competitive advantage.
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IT has long been one of the best ways to address business challenges. Yet significant obstacles at the level of IT infrastructure stand in the way. Siloed IT operations and rigid IT management processes can impede business agility. When IT partners with the business to act less as a technology provider and more as a service provider, business objectives can be achieved more efficiently and cost-effectively. Find out how.
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Many small to medium businesses (SMBs) do not have experience with software as a service (SaaS), but are looking to adopt SaaS solutions soon. According to studies, 2009 will be the tipping point, with a majority of companies aiming to adopt SaaS this year. But these companies must be cautious, as the old rules for on-premise software analysis and purchase don’t apply. Discover the new rigorous criteria you should use.
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Issues of governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) affect nearly everything life sciences companies do. But you shouldn’t approach GRC in an ad hoc manner—implementing point solutions one after another in response to regulatory demands as they arise. This is inefficient and costly—and may result in non-compliance, due to lack of transparency. Learn how an enterprise-wide GRC approach to compliance management can help.
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For years, utilities have seen a growing need to enable a smarter electric grid, promote cleaner power sources, and replace aging structures. These issues came into sharper focus when US President Obama signed into law the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). This legislation provides funding for many energy initiatives—however, strict compliance guidelines come with the stimulus plan. Find out more.
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You needn’t be a seer or sage to perceive risk—it’s as predictable and devastating as a Florida hurricane and as far-reaching as a corporate scandal. But you do need to be a visionary to see the underside of the risk coin. This side represents opportunity, competitiveness, and growth. Find out why insight into managing two types of risk, rewarded and unrewarded, can help you explore opportunities for growth and profit.
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Many companies have used lean principles to move from a decentralized corporate management mode to a hybrid model—recognizing that different functions require different levels of centralized management to be efficient and effective. An effective lean transformation eliminates more than the most obvious areas of wasted time and resource. Find out how lean must address the unique requirements of various business processes.
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Driving sustainable growth requires profitability-focused planning and performance management. Most companies have some type of profitability reporting—but many are investing a lot of effort to produce this information. And the limitations to the information companies currently compile may have a significant impact on decision making. Learn how automating profitability reporting can help your company improve decisions.
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Business process management (BPM) is an attempt to provide a holistic view of a company’s workflows and automate processes. It provides a new management discipline, a new suite of software tools, and a new IT implementation style based on concrete links between strategy and execution. Learn more about SAP’s place in the BPM landscape and what its new BPM tool—NetWeaver BPM—can do to help you better manage your company.
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A benchmarking survey shows that most organizations have a reactive method to governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) management, channeling resources and management attention to address specific regulatory mandates independently and in isolation from each other. The result: fragmented GRC activities and data sources that increase costs and hinder business agility. Find out how your company can become less reactive.
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As modern enterprises grow in complexity and scope, managers struggle to keep pace. Business process management (BPM) is increasingly seen as a way to master the swelling complexity of modern corporations and coordinate the work of thousands of people by focusing on well-defined processes. Find out how BPM, applied the right way, can fulfill the promise of IT to automate business processes and directly support strategy.
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The current global economic instability means firms have to quickly adapt to business conditions. This uncertainty may increase companies’ reliance on business alliances to provide as-needed skills, services, and products. To optimize these alliances, finance should enter the discussion as early as possible. Find out where finance’s true value lies when realigning strategic objectives to include business collaboration.
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While different business strategies have been used to insulate firms from change, chief executive officers (CEOs) are beginning to see that their companies need to become more agile in making changes to strategy, operations, and products. But turning agility from a buzzword into a business capability means measuring and managing your ability to change. Find out how CEOs can take the lead in defining what agility means.
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Growth—whether organic or acquisitive—is challenging executives today from a strategic as well as an operational perspective. Studies estimate that 50 to 80 percent of deals fail to reach their projected results. Discover the challenges inherent in three common growth models, and find out how to implement a solid, flexible, and adaptive foundation that can support your company’s corporate growth strategies.
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Businesses of all sizes and in all industries are finding it difficult and costly to update and modify enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems after installation. The question isn’t whether a typical ERP solution supports change, but rather at what cost? Learn what midsize companies are doing about maintaining, modifying, and updating their ERP systems post-implementation, and what you could be doing better.
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Most strategies for dealing with e-mail deluge involve getting more power out of the e-mail solution: greater storage or better spam filters. But what if you’ve got the problem all wrong? The purpose of technology, including e-mail, is to enhance employee productivity. Find out how online collaboration tools can help you reduce the e-mail deluge, streamline information management, and increase overall productivity.
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The IT landscape has grown into a complex system of servers, networks, locations, products, and processes. Making all these systems work efficiently and securely has become an enormous task. This four-chapter e-book can help you identify the issues surrounding the design, control, and management of jobs, and give you insight into best practices for an efficient, maintainable job scheduling and workload automation system.
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The global economic downturn is impacting the way we do business. Many companies are looking to optimize costs. The best way to ensure your company’s survival is through strategic planning. High-level managers face many challenges that can be overcome by managing risks and tracking project progress and budgets. Find out why the key to success involves having the right information at the right level at the right time.
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Taleo, provider of software as a service (SaaS), was reaching $120 million (USD) and had more than 600 employees. Yet, in finance, the company was not quite so dynamic. The new director of finance recognized the need to move to a financial reporting system that featured technology advances. Find out about the online analytic processing (OLAP) server Taleo chose as part of its businessModify performance management strategy.
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Best practices for reporting have often been overlooked. Most of the time we focus on eye candy—such as dashboards—and overlook report generation and report production, which are crucial concepts at the heart of business intelligence (BI). Learn more about the current reporting situation, and learn about ways to use reporting tools to improve the reporting processes in your company and make them more efficient.
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Many companies recognize the need for project portfolio management (PPM) and implement a solution, but encounter cultural resistance to the initiative. Yet other companies can integrate PPM with virtually no resistance. The difference is the readiness for and acceptance of change in the company. Learn how to avoid the pitfalls, adhere to proven best practices, and realize the benefits and huge return on investment (ROI).
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IT spending is often an issue for companies, but in difficult economic times it’s even more important to see what benefit IT can bring to the business. But IT investments are most effective when they improve business performance. Find out the degree to which organizations in the United Kingdom (UK) understand what IT is doing for their businesses, and in particular how some companies measure this and benefit from it.
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The automation of traditional paper-based processes with technology can lead to unnecessary complexity. This leads to increased costs and other challenges which can be avoided if solutions are simple and fit closely to the business task in hand.
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Global demand for food and beverages continues to rise, and the market will pay a premium for partially prepared healthier choices. Food and beverage manufacturers with innovative solutions for these niche markets are in a position to gain brand dominance, resulting in higher revenues, profits, and market share. Discover tactical and strategic innovative practices that can help support changes in your business processes.
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Project portfolio management (PPM) software can provide a dynamic decision-making process for assessing projects such as portfolios, prioritizing projects, and allocating limited resources to meet key organizational objectives. Using PPM can also help you better align and manage your people, projects, and processes—giving you the ability to react quickly to change and minimize risk in the current declining market.
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IT service delivery departments today need to keep spending under control without compromising service quality—running a very tight technical and operational ship is vital. Achieving this involves at least three components of application management. Find out what they are, and how you can reduce costs and maximize staff productivity while managing the change process for the Oracle E-Business Suite.
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In hard economic times, IT organizations can maintain operational excellence and sustain service quality while still reducing costs. Achieving this objective involves at least three aspects of application management: managing change, managing technical performance, and managing user performance. Learn more about managing the change process in your PeopleSoft environment, and the value of an integrated change solution.
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Embarking on an operational excellence strategy should not be undertaken lightly. As with most company-wide initiatives, success requires planning, commitment, measurement, and continuous follow-up. Find out what senior executives from around the world think about how to achieve operational excellence, and the questions you need to ask to develop a winning operations strategy and achieve sustained growth.
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Perimeter computer-room air handlers and central air-handling units have been used to cool data centers since the launch of the mainframe. But as rack power grew, air delivery and heat removal challenges appeared. Row-based designs address issues of proper heat removal and cold air supply—and bring energy-efficiency advantages. Learn more about row-based solutions and the benefits they can deliver to your data center.
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Increased global competition and rising costs place continued pressure on all midsize companies to optimize resources, meet tighter delivery schedules, and improve overall responsiveness. When looking at the pressures driving the top performers of midsize companies, however, the story is different. Find out why—and how these drivers affect the enterprise resource planning (ERP) strategies of these best-in-class companies.
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Within large companies, there are an increasing number of activities and people to manage, including suppliers and third-party agencies. These activities are often supported by underdeveloped IT systems—but marketing is always “too busy” with campaigns, web content, and other activities to do anything about it. Learn how marketing resource management systems can help manage marketing activity and accountability.
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People—that is, talent—are at the heart of any strategy to master the business challenges of high-tech companies. For best results, human resources (HR) organizations must transform from taking the role of service provider to that of strategic business partner. Find out about the four imperatives a successful HR organization must address in order to develop a competitive HR strategy and win the war for talent.
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North American process manufacturers face increasing challenges related to heightened security, pricing pressures, global competition, and rising costs. Thus, continuous improvement of processes is imperative to remaining competitive. How close is your company to world-class? And how focused are you on process improvement? Find out how get started on a process improvement strategy that will have long-term benefits.
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To close the gap between strategy, risk, and execution, companies need to build strategic alignment across all aspects of the business. Learn how your company can benefit from deploying strategy management software as part of a larger corporate performance management solution—encompassing business planning and consolidation, profitability and cost management, spend analytics, and governance, risk, and compliance.
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Enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems now support many organizations’ most important business processes, and house their most sensitive corporate data. As a result, senior management needs to fully understand both the timing and project plan before proceeding with any ERP upgrade. Learn how to plan and manage your next ERP upgrade project, and develop an overall corporate strategy for maintaining your ERP system.
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Relevant to the current economic recession, find out about key challenges faced by the retail industry, such as multichannel integration. Get an introduction to a process excellence and governance approach specific to retail, for radical cost reduction and organizational agility and visibility. You’ll also find a case study about business performance management (BPM) in the food and beverage industry.
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Today’s executives have more challenges and concerns than ever, from compliance to use of technology. To thrive and ultimately excel within a competitive landscape, an organization must have a technology framework capable of meeting today’s marketplace requirements while positioning the company for future growth and challenges. Find out how to better leverage technology investments and become a best-run business.
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Want to know more about distributed agile best practices for software development projects? Find out about the challenges and lessons learned from this implementation of distributed agile for teams distributed across US, Europe, and India. Discover how this large, globally distributed project for a large telecom vendor realized such benefits as better collaboration, higher quality product, and on-time delivery.
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Today, business is driven to change per customers’ needs, and IT organizations must be strategic partners with the lines of business. Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) best practices are gaining popularity as one way to manage change. However, implementing ITIL best practices in an IT organization is not without challenges. Learn about the approaches that can be used for successful ITIL implementation.
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The strength of a company can be traced to the value of its brands. Brand marketing managers seek to create and develop brand value by converting consumer insights into consumer loyalty. How can you overcome the challenge of developing effective marketing campaigns that convert consumer information into revenue and profit? Leverage the value of your brand with an integrated approach to brand management. Find out how.
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In a global survey of senior managers in various functions from 17 industries, 61 percent say IT’s primary mission today is that of reducing costs and boosting productivity. But the IT mission is changing: nearly 70 percent of the same executives say that within three years IT’s main role will be to enable revenue growth. Learn more about how this shift is expected to happen, and how to manage it in your organization.
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Best practices in technology can help manufacturers of complex products and equipment get their offerings to market more quickly and profitably by enabling them to become more cost effective and efficient. But there are still challenges to be overcome, due to product life cycle complexity. Discover the best practices that can help you make the product and make it right, on time, and within budget—while making a profit.
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The Delphi technique—drawing wise counsel from senior and experienced software developers—can help you prepare estimates for software development projects. With this method of software estimation, project specifications are given to a few experts, depending on their availability. Learn about the essential steps involved in this software estimation methodology for more accurate estimates of software development effort.
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In the corporate world, the word “excellence” is used a lot, but what does it really mean? One way to answer that question is to examine what companies that are considered to be excellent have in common. Learn the common characteristics that allow excellent companies to lead in their markets while continuing to innovate, and find out how your company can measure, achieve, and sustain organizational excellence.
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In the wake of the subprime meltdown, many financial services firms are coping with huge write-downs and high market volatility by cutting staff and budgets. But even in uncertain times, smart financial firms can find ways to grow. Learn how you can use customer-centric strategies and customer relationship management (CRM) tools to maximize the value and loyalty of your client base and gain insight into new opportunities.
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It’s no secret that winning and retaining customers is the key to growth and success. But that’s no small feat, with ever-increasing customer demands, as well as the difficulty of implementing and enforcing processes to support your interactions with prospects, customers, and partners. Eight proven customer relationship management (CRM) best practices can help you create a customer retention strategy. Learn more.
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Most businesses are impacted by the slow economy, but recessions and economic slowdowns don’t last forever. Smart companies will be able to manage the challenges and emerge stronger and more vital for the experience. Discover how business process automation, a renewed focus on customer service, new tax opportunities, and other best practices can help your company shine in these tough economic times.
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By automating and optimizing business processes, companies gain the efficiency, clarity, and flexibility they need to support the creative development of products and services. Employees in such an environment spend less time on mundane business tasks, focusing instead on generating new ideas and innovative products. Learn how integrated software solutions can help you invest and innovate to sustain your company’s growth.
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System planning is the Achilles’ heel of a data center physical infrastructure project. Planning mistakes can propagate through later deployment phases, resulting in delays, cost overruns, wasted time, and a compromised system. These troubles can be eliminated by viewing system planning as a data flow model, with sequenced tasks that progressively transform and refine data from initial concept to final design. Learn more.
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In data center design projects, flawed management frequently leads to delays, expense, and frustration. Effective project management requires well-defined responsibilities for every manager, tight coordination among suppliers, well-defined procedures for managing change, and consistent terminology. Learn how enforcing these requirements can help your company achieve an efficient process with a predictable outcome.
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As the complexity of security threats increases, so do the security measures needed to protect networks. Data center operators, network administrators, and other data center professionals need to comprehend the basics of security to safely deploy and manage networks today. Find out what you need to know about the fundamentals of secure networking systems, including firewalls, network topology, and secure protocols.
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Despite advances in technology, power outages continue to be a major cause of PC and server downtime. Protecting computers with uninterruptible power supply (UPS) hardware is part of a total solution, but power management software is also needed to prevent data corruption after extended power outages. Learn about the various software configurations you can implement and the best practices that can help you ensure uptime.
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For today’s small to medium manufacturers, increasing the bottom line while optimizing efficiency poses an increasingly difficult challenge, especially in our current economic crisis. This, coupled with competition in a global environment, puts manufacturers in a tight spot. Discover the key challenges facing small to medium manufacturers, and the on-demand solutions you can leverage to sustain and win business.
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Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are facing new challenges and opportunities. By linking people, processes, and workflows from inside and outside your company, business management software can help you drive success. Learn about key drivers in the “extended enterprise vision” strategy and how to integrate newer concepts, such as service-oriented architecture (SOA) and Web 2.0 capabilities, with existing applications.
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Microsoft recently researched the experience of nearly 200 companies with more than 250 PCs that have deployed one or more of the applications in the Microsoft Dynamics line of business management solutions. Among these companies, a common issue was growth via mergers and acquisitions (M&A). Find out about the pain points, and how Microsoft Dynamics can help support growth via M&A to drive business success.
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Today’s data transmission departments are battling for budget and relevance. Moving files and ensuring delivery is getting tougher every day. To successfully deliver data to an increasing number of target platforms and meet rising customer expectations, leading companies are adopting service-oriented architectures (SOAs) and upgrading their file transfer departments into data transmission services. Find out more.
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Organizations preparing to meet globalization head on face a complex set of business and technology challenges—from the supply chain complexity of entering new markets to the need for global visibility and standardized business processes. Learn how globally implemented enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems and integrated business processes are helping companies exploit new markets and lower manufacturing costs.
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Demand for knowledge workers is building even as their experience, skills, and abilities are in ever shorter supply. And, the needs of this diverse talent pool are shifting. Rather than focusing on acquisition and retention, you should focus instead on what employees care most about. Discover strategies that enable you not only to hire the best talent, but to develop it by connecting employees to what matters to them.
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Chief financial officers (CFOs) are moving beyond administrative and transactional tasks and becoming catalysts to improve business performance. In collaboration with business units, they are developing the metrics and data required to track and meet business goals. Find out how they’re capturing and disseminating the information needed to make operating and management decisions, and provide decision support to finance.
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With increased mergers and acquisitions at the global level, organizations have started recognizing the benefits of upgrading to a modern enterprise resource planning (ERP) platform and a service-oriented architecture (SOA). Learn how different approaches to ERP system and architecture upgrades can help your company drive down costs, raise employee productivity, and produce meaningful business process improvement.
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Customer relationship management (CRM) best practices aren’t well recognized by many companies. Disappointment with CRM systems usually results from poor strategies that don’t focus on a specific set of business capabilities to increase revenues or reduce costs. How well does your company stack up? Learn about CRM best practices, pinpoint the best opportunities for quick wins, and build an action plan to close the gaps.
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Compliance with regional and international standards, such as the Waste Electric and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) or Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) directives, has made it more complicated for companies to deliver innovative products to customers. Learn how focusing on product innovation, data integration, and process optimization can help your company satisfy customer needs while meeting compliance standards.
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Has your organization truly embraced the message of the incident management process, as part of the practices recommended in the IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL)? If your efforts have centered on the service desk, then you may be missing out on a lot of what incident management in particular and ITIL in general can offer. Learn more about the core principles of ITIL, and how you can use them to improve service management.
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Companies can reduce operating costs and improve the ways they do business by using customer relationship management (CRM) systems that support real-time decision making. But you must ensure you deploy applications that can leverage industry best practices while retaining the competitive differentiation from a well-honed business process and strategy. Learn about the benefits of using CRM with industry best practices.
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The common perception is that top-tier enterprise software takes years to implement. This is true for more complex solutions. But other applications, when combined with effective project management by capable professionals, can be rolled out rapidly when it counts—like after a merger or acquisition. Get tips for a speedy enterprise resource planning (ERP) implementation, from a company that lived to tell the tale.
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As companies come to grips with current fiscal realities, choices may result more from reaction than the use of sound judgment. Removing vital resources and reducing services can create an even lower return on investment (ROI) than existed before downsizing. Outsourcing may offer a solution. Learn about the effects that the present financial situation will have on the outsourcing community, including buyers and suppliers.
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As countries frequently increase and revise border security protocols, participating in global trade has become increasingly complex. Compliance and supply chain managers can no longer solely rely on personal knowledge and paper-based processes to effectively plan and manage global trade. You must have real-time access to critical trade information and the ability to automate global trade management processes. Learn more.
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Whatever you offer as a service provider, success depends on how well you manage key accounts to ensure long-term relationships and the highest possible margins. But with today’s challenges, it’s difficult to maintain market share, let alone grow. SAP’s All-in-One fast-start program offers a solution that can help you maximize client and service-line profitability by supporting industry best practices. Learn more.
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As a midsize wholesale distributor, you need to stand out from your competition while improving efficiency. SAP Business All-in-One Solutions offer software designed to help you with your current needs, while remaining capable of supporting future growth. Find out how this solution can help you improve transparency and coordination between the warehouse and the executive suite, but also streamline inventory management.
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It’s not easy for manufacturing companies to improve operating efficiency while responding to market changes. Improving productivity across business processes requires visibility, speed, and automation. The SAP Business All-in-One fast-start program can tailor SAP manufacturing software to your needs and roll it out quickly—and, it can be adapted to changing requirements. Find out how it can grow with your company.
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Midsize companies engaged in manufacturing, trade, or services need innovative solutions they can implement quickly to help them manage changing customer demands, government regulations, and market requirements. Online tools can speed the configuration, control costs and scope, and tailor the solution to your company—and you’ll have the agility and support you need to grow, while staying within budget. Find out how.
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A failed software implementation can cost companies millions in wasted time and money. To ensure your software selection project isn’t a sorry statistic, use the right metrics to gauge your success. Time, budget, and functionality aren’t enough--focus your efforts on requirements analysis and definition. Take measures to ensure your software meets your needs, and discover how to perform accurate requirements analysis.
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The trade-off between best-of-breed functionality and ease of integration is no longer so simple. Enterprise resource planning (ERP) software continues to expand, blurring the boundaries of core ERP functionality. The three essential factors to consider in ERP versus best-of-breed decisions are functionality, integration, and the ability to upgrade. Find out the questions you need to ask when considering an ERP extension.
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Chief information officers (CIOs) must provide timely, accurate, and consistent enterprise-wide information, to support business goals and stay competitive. But with data in multiple disparate applications, this is a challenge. Learn best practices for developing an information management strategy that can help you gain a comprehensive view of data and processes—to enable real-time visibility and better decision making.
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Recent EquaTerra market research finds a consensus among western business leaders that increased globalization is inevitable—and that it will generally be beneficial. Quickly and efficiently leveraging opportunities created by globalization is the best way to avoid being overwhelmed by its challenges. Learn how to compare buyer and service provider data and get insight into developing a responsive global strategy.
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For many companies, the second largest cost after people is facilities. Solutions have evolved from traditional out-tasking and outsourcing to the more recent strategy of integrating facilities management and real estate under a single service provider. But first, understand marketplace realities: provider capabilities don’t always line up with buyer expectations. Learn about the challenges of integrating these services.
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Here's an all-too typical scenario. Management at a multinational company decides to implement a standardized enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution. Everyone expects to cut costs and improve core end-to-end processes. But 13 months later, vital key performance indicators (KPIs) don’t improve as planned. Discover how a company focused on user performance to bring its ERP reality back into alignment with its vision.
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Ping Identity provides software for the computer security and identity management industry. Ping wanted to facilitate rapid, high-end development and accelerate time to market for its leading Web security product. When its first outsourcing choice didn’t offer enough Agile development expertise, Ping found another solution that helped reduce costs by 46 percent and doubled in-house performance in key areas. Learn more.
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The requirements of the engineer-to-order (ETO) environment create special challenges for capital equipment manufacturers. Traditional material requirements planning (MRP) techniques don’t account for these manufacturers’ needs. Before you invest in manufacturing software, you should carefully consider 10 questions to ensure that software vendors are focused on your business and can deliver the solution you need.
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Enterprise resource planning (ERP) software can facilitate business improvements. But it can also create new challenges, including obsolete technology, lack of flexibility, and high support costs, to name a few. There’s a way to keep your current ERP system while extending its capabilities to remote manufacturing sites, service centers, and supply chain partners: a service-oriented architecture (SOA) approach. Learn more.
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A fast-growing robotics product manufacturer needed to track an extremely large inventory of individual products. A daily expanding product line presented even greater hurdles for inventory management, and meeting on-time delivery goals. The company’s old enterprise resource planning (ERP) system wasn’t keeping up, so the company moved to a system that allows more options for product customization and more. Learn how.
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Because “Generation Y” will soon make up the bulk of the workforce, companies need to evolve their human resources (HR) programs and services to deliver to Gen Y, and focus on recruiting and retaining this next generation of workers. For HR programs to be successful, you need to know the issues surrounding Gen Y in the workplace, including why Gen Y behaves differently from Generation X and the Baby Boomers. Learn more.
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The one thing you can count on today in business is change, whether it’s customers, business models, or the pace of business. To manage change, companies rely on technology. But the most effective management control and optimization of company performance can be achieved only if you have the right systems. Discover how an integrated system can help you manage data and make better decisions, for a more successful company.
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Growing demands on storage management system requirements can run counter to your need to lower costs. With Database 10g, Oracle introduced new features that can simplify database storage management to offer significant savings in both deployment cost and ongoing management overhead. Find out about best practices for deploying Oracle with Pillar’s Axiom storage system, with benefits to performance and management.
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When your quality control plan is complex because there are many features to control—and it involves many people—you need to pay special attention to your quality control process. Also, a complex plan places high demands on your software solution. Discover how an online integrated factory information system can work across production, job tracking, spoilage, and quality to support all of your quality control processes.
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Escalating health fears, new global policies, and a highly competitive market means that traceability is an issue food and beverage companies cannot afford to ignore. All this has led to a need for information on quality and food safety that companies must live up to. Explore the key issues surrounding traceability in the food and beverage industry, and find out why you might need to consider a new traceability system.
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The results of a recent industry survey shed light on the latest trends, challenges, and solutions in software product development for 2008. If you are involved in the planning and development of products, software applications, or systems, this report can help you gain insight into the biggest challenges in innovation, the top barriers to success, which metrics matter most when measuring success, and more.
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In today’s changing, competitive world, companies must adopt a continuous improvement methodology to support sustainable and profitable business models. Processes must be seen as a lever for analyzing and optimizing the way firms works. Before you initiate any project involving process automation and management, discover five key points that can help you make continuous improvements in the life cycles of your processes.
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En el presente documento no vamos a hablar de los múltiples beneficios que aporta la gestión y automatización de procesos, ni de la importancia que tiene para mejorar la competitividad y productividad empresarial, ni de suites o aplicaciones de software, sino de las claves genéricas que deben tener en cuenta todas aquellas organizaciones, de cualquier sector, que se embarquen en un proyecto de mejora de procesos de negocio.
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IT organizations struggle with the challenges of shrinking budgets, ever-changing technology, compliance pressures, and more. For greater efficiency, many IT organizations are turning to information technology service management (ITSM) to help improve processes. But there’s still too much focus on technology and not enough on business outcomes. Learn key strategies for changing your approach to delivering IT services.
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Customers and users see the value of IT services only after they’re in operation. Unfortunately, preparation and due diligence doesn’t always mean that you end up providing the IT services those users are expecting. With the automotive industry used as an analogy, get key tips on how to better define and document IT operations design and transition—so ultimately, your customers and users get the services they demand.
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Financial services organizations are always looking for ways to improve business processes to implement tighter control—and improve the bottom line. But finding new ways to boost efficiency is challenging. One strategy for success is to improve the use and allocation of resources in order to eliminate errors from duplicate data entry. Discover more about this strategy and two others, as well as how they can benefit you.
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An estimated two-thirds of IT projects aren’t completed on time or budget, while 15 percent are cancelled entirely. But your IT project doesn’t have to be a gamble. By knowing the most common causes of project failure, your company increases the potential for a successful project outcome. Learn more about how inadequate initial project planning can be one of your greatest obstacles to success—and how you can overcome it.
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Software as a service (SaaS) is known for its relative speed to deployment and low up-front cost. Less well known are the business advantages of SaaS for enterprise resource planning (ERP) solutions, especially for small and midsized businesses. Learn how a fully integrated SaaS solution can help you improve your business operations, as well as better meet the challenges of growth, competition, and regulatory compliance.
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