Interactive Resource Planning Systems
Johan Wallin, Senior Partner, SMG Finland

“Lean management” and “capability leveraging” — in the way applied by firms such as Ford, Capital One and Sears Roebuck — hold a new connotation in the rapidly changing environment that many firms are facing today. Traditionally, quality management and re-engineering efforts could be implemented over considerable periods of time. Now, the firm is often required to adapt rapidly and often, or it will see competitors move ahead of them, with the risk that these competitor’s dynamics will make them prime movers, preventing anyone from ever catching up with them. 

This type of competitive landscape requires an interactive approach to the issue of resource planning. We can define such a system as an Interactive Resource Planning (IRP) system. An IRP system integrates sales, marketing and production planning, and it is by definition customer-driven. The planning system, and the routines around it, are built on the interactions between the firm and its customers. The primary function of the IRP system is to make sure that resources are constantly reallocated to match the value creating potentials of the customers.

Data Warehousing - 2000
W.H. (Bill) Inmon, CTO, Pine Cone Systems, Inc.

Data warehousing has matured in a few short years to the point of today being conventional wisdom. A framework - the corporate information factory - has grown up in which many components center around the hub of an enterprise data warehouse.  Some of the first components of the framework were data marts and the ODS. Now there are exploration warehouses, data mining warehouses, near line and secondary storage, and a host of other structures. There is starting to be back flow from the warehouse to the ODS.  Informal data warehouses are starting to recognize the importance of bridging the gap to the formal data warehouse. In short the world of data warehousing is not standing still.

But most importantly, the application vendors - ERP, CRM, electronic commerce - have discovered that they have to have a warehouse if they are to fulfill the promises that have been made.

This presentation addresses where data warehouse is today and why data warehouse is at the center of success for your information systems.

Media Intelligence and Data Warehousing
Observer Media Intelligence

The Media Intelligence Process approach starts from the fact that we register most of our personal external information from the media. Using external media information as the guiding vehicle to structure our information architecture therefore provides us with a relevant yardstick that can be interactively improved in pace with the changes in the real world outside.

The Media Intelligence Process provides a strong foundation in what is relevant. The role of media has increased in the society. Systematically and analytically following how media treats issues of importance therefore provides a substantial potential to competitive advantage. This however requires that a common knowledge process can be designed to combine new external information with existing internal proprietary knowledge. This presentation explores how data warehousing technologies are utilized in a Media Intelligence Process.