Leading developer of storage solution DataDirect Networks, along with SQream, leading developer of GPU accelerated data warehouse have confirmed a solution that enables users to deploy large scale warehouse analytics. Using a combination of both systems, the innovative solution allows end users to effectively enhance the overall performance of business queries without incurring any challenges.

An ‘Accelerating Analytics at Scale for Higher Quality Business Decisions’ webinar is planned between DDN, SQream and analyst company 451 Research to provide more details on the technology.

Businesses worldwide are starting to truly understand the complexities of efficiently measuring their substantial data stores. For many companies, the sheer amount of data now exceeds the capabilities of conventional data warehouses. To improve the use of data, analysts are exploring new architectures that will enable them to access, analyse and extract valuable data in an efficient manner.

DDNs architecture includes the required infrastructure to deliver a turnkey, GPU-focused analytics system. Comprising of the DDN AI200 NVMe-based storage system, the NVIDIA DGX-1 Deep Learning Server and its switching infrastructure, the A³I solution utilises parallelism to create the potential within SQream DB. The combined solution enables businesses to measure data quicker and at a considerably lower cost than conventional data warehouses.

Kurt Kuckein, senior director of marketing at DDN explains that their customers are continuing to find innovative ways to utilise analytics to deliver fresh insights into the business operation. According to Kuckein, the new partnership with SQream is transforming how companies can leverage their data and provide further value.

David Leichner, the CMO at SQream explains that there is a strong synergy within the partnership with DDN. A combination of the highest quality breed hardware, along with the database acceleration technology at SQream will result in improved capabilities of business insights. Leichner goes on to suggest that through the partnership with DDN, they can offer a solution that helps customers enhance their analytics performance and at the same time minimise any potential risk or challenges whilst meeting the requirements of each business.

DataDirect Networks Explained

DDN is a global leader in supplying big data storage to data-focused businesses worldwide. For over 20 years, DDN has been involved in designing, developing and launching optimised systems and software and storage solutions that allow businesses and agencies to create more value and enable more time to gather insights from their data. The DDN storage technology enables businesses to gather, store, process, analyse and distribute their data on a large scale in the most timely, reliable and cost-efficient manner. Clients working with DDN include some of the leading financial services companies, healthcare, manufacturing and energy business worldwide.

Introducing SQream

SQream focuses on its SQream DB, a GPU data warehouse system that enables the highest level of business intelligence from significant data stores. Businesses worldwide use the SQream DB to measure large volumes of data, for enhanced performance and to reduce costs as well as the potential to scale large amounts of data. SQream DB is available to users internally or via the cloud.

The Enterprise Performance Management (EPM) software market is expected to experience a surge due to rising demand for enhanced strategic plans in businesses.

Cloud-based EPM software provides additional benefits related to conventional EPM software, creating a more efficient and faster tool to implement, an increasing rate of innovation in businesses, reducing operational costs and supporting closer collaboration between team members.

EPM software supports the automation of manual tasks and improves the implementation rate of focus finance processes. EPM software is created in a way to support the implementation of key strategic plans and goals that have been created for an entire business chain. At present, the global EPM software market is expected to reach a value of $3,600 million by the year 2022 and continue to increase at a steady rate during this period.

Global Forecast for the EPM Software Market

Industry analysts suggest the services product sector reach a value of nearly $800 million by the year 2022. This equates to a steady and solid CAGR growth from now until 2022. The services product sector is predicted to account for over 20% of the revenue share of the product type and is due to gain market share further by 2022.

Forecasts suggest that the IT and Telecommunication end-user industry will reach a value of approximately $550 million and is due to gain further market share by 2022. The cloud industry is expected to reach a value of nearly $970 million by 2022 and continue to expand its market share within this period.

The biggest contributing share in the cloud market is found within North America, with a forecast compound annual growth rate of around 5% from now until 2022.

The recent acquisition of Attunity is another clear sign of Qlik’s data management goals and will likely attract new users looking to combine big data and analytics within a single platform.

The BI and data visualization business have added the Israeli integration and data management company, enhancing its competitive potential within the data management market and potential to attract users seeking an integrated data platform.

The Attunity acquisition, valued at $560 million comes after a series of other deals, including the purchase of AI chatbot Crunchbot and startup data management business, Podium Data. Industry experts believe these deals are a clear indicator that Qlik intends to strengthen its portfolio to compete with one of its largest competitors – Tableau. Doug Henschen, an analyst at Constellation Research believes the recent deals highlight Qlik’s goals to become a bigger and more diverse technology business. Henschen explains that the recent deals enable Qlik to offer data management on a bigger scale and at the same time, develop analytics along with all this added data. In a recent media statement, Qlik explained how Attunity can deliver data in real time, within a range of cloud and data systems as key factors for planning the acquisition.

How will this affect Qlik users?

The integration with Attunity will likely attract users within financial services, healthcare, manufacturing and retail industries. Features such as change data capture technology that handles low-latency needs and data migration potential will support users with cloud projects.

Henschen does highlight, however, what impact all of these acquisitions are having on the core function of the business. Existing customers need to be assured that Qlik is not losing focus and is continuing to develop and invest in its main analytics tools and also exploring other capabilities such as cloud deployment and AI augmentation. In the last year, Qlik provided an analytics product road map and users will require regular updates on progress and future plans in this area.

It is unknown how Qlik will present the Attunity system. The recent relaunch of the Podium Data technology was created via a singular product, referred to as the Qlik Data Catalyst and may be a sign of what to expect in future product launches.

The acquisition is due to be completed later this year. Qlik has made it clear it aims to explore new markets, including the data lake arena, which holds significant competitors include Microsoft Azure and AWS, along with a range of established data management software companies.

Other competitors are not falling behind, however, with Tableau recently launching its own data management service called Tableau Prep Builder and Tableau Prep Conductor data preparation tools, along with the Tableau Data Management Add-on bundle. Tableau is taking the approach of working ‘top-down’, using internally developed research and development to build new products. Qlik, on the other hand, is acquiring assets to expand its data management portfolio from the ‘bottom-up’.

The software market has continued to evolve over recent years, offering a range of systems to support businesses worldwide.

Of the many brands competing, the focus seems to be placed on Anaplan and Adaptive Insights. Both companies provide a unique service, with Adaptive Insights existing for nearly 15 years whilst Anaplan has only just recently emerged. Codex Recruitment explores the benefits and values of each system for businesses.

Measuring Cost

Adaptive Insights software is available to around 100 countries worldwide, providing a simplistic and accessible option for low to mid-level businesses seeking a user-friendly tool. In contrast, Anaplan is more of a high-end product that is limited to a select number of clients due to its high initial market cost.

Compatibility with Excel

There will always be a requirement to control your business processes and data via Microsoft Excel. Adaptive Insights is the system that enables customers to drag and drop information into custom templates far easier than other tools. The dashboard enables employees to utilise a tool known as integrated process tracker which provides useful details to ensure individuals are guided through the entire integration process. Anaplan, on the other hand, is not as flexible to sync with Excel data.

Compatibility with small companies

There is a range of benefits to both Anaplan and Adaptive Insights but in terms of suitability for smaller companies, Adaptive Insights is proven to be more popular. It offers a more friendly option that is flexible and suitable for the requirements of smaller businesses.

Business Intelligence Tools

There are many software packages available today that can provide business intelligence solutions, enabling managers and analysts to continue focusing on their day-to-day duties whilst the system delivers on specific targets. Industry experts believe Adaptive Insights provides a more superior level of real time data analysis and individual dashboards that display results specific to each individual user.

Ultimately, both Anaplan and Adaptive Insights provide a range of valuable benefits to its customers looking for the most suited software package for their business. An analysis suggests, however, that Adaptive Insights may meet more requirements of a standard business.

A new study by Oracle claims that long standing cultural habits and a ‘short-term’ mindset are the main barriers preventing further collaboration between finance and HR teams.

The study exploring HR and Analytics includes an analysis of over 1,500 finance, HR and other business professionals worldwide. The report suggests that in order to really harness the value of data and to ensure companies can continue to evolve in a rapidly changing talent market, HR professionals need to take a different approach with analytics technology and enhance collaboration with their finance teams.

HR and Finance teams deliver different, yet crucial skill sets for a business. Traditionally, the two teams do not work closely, but industry leaders at Oracle believe this needs to change in order for companies to maintain a competitive lead within today’s progressive market and talent industry. Donald Anderson, the Director of Organisation & Talent Development at Oracle believes the main step to remove traditional barriers between HR and Finance teams is to create a collaborative mindset, using the right skills and expertise to collect and measure data which can be used to make critical business decisions. This alone would lead to considerable benefits for a business and its level of performance.

With the continued launch of innovative technology, rising recruitment costs and a surge in demand for new skills, today’s global talent industry is more competitive than ever and businesses need to ensure they remain competitive within this market, HR teams need to consider their overall approach towards analytics, skills and integration with finance to create a competitive lead.

According to results from the Oracle study:-

-Over 90% of Finance and HR professionals intend to prioritise data-driven collaboration this year.

-In order to harness data value, HR and Finance teams will need to develop new skills. The survey results showed that just under 50% of members are unable to use analytics properly to measure outcomes and over 80% are not equipped to understand predictive data for determining future plans.

Within the study, Oracle explains that Finance and HR professionals are exploring emerging technologies which can support business performance, in particular, Artificial Intelligence. Results show that around a quarter of respondents currently use AI to identify specific ‘at-risk’ talent and develop their talent pipeline. Few businesses are using AI to forecast overall performance or to search for the best talent. According to the report, over 70% of the respondents intend to use AI to forecast high performing candidates and select the ideal match candidates with CV/resume analysis. Other AI measures highlighted by respondents include shaping their talent pipeline, identifying at-risk employees and supporting interactions between chatbots and employees.

Emerging technologies, analytics and AI are creating a range of opportunities for HR teams to analyse important insights and make informed decisions that can create that competitive advantage. With more HR professionals planning to invest and focus on AI over the next year, it will likely mean businesses will be competing on a new scale to search for the best talent.

UK enterprise performance management business, Copperman Consulting will combine with the Decision Inc. brand in a move to enhance its intelligent solutions offering supporting customers across the entire value chain.

The recent announcement focuses on the wider plans to solidify the partnership between Decision Inc. and Copperman Consulting. The strategic integration has enabled the businesses to maintain customer relationships more efficiently than a quicker transition.

Nick Bell, the CEO of Decision explains they have now started a new phase in their partnership with Copperman Consulting and are looking forward to the new opportunities that will develop from the integration. The combination will enable Decision to enhance their existing service offering including data management, business intelligence and analytics, leveraging the value proposition available for customers and staff.

Stephen Garbett, the MD of Copperman believes the synergy between the two companies will prove to create an appealing offering for clients. Collaborating with Decision Inc. has enabled Copperman to expand their offering and complete skill set.

Decision inc. has historical success in generating considerable value from the acquisition. The business has successfully generated numerous implementations to UK based customers combining the SAP capabilities of Copperman with the business intelligence skill sets of Decision Inc. Bell explains that this highlights its wider strategy of becoming a world leader in information-driven transformation. Bell believes the integration process has enabled them to complement their existing capabilities and develop further sustainable growth within a connected market.

Adaptive Insights had plans to go public, but this entire process was transformed for one particular reason according to CEO Aneel Bhusri of Workday and Tom Bogan, CEO of Adaptive Insights.

Adaptive Insights had solid plans to go public, working its way around the nation promoting its public offering plans. This, however, was not to be, as leading cloud business Workday acquired the business for a sum of $1.5 billion resulting in Adaptive Insights becoming a subsidiary of Workday. Tom Bogan, CEO of Adaptive Insights and CEO, co-founder and close friend of workday Aneel Bhusri, both explained to media that the takeover really came down to one thing which was compatibility.

Bogan explains that one vital element was the close alignment of cultures between the two businesses. In a recent interview with both CEO’s, they explained their similar approach to customers and employees meant there was a lot of trust between both businesses, enabling a deal to be secured in a relatively short time frame.

Adaptive Insights is focused on planning in cloud based systems, collaboration and analytics. The acquisition provides an additional $5 billion to Workday’s potential opportunities, including in excess of 4,000 customers and a wide portfolio of other offerings.

Bhusri explains that they had a vision for enterprise applications that follow a process of commencing with planning, moving to execution and finishing with analysis. This is essentially how businesses operate, creating a plan, executing against this plan and measuring the results. Bhusri explains that they had tried to create their own planning system but had realised they were behind other businesses like Adaptive and wanted to be involved in that market.

This resulting demand led the quick secured deal and enabled Workday to finalise its biggest ever acquisition and become the first business that can deliver planning, execution and analysis within one platform.

UK business Bedford Consulting has been selected as the EMEA Regional Partner of the Year by Anaplan, leading provider of software solutions for multiple companies including corporate performance management and operations.

With its headquarters in the US, Anaplan has in excess of 1,000 global customers. As is the case with other vendors, Anaplan has a system that includes a range of partners that support its customers with overall design, build and implementation of their new products.

The annual awards specifically focus on celebrating and highlighting the leading performing partners across the Anaplan network. The main award for the EMEA region went to Bedford Consultancy, a business that specifically works in project implementation and overall business change on the Anaplan platform. Bedford consultancy has its headquarters in London, with additional office locations in Belfast and Dusseldorf.

Neil Doyle, co-founder and chief executive at Bedford Consulting explains that their business was one of the first Anaplan partners within the UK and since then have been involved in a range of implementations with some of the biggest businesses worldwide, completing over 200 projects to date.

Bedford Consulting works mainly with Anaplan in ‘Financial Planning, Analysis, Sales and Operation, Workforce Planning and Financial Consolidation’. Doyle explains that they support clients throughout the entire project process and are greatly involved in the pre-sales stage as well as within project delivery. Doyle believes their long-standing partnership with Anaplan is now really paying off, with the latest award being their second major achievement in the last year. To begin with, Bedford provided support for both Cognos and Anaplan implementations but two years ago decided to work exclusively with Anaplan, transforming into the biggest focused partner within the UK.

Other Awards

The APAC Regional Partner of the Year Award went to QUNIE, a business consultancy supporting the NTT Data Group. Twelve Consulting were named the Americas Regional Partner of the Year and Deloitte was awarded the Global Partner of the Year award.

Ron Dimon, the MD and lead alliance partner for Anaplan at Deloitte US stated that their client uses Anaplan to support improving profitable revenue growth, enhancing operational activity and creating new insights into improving their overall business.

Other leading consultancies that are currently partnered with Anaplan worldwide include Accenture, Bain & Company, EY, PwC and Wipro.

SAP has confirmed the S/4HANA 1902 is now available. The update includes a series of new improvements to general functionality over the existing S/4HANA.

Sven Denecken, the Senior Vice President of product management and co-innovation at SAP explains the top features associated with the new release:

-Finance: S4/HANA will offer new functions that enable businesses to define, automate, process and measure processes.
-Supply Chain: S4/HANA includes a new SAP Fiori KPI Analysis app that supports inventory analysts by monitoring movement in inventories against a defined set of KPIs, enabling constant trend monitoring.
-The overall quality management process in warehousing has been improved, allowing for more regular inspections within product touch points.
-Asset Management: The new update now allows users to mass produce orders for maintenance changes.
-Procurement and Sourcing have been improved via the analytics in the SAP Fiori application. Users now have more options to monitor changes in purchase order items and the opportunity to inspect orders in more detail and action any changes.
-Services: The new updates make it possible to import contracts from other systems via a SOAP API.
-Professional Services: SAP has enhanced its localisation features within timesheets, enabling users to track details for their work location of employees and not just within their home country.
-Situation Handling: SAP has introduced a new feature that enables certain users to be contacted if specific procurement events happen e.g. if a supplier doesn’t confirm delivery date.
-SAP Enable Now, the in-app assistant has been integrated with S/4HANA, enabling companies to deliver relevant supporting content within solutions.
-Clients can now use Cloud Application Lifecycle Management (CALM) for SAP S/4HANA Cloud. CALM utilises the SAP activate process which supports customers with a detailed guide for implementing projects.

Aside from these new benefits SAP highlight three specific features within the new release, of which two are mentioned by Denecken (Service Contract Management and Advanced Financial Close). The third benefit emphasised by SAP involves the recognition of contract-based revenue. The finance application enables users to create revenue contracts specific to provider contracts. With the new release, it is possible to develop performance obligations based on provider contracts and to understand the revenue as the obligations are met. This process essentially enhances revenue recognition, particularly for service contracts.

The detailed release notes for what’s new in SAP S/4HANA 1902 is a lengthy document with additional updates covering the following functional areas:

• Asset management
• Finance
• Human resources
• Manufacturing
• Professional Services
• R&D Engineering
• Service
• Sales
• Sourcing and Procurement
• Supply Chain

Aside from the functional improvement, the new release has been upgraded for certain regions, including a range of enhancements for compliance in Brazil and other updates across Europe, North America and Asia.

Industry analysts are stating that this is a significant update from SAP and its strategic cloud ERP. SAP has received criticism in the past for its lack of strategy towards Cloud ERP. The sheer number of strategic updates, however, clearly suggest that SAP is focusing on transforming this. SAP has focused its development into creating a complex range of functions that customers really need. Yannick Peterschmitt of SAP S/4HANA Product Management explains that ‘Intelligent Enterprises’ is the future for SAP customers and that the focus is about automated processes, providing information for employees and generating revenue, all within a simple and intelligent platform.

Oracle Financial Services Global Business Unit along with the RPA vendor, Blue Prism have confirmed a collaborative project to tackle fraud by creating a compliance platform to automate compliance tasks for financial teams.

Fraud detection has always been a challenge for finance teams and traditionally involved financial institutions hiring more professionals to tackle the issue. However, as criminal methods have become more sophisticated, businesses are finding it hard to use efficient methods to manage to investigate new cases.

In response to increasing concerns, Oracle and Blue Prism have announced a partnership to enhance the workflow of financial crime investigations. A representative from Blue Prism recently explained that their automation platform will enable Oracle’ financial crimes software to provide more accurate and detailed research and analysis in a more timely, efficient and cost-effective manner.

Jon Walden, the CTO for Blue Prism Americas explains that industries continue to be challenged on many aspects, highlighting the success of their platform in many areas of business challenges including profit concerns, retaining workers and impact of competition. Walden points to the capabilities of their services enabling a ‘unified workforce’ for both humans and digital workers to get the job done. Walden highlights the success they have gained in the finance industry and regards this to the detailed audit and resilience incorporated within their platforms.