Business Objects Introduces Consumer Packaged Goods Analytics to Help Customers Optimize Promotional Spending
Company Releases BusinessObjects XI Release 2 Industry-Focused Analytic Applications
SAN JOSE, Calif. and PARIS - February 7, 2006 - Business Objects (Nasdaq: BOBJ; Euronext Paris ISIN code: FR0004026250 - BOB), the world's leading provider of business intelligence (BI) solutions, today announced a new industry-focused analytic application, BusinessObjects™ Trade Promotion Effectiveness Analytics, which enables consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies to better measure and manage the performance and return on investment of their trade promotions and spending. Today Business Objects also announced the availability of BusinessObjects XI Release 2 analytic applications, built on the industry’s most advanced and complete BI platform. BusinessObjects XI Release 2 analytic applications deliver prepackaged performance management dashboards, scorecards, and targeted analytics that address critical business problems in specific vertical markets.
"At Business Objects, we're passionate about partnering with our customers to create targeted analytic solutions for their specific industry," said Donald MacCormick, vice president of product marketing at Business Objects. "Last fall we announced new planning and budgeting solutions for retailers. Today's launch of Trade Promotion Effectiveness Analytics shows our continued momentum in delivering industry-focused solutions. BusinessObjects XI Release 2 analytic applications play a key role in our plan to create long term relationships with our customers to address their business pains."
New Analytics Give CPG Companies Holistic View of Promotional Spending and Improves Performance
CPG companies today are spending increasing amounts on sales promotions and associated events, but they have limited visibility into how these promotions are improving their bottom line. BusinessObjects Trade Promotion Effectiveness Analytics enables CPG manufacturers to understand the impact of their trade promotions, better evaluate target customer bases, and increase promotion profitability for retailers. With this new analytic application, CPG sales and marketing executives gain insight into how promotional funds are being spent, which customers are participating, which promotions are most profitable, and comparative performance by channel. With a holistic view of their promotion spending and effectiveness, CPG companies can better plan and manage their trade promotion programs. CPG customers that currently use Business Objects to enhance performance include Land O'Lakes, Burt's Bees, and Bigelow Teas.
"Business Objects expands its footprint into the packaged application market and brings a valued solution to the CPG industry with Trade Promotion Effectiveness Analytics," said Rob Hand chief executive officer at Hand Promotion Management. "More than ever, the CPG industry needs to understand the complex interrelationships between promotions and their performance and respond quickly to real-time demand. Trade Promotion Effectiveness Analytics from Business Objects allows CPG manufactures to focus their promotional spend in the right areas and maximize the return on their promotional investment."
The delivery of BusinessObjects Trade Promotion Effectiveness Analytics expands on the commitment from Business Objects to develop industry-specific solutions. In November 2005, Business Objects announced planning and budgeting solutions for retail. Currently, Business Objects helps improve performance for eight of the top ten largest retailers worldwide including Wal-Mart.com, Tesco, Carrefour, and Auchan.
New Industry Analytics Based on Extensive Customer Input
After conducting extensive feedback sessions with customers, BusinessObjects XI Release 2 analytic applications include significant new features that simplify implementation and customization. New role-based dashboards provide marketing, human resources, sales, or finance executives access to only the most relevant information. For example, a regional sales vice president can use dashboards tailored for sales executives to get real-time visibility and analysis of their sales operation. Industry-focused analytic applications also include an encyclopedia that enables customers to easily look up business terms used within reports, dashboards, or scorecards.
"We are using analytic applications from Business Objects to drive insight through key business segments within the company, including customers, products and services, supply chain, human resources and finance," said Tony Fuller, CIO of Rent-A-Center. "Currently, we have almost 2,740 stores in North America, Canada, and Puerto Rico. Along with the growth of our business, the amount of data we were gathering grew exponentially, and we needed a more efficient way to work through all the information. Business Objects analytic applications allow us to turn all this information into an asset that can help us improve our company performance and continue to grow as an intelligent enterprise."
New Solution Accelerators Speed Up Deployment Time and Enhance Delivery of ROI
With the launch of BusinessObjects XI Release 2 analytic applications, new Solution Accelerators are available from the Business Objects Professional Services Organization. These Solution Accelerators help organizations more quickly deploy industry-focused analytic applications to address specific business challenges, and provide a set of guided questions that help determine organizational priorities and objectives. Those answers are used to more effectively map out analytic application deployments and hone in on exactly what information organizations need, how it should be delivered, and who receives it.
Availability
BusinessObjects XI Release 2 analytic applications are generally available. Analytic applications for consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies include Trade Promotion Effectiveness Analytics, Brand Assortment Optimization Analytics, and Sales and Marketing Effectiveness Analytics. Analytic applications for retail companies include Customer Profiling and Campaign Management Analytics and Store Assortment Optimization Analytics. In additional to the industry-focused solutions, Business Objects provides analytic applications focused on functional business areas including: finance, human resources, marketing, and sales. These solutions are generally available. For more information please visit: http://www.businessobjects.com/products/analyticapps/default.asp
About Business Objects, an SAP company
Business Objects has been a pioneer in business intelligence (BI) since the dawn of the category. Today, as the world's leading BI software company, Business Objects transforms the way the world works through intelligent information. The company helps illuminate understanding and decision-making at more than 46,000 organizations around the globe. Through a combination of innovative technology, global consulting and education services, and the industry's strongest and most diverse partner network, Business Objects enables companies of all sizes to make transformative business decisions based on intelligent, accurate, and timely information.
Business Objects has dual headquarters in San Jose, Calif., and Paris, France. The company's stock is traded on both the Nasdaq (BOBJ) and Euronext Paris (ISIN: FR0004026250 - BOB) stock exchanges. More information about Business Objects can be found at www.businessobjects.com.
Business Objects and the Business Objects logo, BusinessObjects and Crystal Reports are trademarks or registered trademarks of Business Objects in the United States and/or other countries. All other names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.
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Business Objects and the Business Objects logo, BusinessObjects, WebIntelligence, Crystal Reports, and Crystal Xcelsius are trademarks or registered trademarks of Business Objects S.A. or its affiliated companies in the United States and/or other countries. All other names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.
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