Utz Quality Foods, a snack food company, faced the challenge of keeping decision-makers informed of sales and distribution information, obtained daily from a widely dispersed sales force. The company operates on a Direct Store Delivery business model, marketing its products to stores and supermarkets in the mid-Atlantic United States. Utz also distributes snack food products that it buys from companies like ConAgra Foods. The company needed a system that allows managers to quickly gather and analyze current sales and distribution information.

Vacation.com, a leisure-travel marketing organization, was facing the challenge of providing targeted, qualified information to its internal agents and member agencies to support marketing campaigns, sales efforts, and periodic promotions. The company was using Microsoft Excel or SQL for creating most routine reports, which were then emailed to users. This process was inconsistent and often led to duplication of efforts. The staff wanted the ability to create interactive, parameterized reports to help users answer detailed questions themselves, minimizing the time and effort previously needed to obtain that information.

Victory Packaging, a leading North American distributor of end-to-end packaging and supply-chain solutions, was facing challenges due to rapid growth and increasing customer demands. The company's legacy PICK enterprise resource planning (ERP) system was unable to handle the growing demands, leading to inefficiencies. The company implemented a new wholesale distribution and supply-chain execution software package from International Business Systems (IBS), but lacked a business intelligence (BI) tool that could aggregate data from this system, analyze it, and deliver timely information to company decision-makers. The company needed a BI platform that could simultaneously access applications and combine data from AS/400 and Microsoft Windows platforms.

The Wendy’s Company, the world’s third largest quick-service hamburger company, was facing a challenge to modernize its back-office analytics systems in franchise and company-owned restaurants. The company wanted to integrate these systems with a new Point of Sale (POS) system and provide better information across the enterprise. The existing enterprise-reporting environment was based on batch processes that consumed lots of mainframe computing cycles. IT professionals had developed a number of information systems over the years, which stored information in unique ways. The old systems were designed limited for use at the restaurant level, rather than for the company’s senior leadership.

Winston Brands, a fast-growing direct-to-consumer multi-channel merchandising firm, was facing challenges in integrating a wide array of systems, both internal and external, to support the increasing number of transactions resulting from the company's continued growth. The company's technology solutions struggled to keep pace with such rapid expansion, and they were replaced with several new, more robust information systems. However, connecting those systems, many of which were deployed simultaneously, proved to be a challenge. The organization evaluated all the other primary integration vendors on the market, including, TIBCO, and IBM.

Workers Compensation Fund (WCF) is a Utah-based non-profit mutual insurance company financed entirely by premium payments from customers and investment income. The organization offers underwriting, safety, claims, and legal services to more than 20,000 businesses across the state. WCF also offers coverage to companies in other states, through third-party insurance companies located outside of Utah. WCF realized the importance of an enterprise reporting and analytics strategy, but struggled to provide users across the company with simple and intuitive access to its diverse information sources, including Adabas, Software AG, and other systems. After previous tools from Crystal Reports and Brio failed to deliver the needed integrations, WCF turned to the WebFOCUS business intelligence (BI) and analytics platform from Information Builders.

World Wide Technology (WWT) was facing a challenge with its existing business intelligence (BI) toolset, which comprised Oracle’s Discover, Portal, and Reports solutions used in conjunction with an Oracle enterprise resource planning (ERP) system. The company was also dealing with a proliferation of hand-coded reports, as business users often requested “one-offs.” This put a strain on the IT department by requiring it to support more than 1,000 individual reports and dashboards. The company needed a major overhaul of its reporting infrastructure in order to remain competitive. They envisioned a BI environment that would enable business users to build, schedule, and automatically distribute their own reports and dashboards, allowing the IT team to focus on maintaining and organizing the data.

Yellow Pages, a leading media and marketing solutions company in Canada, was faced with the challenge of harnessing big data to provide advertisers with a simple, intuitive way to access and analyze information about their digital marketing campaigns. The company had to manage more than 20 TB and 52 billion rows of data. The goal was to create a scalable, high-performance, customer-facing application that allows advertisers to perform deep analysis of results.

Yeshiva University, a distinguished institution of higher education, was facing challenges in improving cash flow, reducing procurement costs, and increasing the float on accounts payable spending. The university also wanted to create a real-time interface between researchers and equipment by obtaining data from legacy systems. Fiscal responsibility is crucial to the university’s mission of combining the best of contemporary civilization and knowledge with the ancient traditions of Jewish law and life. The more efficient Yeshiva can make its information systems, the more capably it can pursue its charter. This philosophy of fiscal responsibility motivated Yeshiva to purchase iWay integration technology from Information Builders.

Allegis Global Solutions (AGS) had more than 100 variations of an Excel-based reporting solution, making it difficult to create, manage, and benchmark contract labor programs. While these reporting tools do let users see program performance, business leaders had difficulty using them to include comparative analytics and performance benchmarking. Because different customers have different requirements, AGS amassed more than 100 different variations of the same basic spreadsheets and reports. It was cumbersome to create, manage, and keep track of so many variants. AGS set out to create a more versatile analytics environment using a popular new data visualization tool. Unfortunately, after making some headway with the front-end components, AGS realized that the tool did not have adequate capabilities for enterprise deployment.

The Institute for Elderly and Social Services (IMSERSO) is a Spanish agency that manages programs and services for elderly and dependent citizens. The agency was facing the challenge of strengthening government proposals for social services through rigorous information management. They wanted to create analytic applications that would empower agency workers to assist vulnerable citizens and monitor agency performance. The goal was to strengthen Spain’s social services by giving managers, analysts, and social workers an online environment to analyze the status of pressing situations and provide rapid responses to citizen inquiries.

Fuji Xerox Information Systems Co., Ltd. (FXIS) was facing a challenge in managing project profitability due to the simultaneous running of several development projects. The process of report generation was time-consuming as it was handled one request at a time to meet the needs of individual users. Necessary data had to be downloaded from SAP, aggregated by project, summarized into a report for each representative, and then distributed among the various departments. The company eventually created a dedicated database containing SAP information for analytical use, with a Microsoft Access-based system for retrieving that data. However, many challenges still remained.

Worldline, a global financial services company, needed to create a merchant-facing, self-service environment that could handle millions of daily transactions for hundreds of banks and thousands of merchants. The company wanted to empower its community with self-service analytic tools that would allow them to create statistics, summarize transactions, and analyze merchant activity with little or no help from IT. The company's activities are organized around three main areas: merchant services and terminals; mobility and e-transactional services; and financial processing and software licensing. With millions of daily transactions for hundreds of banks and thousands of merchants, Worldline needed a robust and efficient solution to monitor usage, summarize transactions, and generate statistics on merchant activity.

The Police and Border Guard Board (PBGB) of Estonia faced a challenge as their data warehouse grew to contain information on 150,000 misdemeanors and more than 30,000 criminal offences. The analysts were tasked with automating data quality procedures. The team wanted to minimize the accrual of inaccurate data so that police reports and procedures would be consistent and correct. Bad data can impact each level of the organization and lead to inaccurate decisions regarding how resources are allocated, public order is maintained, and police procedures are conducted. For example, an incorrect date or time field can lead to an inaccurate evaluation of work performance.

Conestoga College, a public college based in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, was looking to create a hands-on curriculum that brings modern analytic tools and practices into healthcare and other industries. The college administrators, while collaborating with healthcare industry partners, determined it would be wise to emphasize studies on business intelligence (BI) and analytics in a more strategic and direct way. The challenge was to expose students to data analysis, management, and visualization in real-world environments.

EllisDon, a $3.5 billion global construction company, was looking to streamline communication among various types of information systems, both on-premise and in the cloud. The company's Gate Three division was tasked with connecting cloud, on-premise, and mobile data sources as part of the Gate Three Enterprise Reporting Platform (ERP) system. One of the main challenges was integrating front-end project management functions with back-end financial functions on an IBM Power system. As more people started using smartphones and tablets to interact with enterprise information systems, EllisDon faced the challenge of exposing enterprise applications and legacy systems through mobile apps.

Halifax Health, the largest healthcare provider in Volusia and Flagler counties, was facing challenges with its legacy reporting tools which were designed for professional analysts. The organization needed a general-purpose BI environment that could empower the enterprise to access, analyze, and share information. The existing tools, McKesson’s Trendstar and Meditech NPR report writer, required staffing by highly-experienced IT personnel for in-house development. The organization wanted to leverage clinical and administrative data in Meditech, TeletTracking, eSignature, Kronos, and Allscripts applications. They also wanted end-user dashboards that could display key performance indicators (KPIs) for inpatient quality, patient safety, core measures, and financial measures. Ideally, the solution would also support drill-down capabilities, mobile computing, offline analysis, self-service reporting, report scheduling, and intelligent report distribution.

Stuart Murdoch, a farmer based in Warooka, South Australia, used to manage his farming operation purely based on pen and paper records. However, he realised in 2010 that there are benefits to digitising his farm management operations. With the size of his operation, the rotation he uses and some farm-specific weed problems that he has, it is very important for him to be able to look back on data from previous years. He also needed to increase the accuracy of his operation to ensure profitability. With ever-tightening margins for farmers, he realised years ago that accuracy on every level is critical to ensuring profitability.

Payne Brothers Ranches, a farming operation in Northern California, was facing a challenge of managing an increasing amount of agricultural data. The data was coming from various sources such as independent PCA’s, soil reports, and tissue analysis. The Payne Brothers wanted a solution that could consolidate all their data in one place for better utilization. The transition to using independent PCA’s also meant that they had to start submitting their own chemical use reports to the counties and state, which they didn't want to turn into a lot of paperwork. The increasing flow of data was becoming overwhelming and the repercussions of not having the correct data available or interpreting data wrong could be significant.

Lance Funk Farms, one of the USA’s largest suppliers of potatoes, was using multiple legacy software systems for precision functionality, but none of these systems offered any record keeping ability. In order to organize the farming operation with up to 250 employees in peak season, management had to rely on spreadsheets. The sheer size of the operation, in combination with the variety of crops grown, drove the farm to explore software solutions that could help better manage the operation and aid with traceability. Before adopting Agworld, they would make a standardized spray program and every field kind of got the same inputs applied.

Anna Binna Farms, a 6,500-hectare farming operation at Maitland on South Australia’s Yorke Peninsula, was struggling with their pen-and-paper system for farm records. The system was not user-friendly for all team members and did not provide a good way to track important information such as withholding periods, amount of fertilizer or chemicals that need to be purchased or any other spray-related information. The farm owner, Ben Wundersitz, was aware of the need to improve this part of their operation but was unsure of the best solution. The farm needed a system that required minimal data entry to reduce the risk of errors and inaccuracies. The system also needed to be well suited to both the size of the farm and the skills of the team.

Bruce Larcombe, an agronomist for 22 broadacre growers in the Dookie area of Victoria’s Goulburn Valley, faces extreme peaks and troughs in his workload throughout the season. All the farms he services grow winter crops, leading to similar planting and harvesting dates and resulting in seasonal peaks in demand for farm inputs, labour, and other services. Bruce's workload is particularly heavy during the 16-week period from crop emergence to harvest, during which he has to check over 450 paddocks and make numerous recommendations for his clients.

In his work as an agronomist, Ruaan Du Plessis realised that higher crop monitoring requirements combined with larger orchard sizes and an increased need for information by growers necessitated a new approach to data accessibility and transparency. Recent free trade agreements such as the one between Australia and China (ChAFTA) have changed the focus for fruit growers from traditional channels like canneries and other domestic buyers to fresh fruit exports. Stringent bio-security compliance laws for export to Asia mean that growers need to have their orchards monitored for a number of quarantine pests by a person approved by the Department of Agriculture. As exports become more important, the monitoring program is becoming bigger and more rigid; which is why we require the best recording and reporting tool available for our agronomy activities.

The Maitland family, who manage a diversified farming and food business in Australia, were using a legacy farm management software that was not user-friendly and thus not used effectively within the business. The food production and export focus of the business required accurate records to be kept so that critical information can easily be shared with relevant authorities, exporters, and final consumers. However, the existing software was not able to meet these needs, and the team was not able to enter data at all times.

Running Lake Farms, a family-owned farm in Pocahontas, AR, was facing challenges in forecasting its profitability at the beginning of each season. The farm's profitability was dependent on various factors such as the cost of inputs, yield, and market prices. The farm was also struggling with identifying unprofitable fields and understanding the reasons behind their lack of profitability. The farm needed a solution that could help them analyze their data and make informed decisions.

Silent Shade Planting Company is a family farm located in Belzoni, Mississippi. The farm grows a variety of crops including corn, cotton, soybean, rice, and peanuts. The farm's management team includes the Senior Agronomist, Trey Koger, who manages the agronomic side as well as the farm's research program. Other members of the management team include Trey's wife Stacie, who handles financials and marketing, her brother who is the CEO, and his wife Elizabeth who manages Human Resources and the farm's safety program. The field crew consists of two farm managers and twelve operators. The farm relies heavily on communication to coordinate activities and ensure smooth operations. However, the farm was facing challenges in accurately predicting profitability, costs, and potential revenue. This was crucial for the farm's growth and for securing production loans from the local bank.

Paulman Farms, a diversified farm in Sutherland, Nebraska, was facing several challenges. The farm was struggling to keep up with the changing demands of the industry and the expectations of its employees. The employees were seeking a better work-life balance and were expecting the farm to invest in technologies that would enable them to be part of their family and community. The farm was also struggling with understanding its risk in real-time. The owner of the farm, Roric Paulman, was constantly thinking about how to improve the farm and how to do it better 2 – 3 years from now.

Anson Family Farms, a large farming operation spread across 20,000 acres in 8 counties in Indiana and Illinois, was facing challenges in managing and utilizing the vast amount of data collected by their John Deere equipment. The data, which included information on planting, spraying, harvesting, etc., was primarily used for crop insurance reporting. However, the farm was unable to use this data to optimize operations due to technological limitations. The data was initially stored on a desktop machine, then moved to a server, but both methods were slow and cumbersome. The farm also struggled with real-time data access, which made it difficult to identify and correct errors in a timely manner.

Clete Inc., a diversified farming and cattle operation, was facing challenges in managing their input inventories. The process of planning for the inputs needed each growing season was manual and time-consuming. The team had to sit together to decide the acreage for each crop and then manually estimate the required inputs. They relied heavily on local suppliers for their inputs and valued the customer service and timely delivery. However, unexpected changes in plans or field activity often led to discrepancies and required constant communication and updates. The company was using Excel for inventory management, which was not efficient and prone to errors.

Walnut Grove Farms, a sixth-generation farm in Kentucky, was facing challenges in managing their grain marketing strategy. They were heavily reliant on forward contracting, which was only viable when the price was right. However, recent market conditions had seen prices fall below break-even for most farms. The farm also had to be strategic about their storage capacity, as they could not store everything they produced. They needed a way to better manage their risk and take advantage of market opportunities.