SAS revenue jumps 5.2%

SAS, the leader in business analytics, achieved record global revenue of US$2.43 billion in 2010, up 5.2% over 2009 results. In the business analytics category, revenue surged 26%.

SAS CEO Jim Goodnight attributed growth to the recognition that the current explosion of data can be analysed to provide insights never before possible.

"Analytics is used in virtually every industry and branch of government," Goodnight said. "The predictive power of analytics can make a difference by helping you see further into the distance, so you can make adjustments faster and with more confidence. We've experienced 35 years of unbroken revenue growth and high customer loyalty because our customers get value from our software and trust the results."

As is customary, SAS reinvested substantial revenue - 24% - back into research and development. SAS also grew staff by 2.4%.

"We started 2010 with a number one US ranking on FORTUNE's Best Companies to Work For list, and we've kicked off 2011 at number one again," Goodnight said. "These rankings show that we're serious about helping employees balance work and personal lives so that they can focus on delivering the high-quality software and service our customers expect. Engaged, talented employees are vital to a knowledge-based company like SAS. They keep our offerings on the cutting edge."

In 2010, organisations around the world sought analytics to make relevant, timely business decisions. Analytics accounted for double-digit growth in nearly all industry solutions, including education, energy and utilities, financial services, government, healthcare and life sciences. Revenue from customer intelligence and risk and fraud management solutions saw growth rates in double digits - and in some cases triple digits - across most industries.

Other notable double-digit growth rates worldwide were in business intelligence, customer intelligence, data management, financial performance and strategy management, life sciences, merchandising, risk and fraud management, and supply chain solutions.

The Americas accounted for 46% of total revenue; Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) 42%; and Asia Pacific 12%. In developing markets, double-digit percentage gains were achieved in most of Asia and Latin America, and the Middle East.

SAS, already a player in the worldwide public security and safety markets, expanded its influence even further in June with the purchase of Glasgow-based Memex, a world leader in intelligence management solutions that help improve intelligence processes, enhance public safety, and prevent and deter crime, terrorism and other threats. The company has a strong presence in the law enforcement and homeland security markets.

A month later, SAS acquired Vision Systems & Technology Inc. (VSTI). Headquartered in Ellicott City, Maryland, VSTI is a professional services company that has been delivering advanced analytic solutions to the US intelligence community for over a decade.

SAS' growing network of partners continues to play an integral role in expanding SAS' customer base. They influenced more than 27% of new sales and more than 60% of the top 50 global deals, including national retailer Macy's, the National Bank of Abu Dhabi, Italy's Banca Intesa and the recent CJLEADS fraud prevention project with the State of NC. Other customers across the globe who recognise the value of working with SAS and its alliance partners include Italy's SEC Servizi bank consortium and INPS social security agency, Japan-based Oita Bank, Australian-based telecommunications company Telstra, the Czech Republic's largest bank Ceska sporitelna, and Catalina Marketing in the US.

SAS expanded its strategic partnership with Accenture in early 2010 to create the Accenture SAS Analytics Group, designed to drive business analytics into organisations across the globe. Accenture, along with global partners such as Capgemini and Deloitte, have incorporated core elements of the SAS Business Analytics Framework into their recently launched analytic competency centres.

In addition, SAS continues to use its partnerships with leading technology vendors such as Teradata and HP to provide innovative analytic-driven solutions to its customers that address the increasing demand for in-database analytics and high-performance computing.

As 2011 gets under way, the uncertain economic landscape and exponential growth of digital data will be both a challenge and an opportunity for organisations. Industry-specific and cross-industry solutions built on the SAS Business Analytics Framework solve organisations' toughest problems - from improving customer relations to reducing fraud and risk. SAS High-Performance Computing, introduced mid-2010 in banking and retail solutions, helps solve those problems in record time, in some cases in real time, by distributing analytic tasks across multiple processors.

"The long-term effects of the economic downturn still aren't known," said SAS Senior Vice-President Jim Davis, "but I feel confident about the future based on our revenue results this year and conversations we've had with customers in every industry about improving their business processes with analytics."