Synergy BI, in conjunction with a large corporate customer, was recently selected to participate in the beta testing of Cognos 10.
Synergy's unique experience and technical skills with IBM Cognos meant that Synergy BI was well equipped to be able to positively contribute to the beta testing.
Christo Bredenkamp, managing director of Synergy Business Intelligence, said while Beta testing software can be both challenging and demanding, it is also very rewarding. “Not only has Synergy had the opportunity to get to see the product enhancements before they are released, but it has meant that Synergy has been able to have a direct impact on the quality of the finished product by reporting problems and suggesting enhancements during the Beta implementation and development period.
“By participating in the Beta testing of Cognos 10, Synergy has been able to gain valuable insights into the capabilities of Cognos 10. Through the process of implementing, upgrading and migrating previous Cognos applications, as well as through the stringent functionality testing that Beta testing involves, the project has gone a long way towards preparing our team members to be in a position to be able to help our clients understand the new functionality in Cognos 10, and to assist them in their migrations and upgrade strategies going forward,” explains Bredenkamp.
Synergy's Beta test team unanimously agreed that the breadth of the offering is impressive. “Cognos 10 supports a very broad offering that includes Business Insight (individual, self-service BI workspaces), Cognos Statistics (with tight integration with advanced analytics based on SPSS), Cognos Collaboration (based on Lotus Connections), Active Reports (for offline/disconnected usage), Cognos Real-Time Monitoring (based on their BAM appliance), and Cognos Mobile with broad support for multiple handheld devices.
Particular mention was given to Business Insight and Insight Advanced, which enable rapid dashboard development that allow users to take data offline while maintaining the interactive and graphical nature of the Dashboards. Business intelligence statistics based on SPSS and which enables fast and easy statistical analysis was an additional feature that impressed the beta testers team.
Users of Cognos 10 will also enjoy a vastly improved graphical interface with a greater selection of charts and formatting capabilities.
Most noteworthy was the response from the Synergy beta testing team when asked for feedback on their experience of the Cognos 10 beta testing process: “In our interactions with the feedback team from Cognos who were assigned to handle our queries and comments, it was evident that they were extremely interested in the products usability as well as how much value the new tools were providing to the clients testing the tools. The prompt responses to all our queries and comments (often within minutes) attested to how seriously they were taking any customer feedback. IBM Cognos' questions were very much around business needs and not just focused around technical functionality, which was very good to see.”
Bredenkamp continues: “Cognos 10 is designed to allow organisations to not only analyse and report on information, but to be able to connect with people, deliver information to a wider range of mobile workers, monitor real-time information and incorporate predictive and what-if planning capabilities.”
Cognos 10 is available now and business partners are beginning training in November. If you're looking for more information, you can visit the IBM Web site, view a Virtual Event, scheduled for 23 November, or contact Synergy. IBM South Africa is planning an event in which you can see Cognos 10 in action, to take place early in the New Year.
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