SPSS Puts Forecasting Power In The Hands Of Decision Makers
Do you want to make better decisions about your business? Now decision makers throughout an enterprise can combine information they already have - historical data and knowledge about their business - to make better decisions. SPSS Inc. makes this possible with the introduction of DecisionTime and WhatIf?, a new time-series forecasting software system. SPSS expects to ship the software worldwide in September 1999.
DecisionTime and WhatIf? combine the advanced analytics traditionally found in tools designed for skilled analysts with the ease of use found in tools designed for general business users. This combination enables the decision makers in an enterprise - the people that have the most knowledge about the business - to use the power of forecasting to make better business decisions.
"Business users have typically had to either accept a wide margin of error in their decision making and forecasts or rely on the experience and skills of specialists to reduce the guesswork," said Bob Moran, vice president of decision support research at Aberdeen Group Inc. "Removing both the error and the need to rely on specialists, DecisionTime helps business users automatically find the most reliable forecast for their data and identify and explore different forecast predictors that should underpin an insight or fact-based decision."
DecisionTime and WhatIf? can be used in many types of organizations. For example, in a catalog company, a marketing analyst could use DecisionTime to build a forecasting model for sales volume and customer service requirements. The analyst uses DecisionTime to access historical data stored in Excel, SPSS or an ODBC-compatible database. DecisionTime begins with the analyst's historical data and automatically selects the best forecasting method from eight proven statistical algorithms and then builds the model. During the model-building stage, the analyst can also account for other factors not present in the historical data, such as potential increases in the cost of production materials. Using WhatIf?, the analyst can distribute the model and a forecast to other decision makers in the enterprise. (One WhatIf? license is included with DecisionTime and additional single-user licenses can be purchased for use throughout an enterprise.)
The marketing manager, in this example, could use the model in WhatIf? to build a new forecast of sales revenue. She could explore different scenarios by changing assumptions. For example, she could see the effect on sales of mailing more catalogs. The customer service manager could use the same model to see the sales forecast and determine if more phone lines were needed to handle the anticipated sales volume.
"Analytic applications must do more than report on results and analyze past trends," said Henry Morris, vice president for data warehousing and information access at International Data Corp. "Businesses need to build predictive models in order to explore the implications of alternative future courses of action. DecisionTime and WhatIf? address making the capacity to build models and share models accessible to more users in more organizations."
DecisionTime and WhatIf? serve organizations in many industries in multiple areas including marketing, sales, strategic planning and operations. For example, DecisionTime helps users more easily and accurately forecast:
Minimum System Requirements:
The North America list price for a single user license of DecisionTime (includes one copy of WhatIf?) is $1,999. The price for additional single user licenses of WhatIf? is $399. A variety of pricing programs, including aggressive multiple-unit pricing and site licensing are available. The products are scheduled for release worldwide in September 1999.
SPSS Inc. is a leader in business intelligence, especially data mining, as well as three vertical markets: survey/market research, quality improvement and scientific research. SPSS products and services transform organizations by helping users leverage information to improve processes that increase revenues and reduce costs. More than 250,000 organizations use SPSS software to create and distribute information for better decision making.
Founded in 1968, SPSS has been a leader in data analysis for more than three decades. SPSS has won the following awards: named No. 28 in DM Review's Data Warehouse Top 100; placed No. 23 on the 1999 Soft-letter 100, a ranking of the top 100 personal computer software companies in the United States; and No. 87 in the 1998 Software 500, a ranking of the world's largest software vendors by Software Magazine. Headquartered in Chicago, SPSS has offices and distributors around the world. For more information, visit http://www.spss.com.