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SAS, a leader in business  intelligence solutions, provides software and services to businesses, governments and universities worldwide. Customers include 90 percent of Fortune 500 companies. CEO & MD of SAS India, Gourish Hosangady, discusses with Sobha Menon how business intelligence solutions can help organisations make better, more informed decisions.

How fast is the market for Business Intelligence tools growing In India? 

The business intelligence market in India is growing rapidly though it's hard to put an exact number to growth of the business intelligence (Bl) market in India. However, worldwide, the market for BI solutions is expect to touch $1.5 billion 2002, according to a Gartner report (January 2001). The reasons for this. : There are several factors that contribute to the growing need of business intelligence solutions. In today's fast paced new economy, businesses have to combat fierce competition and simultaneously the division of market space with new entrants. In such a scenario, Bl solutions are vital to achieve the improved customer focus required to sustain growth and profitability, as it is known fact that it cost 5 to 10 times more to acquire new customers as opposed to retaining existing ones.

Secondly, organizations also generate huge amounts of data that needs to be analyzed to facilitate informed business decision-making across levels in the organization. On several occasions we have actually ha customers tell us that they make most of that decisions on 'gut-feel’ as opposed to the being backed by empirical data.

The growth of Bl is also spurred by fact that data needs to be shared across the departments within the organization as companies move form being productcentric to customercentric.

Which are the sectors in India that has started implementing these solutions?

It is no doubt that financial services companies lead the foray the implementation Bl solutions. Close on the heels are telecom, manufacturing and retail companies. Service providers like airlines and call centers are also showing keen interest in BI solutions centers are also showing keen interest in BI solutions.

What kind of results have they met with ?

Business Intelligence solutions when implemented start yielding RoI and clear measurable benefits in as soon as 6 months from the start of the project. Typically companies worldwide have in the past experienced ROI of 200%.

However, the intelligible benefits are felt across the enterprise, which is clearly stated by Mr. Sandip Das, CEO, Hutchison Max Telecom Ltd: "The main benefit is that was now know our customer well enough and can cater to his/her needs, thus providing value. It's now easier to what-if analysis of new initiatives, chum tracking product development.”

Are there sectors, which could improve efficiency or profits by using these tools, but has been slow in doing so?

Government organizations and bodies like SEBI, RBI, Revenue collection agencies like the excise and customs, the Planning Commissions and other such surveillance bodies could most certainly improve accuracy by using BI solutions.