Demand for Business Intelligence solutions will rise through 2014
An exhaustive study by IDC – Worldwide Business Analytics Software 2010-2014 Forecast and 2009 Vendor Shares – has found that the demand for Business Intelligence (BI) solutions will continue to rise through to 2014.
The report stated that the sustained growth and demand for business analytics, and specifically BI solutions, is being driven by the emergent interest in Cloud Computing and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) technologies, as well as widespread end-user realization and acceptance, of the mainstream business benefits of BI.
Widespread maintream adoption of BI solutions
IDC’s research shows that end-users are hearing more about the benefits of business analytics and BI from widely publicized cases about large retailers, social networking sites, search engines, intelligence agencies, and other organizations that generate and analyze vast amounts of data.
"As the benefits of business analytics become better known, especially among executives, the demand for a wider range of solutions and services will create new opportunities and drive the market to new heights," said Dan Vesset, program vice president for IDC's Business Analytics Solutions Research service.
"After three decades of existence, the business analytics market is finally reaching the mainstream market and a status as a formal management discipline.
"IDC expects the business analytics software market to grow at a seven percent compound annual growth rate over the next five years."
Cloud Computing and SaaS BI: Maximizing ROI
The study suggests that much of the interest in BI since the US and European recessions has been in relation to its ability to cut costs and streamline operational efficiencies, while interest in Cloud Computing, has been stimulated by the desire of current BI customers to maximize their Return On Investment (ROI).
"The key to moving forward is to ensure ROI, because at the end of the day, if it’s just perceived as another technology, businesses won’t be investing just because of that," said Vesset.
"It has to lead to actions. If technology can show positive, real returns – more money in commercial settings or benefits for nonprofits and the public sector – then people start buying into [it]."
The report predicated that the Cloud Computing and SaaS sectors would experience around 20 percent annual growth through to 2014; a predication that Vesset believes will encourage BI market growth for the next decade, according to Information Management Online.
"The fundamentals of demand continue to be the same [for analytics] and, in fact, it is increasing because of awareness of these technologies, especially at the top level of organizations where top executives are more aware. They’re asking people who work for them to look into [BI solutions] and for expansions [of spending and research]," said Vesset.
The IDC report examines vendor revenue performance in the business analytics software market for 2007–2009 and presents a forecast of the market, including its 11 segments, for 2010–2014.