Business Objects, a provider of software for business-performance optimization, has made available the BusinessObjects Predictive Workbench. The tool offers data-mining and predictive analytics integrated with BusinessObjects XI 3.0, a unified business intelligence (BI) platform. The workbench allows for the identification of patterns in historical business data, and the variables that affect business trends. Users can extrapolate future scenarios and work in anticipation of market changes. They can play out "what-if" scenarios to aid in the development of business strategies. Using data-mining technology, the workbench lets customers review historical business information and create predictive models that can be used to solve industry-specific business problems. The models help companies to achieve specific goals, such as maximizing marketing efforts, designing optimal pricing plans, improving operational efficiencies and achieving competitive differentiation. A user-friendly visual workflow interface shows and mines all data, eliminating the need for creation of lengthy code or algorithms to identify trends and make forecasts. The workbench mines data sources across heterogeneous IT systems.
http://www.businessobjects.com