Case Review: Business Intelligence Software at Sysco

Business Intelligence Software at SYSCO

Case Review

The main obstacles will be some resistance of the operating companies in participating share of the overall cost of the project. This is due to two reasons: cost and having previously implemented BI systems in these companies.

Both of these questions present a clear business case to upper management, which will help to address/achieve new strategic plan for the company. BI capabilities would be clearer when it addresses such important questions rather giving a non specific advantage. A drawback for this approach would be sticking with only these two solutions. SYSCO has to come up with more applications of the BI system in order to keep the competitive advantage, failing to do so will allow competitors to have the same technology. A constant development of the BI and achieving new objectives should be planned in order to keep the advantage of BI. As time goes by, SYSCO would be more familiar with BI which will lead into more discoveries of what BI might offer to the company. This point wouldn't be the same for competitors.

As SYSCO is in the process of implementing Business Intelligence Software, a high common decision obstacle is facing the decision makers of this large food distributor in NA. Business Objects, the company that is selling the BI software, is offering many and different software packages. Customers who are willing to buy a BI package have the freedom to choose of different licenses to different softwares, different Support packages, a higher or lower deep of integration between BI softwares and a variety of training and consulting services. Twila Day, Assistant VP of Technology and Applications, and her team reviewed three different scenarios.

BI showed Director's Council what advantages BI would add to their company by answering the two questions. Mostly, in addition to the old intention of having BI in SYSCO, the prototype was the main reason that the council gave the green light for the BI project. Benefiting from BI in answering these two questions would be a part of the strategic plan of SYSCO after implementing BI.

The "Bare Bones" scenario will not lead to this benefit, at least in the beginning, since it doesn't contain the Analytical Modules of the system. IT departments in SYSCO and other companies might have the skills