While small-time players might find the use of Excel to be more than enough, even the smallest of companies will eventually need to capitalise on the critical resource that is big data.
The simple fact is that there is a lot of data out there. A lot. So much so, in fact, that an entire industry has thrived around the notion that companies need a way to digest the tonnes of data that permeate the web. Software titles like BOARD allow you to get a leg-up on your competition; conversely, failing to take analytics and market trends seriously before it’s too late can have devastating ramifications.
The Netflix–Blockbuster fiasco is a prime example. For those who are unfamiliar, Blockbuster was dominating the video rental market; they really were on top of the world in that respect. However, back in 2000, a burgeoning company by the name of Netflix offered Blockbuster $50 million to be appropriated, but Blockbuster declined. A decade later, Blockbuster’s business dried up to a trickle, and their total assets had gone from about $5 billion (with a peak arguably around 1994 of about 8.4 billion) to a paltry $37 million by 2010.
Conversely, Netflix had the last laugh – the enterprising company saw that people wanted on-demand content, and their DVD mailing business soon turned to online streaming. By the time Blockbuster tried to get their piece of the pie, they were far too late. Unlike Blockbuster, Netflix’s ability to give their customers what they really wanted – an on-demand movie service that favoured convenience and value above all else – allowed them to rake in a massive profit. Netflix is now a $33 billion company.
Software like BOARD can give the company an upper hand when it comes to making sensible executive decisions. BOARD can give a company a consistently coherent and accurate view of information pertaining to corporate interests.
