The following represents a look at the vendors I covered on my Website blog regarding some of the interesting interviews I had with vendors at TDWI and some of the added value they are bringing to the market place.

1. ParAccel and their Right to Deploy licensing provides access to information stored on ParAccel without the restrictions associated with data storage, number of users, analytics, or nodes used. In addition to their per node pricing, ParAccel is providing a value add by increasing their flexibility, but mostly by removing limitations to data access. Obviously a bonus for any customer, but in the mid-market specifically where organizations can set one price and then not worry about scalability issues. This becomes important because in more traditional models fees can become exorbitant based on usage and storage.
2. Teradata Aster Discovery Platform takes the concept of quick time to deploy to the next level. Version 5.10 uses Visual SQL-MapReduce Functions to address the challenges associated with full data warehouse/big data analytics deployments. Teradata Aster Discovery Platform does this by providing an interface for single SQL statement use to accomplish data acquisition, data preparation, analysis, and visualization in one step. In essence, the goal being to automate and make the process easier. Since so much time is spent in the data acquisition and preparation phase, the potential for quicker times to deploy and easier maintenance provides a great value proposition for current and future customers.
3. Information Builders adds to their product's capabilities with more ease of use and self-service interactivity through higher levels of ease of use and the use of "containers" within the enterprise portal creating more access to diverse data. The interesting part for me is the new focus on Information Capital and the concept of bringing back data into the conversation. BI is starting to shift towards business user management and self-service models. And although great for use and adoption, the reality still and always will remain the fact that BI is only as valuable as the situation of the information being accessed. Is it valid/reliable/accurate/make sense/etc.? This is the area being addressed - understanding how information capital fits within a full BI infrastructure and information/analytics use.
4. Predixion showed off their Patient Readmissions Management solution targeting hospitals and the healthcare industry at large due to the repercussions (financial and other) associated with readmitting patients. Although targeting a small segment of the BI population, the ability to predict readmissions and identify the associated risk is invaluable to these organizations, and not just due to payouts based on readmission levels. The ability to predict who, what, why, and identify how to mitigate risk of readmission is only part of the benefit.

Overall, two general themes are clear - value added data access and services from data warehouse/analytical database vendors as well as added value to organizations through better information access, whether by developing a program to help customers understand the value of data more thoroughly or by providing industry specific analytics and insight to help organizations save money and mitigate risk.

In addition to the four vendors mentioned below, SAP with SAP HANA and new Sybase IQ releases are trying to test the boundaries of big data access and more flexible analytics, and vendors such as Vitria are working on the promise of real-time/operational analytics. It will be interesting to see how both of these vendors manage their products and broader penetration into their respective markets. For SAP, the challenge may be how to quantify the value of one solution over another when overarching similarities exist. And for Vitria, although one of the only operational BI vendors represented at this TDWI, the challenge of carving out a place in the market place when other vendors with operational BI solutions exist and already have more bandwidth and customer base.

Tomorrow I will be participating in the Briefing Room (to register or for more information) with Tableau Software to look at big data analytics. Essentially how to connect the dots and get value out of big data. 

Last week I attended SAPTechEd and the one word that epitomizes my time there is HANA. HANA was the focus of the show, whether discussing ERP and support for better access to operational data, to support business analytics, or to address big data challenges. The goal of using SAP's in-memory computing platform to help drive future business initiatives is obvious based on its high processing abilities (1.5 million rows per second). What is a nice change is the goal of doing so without disrupting current technology within the organization.

Because technology changes and recreates itself so often, there is a need for solutions to transform and meet the needs of organizations without having to reinvent the wheel every time upgrades or changes are made. Hardware additions, software tweaks, and the like make most upgrades or new implementations a hassle. The promise of HANA is that the front end remains the same while changing/adding to the platform. Obviously, from a technology standpoint this is not as seamless as it sounds, but the reality is that working towards a goal of being non-disruptive is a lofty one that can provide organizations with a lot of value down the road.

Two key areas that expand HANA's value to the market place are the integration of Sybase and open standards enabling data sources that are non-SAP to be accessed and stored:

1. Sybase: Between ASE, IQ, etc. Sybase has provided a lot of diversity and value by addressing diverse data needs from advanced analytics to real-time data processing. By integrating Sybase functionality into the HANA platform, organizations will be able to take advantage of a wider range of data warehousing, storage, and processing. 
2. Broader data access: In addition to increased functionality and integration of multiple suites, SAP discussed the goal of providing data support for non-SAP sources as well. Obviously, the fact that continued support for Sybase customers is important aside, expanding reach to non-SAP data sources means that SAP can target organizations that are not SAP shops as well as support their current customers more broadly.