Over the last eighteen years, I’ve been associated with a large number of BI projects and have been able to see first-hand what behaviors correlate most closely with success and failure.

In particular, there are five main erroneous assumptions about implementing BI that can lead to failure. This list is condensed and a little simplistic: every single one of these bullets could be a blog posting on its own — and I hope to get around to doing just that one day…
1. BI isn’t about technology, it’s about people.

80% of the time and effort that goes into implementing BI is typically devoted to the technology and the data. But BI success is determined primarily by people, process, organization, culture, expectation setting, and leadership.

    * User adoption. Giving somebody a pencil won’t make them Picasso. Organizations typically under-invest in training and culture changes necessary to make the best use of BI. It’s easy to over-deliver to a small number of vocal, technical users that can clearly articulate their needs, and miss the greater value of a broad deployment to less technical users.
    * The IT/Business relationship. BI is meeting point between the tens of millions of dollars invested in IT and the business strategy it is supposed to support. There has to be an equal partnership between IT and the business. A “tough-love” approach that mixes firmness with diplomacy and establishes clear areas of control is the most likely to be successful.
    * Marketing the solution. Successful BI requires not just “promotion,” but an ongoing effort to match the “product” to the real needs of the users. Internal prizes for the best business use of BI can provide a win/win/win situation for IT, users, and executives.
    * Self-awareness. Many BI leaders have a background in technology. If they are uncomfortable with the people-intensive roles needed to make BI successful, these should be delegated to those who delight in them.

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Renton, Wash. — Feb. 28, 2007 — Make the technology fit your business; don’t make your business fit the technology.

That is the mentality behind Etelos’ CRMforGoogle, the latest in a revolutionary line of software from Web-based Application provider Etelos. Following Google’s recent premium business announcement, comes a fully integrated customer relationship management application that is integrated into Google’s business software platform.

Available today as a limited Beta release, CRMforGoogle gives a business, large or small, the ability to communicate with clients, prospects and partners effectively and easily. The Application is feature rich, giving users the ability to automate client follow up, manage tasks, share schedules and manage projects all in Google’s easy-to-use interface already in use by thousands of businesses.

“We feel that this will enable any size business to effectively and easily implement a CRM solution that fits its needs,” Etelos President and CEO Danny Kolke said. “The flexibility of the Etelos CRM makes this a perfect fit for any size business.”

The initial Beta period is by invitation only. In order to request an account, please visit www.crmforgoogle.com. Once out of Beta, CRMforGoogle will available in three versions — Personal, Professional and Enterprise. The Personal edition will be free to users and the Professional and Enterprise editions will carry a monthly subscription.

The Enterprise edition offers businesses the freedom to customize every aspect of the Application and also gives them the ability to select any hosting environment they choose and integrate other software. CRMforGoogle offers limited integration with Google Calendar and Google Spreadsheets. Further integration with those, as well as GMail and Google Docs is planned.

For more information on this limited beta program, visit www.crmforgoogle.com.

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