Reducing IT costs without destroying value

Organsisations are continually under pressure to control the amount they spend on IT, but never more so than in the current downturn as organisations look to curtail investment programmes and reduce costs.  However IT cost reductions should always be approached with value in mind; if cutting IT costs destroys business value,  then the reductions will be a false economy.  Read more about Reducing IT costs without destroying value...

Where to Invest in a Downturn

As the recession begins to bite, all companies will be looking to make significant improvements in cash flow and operating margins with varying focus on the level and timescales for benefits realisation. All will have a variety of improvement projects ongoing at any time, the essential questions will be focused on the following: are we doing the right projects, will they deliver the benefits we need and how do we focus our limited resources to best effect?  Read more about Where to Invest in a Downturn...

Lean Product Innovation

It is clear that with the global challenges now facing many organisations the need to improve product innovation is an important source of competitive advantage.  Atos Consulting sponsored the Aberdeen Group to undertake a benchmark survey of 400 organisations to identify what leading organisations are doing to enhance their product innovation capability in response to these challenges. Read more...

Effective Sales and Operational Planning will improve profitability

Sales & Operational Planning (S&OP) has been around for nearly 20 years and for many it is limited to a tactical planning process, for a few it is something much more powerful.  Research commissioned by Atos Consulting has shown that companies with a best in class wining S&OP process have a clear performance advantage in all key supply chain metrics.    Read more...

Building a better future?

The first of a series of articles that looks into trends across UK sectors to establish just how IT will play its part in the UK of the future. Here we focus on how the construction industry is changing.  One area where we are seeing change is in the construction industry's adoption of the standard ERP systems that have been prevalent in the manufacturing industry for many years. Read more...

Update on Shared Services Locations 2007

Our experience in 2007 to date indicates that the location decision is becoming even more significant as a result of some interesting trends in Shared Services requirements and capabilities. Read more...

The balancing act

Keeping your business in peak condition requires the balancing skills of a top gymnast, striving for a faultless Olympic performance. There's no time to reflect on your next manoeuvre when you are already in mid-somersault, and to make the task harder still, the rules of the competition, as well as the equipment itself, are subject to relentless change. Read more...

Shared Services - Have you optimised your investments?

Do you know if you are getting maximum value from your investment? Do you have issues and challenges? Do you want to understand which best practices are appropriate for you, and develop focused action plans to move forward?  Read more...

Transforming the enterprise in 2007

It hadn't seemed a year since we were last peering into the glass ball to look at how technology might impact us in the coming year. Going into 2007, we predicted there would be many exciting new changes as the enterprise gets to grip with Web 2.0 (the next step change in the internet) and the real tangible benefits it can bring.

We also took a look at how SOA and mobile solutions, both after many years of hype, are being more widely adopted by businesses. Read more...