Welcome to the 2nd edition of the Microsoft Business Intelligence Newsletter! This issue is focused on the upcoming release of SQL Server 2008, which is launching on February 27th in Los Angeles. We hope that you will consider joining us for a launch event near you! We hope that you find the newsletter to be a valuable resource and we encourage you to share it with others who are interested in business intelligence. Enjoy the newsletter!
Microsoft is Positioned in the Leaders Quadrant of the Gartner Magic Quadrant for BI Platforms!
Microsoft Positioned in Leaders Quadrant of Latest Magic Quadrant for Business Intelligence Platforms
Microsoft is positioned in the Leaders Quadrant of the latest Gartner Magic Quadrant for BI Platforms, 2008.* The Magic Quadrant positions vendors according to their ability to execute and their completeness of vision.
According to the Gartner Inc. report, "Leaders are vendors that are reasonably strong in the breadth and depth of their BI platform capabilities, and can deliver on enterprisewide implementations that support a broad BI strategy. Leaders articulate a business proposition that resonates with buyers, supported by the viability and operational capability to deliver on a global basis." Read the full report.
Introducing the new Microsoft Business Intelligence Blog!
Welcome to what we hope will become the definitive blog on business intelligence, THE BI Blog. Microsoft is doing some great things in business intelligence, and whether it's from the customer, partner, developer, implementer, or marketing side of things, we'll be on top of it to ensure you're up to speed on this fast-growing business. Check out THE BI Blog today!
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Product News
Only Three Weeks Left Until the 2008 Launch Wave In Los Angeles - Register Now!
Don't miss out! Registration is now open for the premier launch event in Los Angeles on Feb. 27th and further events around the world.
• Come test drive Windows Server® 2008 operating system, Microsoft® SQL Server® 2008, and Microsoft Visual Studio® 2008
• Enjoy hands-on labs, face-to-face Q&A sessions with software experts, and other opportunities to interact with development team members
• Take home a promotional kit with versions of all three products
Take a closer look at www.heroeshappenhere.com and we'll see you at launch!
Test Drive SQL Server 2008
The SQL Server marketing team has provided a new release of the SQL Server 2008 Demo VPC. Release 2 with November CTP provides several new demo scenarios for key features like Resource Governor, Transparent Data Encryption, Spatial functionality and new Report Designer. Test drive now!
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Customer Success
Better Business Intelligence Helps ITV Stay on Top
Disparate legacy systems forced ITV to spend hours looking for important business information, and even more time to format it in a way that made the information easier to understand. Equally frustrating was that the resulting information was often inaccurate and hard to trust. The company implemented a Microsoft BI solution, and employees are keen to exploit the productivity gains from having business intelligence readily available.
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Partners
Business Intelligence BPIO University Technical Training
Coming to a US city near you. Register today to become knowledgeable on the Monitoring, Analytics, and Planning capabilities of Microsoft Office Performance Point Server 2007, the Performance Management offering in the Microsoft Business Intelligence (BI) family.
Can't make any of the BPIO U Technical sessions?
Learn the basics of PerformancePoint Server 2007 through self-directed learning courses, which have been designed to give you a quick start on building your performance management solution.
BPIO University Sales Training
Coming to a US city near you. Exclusive partner sales readiness workshop. Increase your 2007 Microsoft Office System revenue; learn how to sell 2007 Microsoft Office Systems to your customers. Attend Business Productivity Infrastructure Optimization University (BPIO U) 2008.
Can't make any of the BPIO U Sales sessions?
Visit www.msbpio.com to access the materials - look under Workshop Materials and BPIO U Online.
Microsoft Business Intelligence Bootcamp Web Series for Partners - On-Demand Webcast Series
Partners will learn what the partner opportunities are related to selling and implementing Microsoft BI and how they can position Microsoft BI effectively. They will hear about Microsoft's Business Intelligence Vision and how they can demonstrate Microsoft's current BI offerings. Partners will understand what is available in Microsoft Office PerformancePoint Server 2007 and what's in store regarding BI in the Microsoft Partner Program.
Microsoft Business Intelligence R5 Demo VPC Now Available!
This demo image (R5), specifically for partners, showcases Microsoft Office, Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007, Microsoft SQL Server 2005, and Microsoft Office PerformancePoint Server 2007. R5 illustrates three BI workloads: data warehousing, reporting and analysis, and performance management.
Microsoft Office PerformancePoint Server 2007 Exam 70-556 Now Available!
The certification exam necessary to achieve the Performance Management Specialization under the Information Worker Solutions Competency is now available. Prep for the exam with self-directed learning courses, which have been designed to give you a quick start on building your performance management solution. Click here to view the training modules. Click here for more information about the Exam.
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Events
Only Three Weeks Left Until the 2008 Launch Wave In Los Angeles - Register Now!
Don't miss out! Registration is now open for the premier launch event in Los Angeles on Feb. 27th and further events around the world.
• Come test drive Windows Server® 2008 operating system, Microsoft® SQL Server® 2008, and Microsoft Visual Studio® 2008
• Enjoy hands-on labs, face-to-face Q&A sessions with software experts, and other opportunities to interact with development team members
• Take home a promotional kit with versions of all three products
Take a closer look at www.heroeshappenhere.com and we'll see you at launch!
Stop by the Microsoft booth at these upcoming BI industry events!
Join us at the Data Warehousing Institute World Conference in Las Vegas during the week of February 18th, or at the Gartner BI Summit in Chicago taking place April 1 - 3rd to learn more about our solutions, see the products in action and interact with our on-site product experts.
Microsoft Tech Days - France
Attend the major IT event of Microsoft France, with 220 total product sessions. Seventeen of the sessions are dedicated to Microsoft Business Intelligence!
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Upcoming Webcasts
Register for upcoming Microsoft BI webcasts, and learn more about our BI solutions by viewing the most recent webcast recordings.
Get In On The New SQL Server Webcasts
Partners and Specialists will want to get in on this month's upcoming SQL Server 2008-focused TechNet Webcasts. Sessions last one hour. Topics this month include:
• SQL Server 2008 (Part 1 of 3): High-Performance Data Warehousing - 9:30 AM PST, Thursday, February 7, 2008
• SQL Server 2008 (Part 2 of 3): Manage Large-Scale Data Warehousing - 9:30 AM PST, Monday, February 18, 2008
• SQL Server 2008 Reporting Services Architecture Drill-Down - 11:30 AM PST, Thursday, March 6, 2008
Check out all upcoming SQL Server 2008 Webcasts!
Unlocking the Business Intelligence Capabilities of SQL Server
Join us February 11, 2008 at 11:00 a.m. PST for this live Webcast. Did you know that Microsoft SQL Server enables you to centrally control security, access to, and organization of your data - giving users the ability to access production reports or perform interactive analysis directly in Microsoft Office Excel? As you are constantly challenged to do more with less? Are you trying to squeeze as much value as possible from existing investments in technology infrastructure? In this webcast, we show you how to leverage your existing SQL Server investment to unlock the often overlooked, built-in Business Intelligence (BI) capabilities and help improve the operational and financial performance of your organization.
Advanced Dashboard creation with Microsoft Office PerformancePoint Server 2007
Join us on March 28, 2008 at 8:00 am PST for a live Webcast on how Microsoft Office PerformancePoint Server 2007 can help organizations improve their business performance by integrating monitoring, analysis, and planning capabilities into one application. This session explores advanced topics in dashboard creation such as integrating SSRS, ProClarity and Excel Services reports in dashboards, using advanced filtering capabilities, advanced scoring topics and dashboard creation tips and tricks.
View other recent Microsoft BI Webcast recordings here:
http://www.microsoft.com/bi/resources/webcasts.aspx
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Resources
Business Intelligence and SQL Developer Community resources now available on Channel 9!
Find over 22 Microsoft BI screencasts, interviews, SQL Server 2008 screencasts, and other great resources related to BI and SQL Server on Channel 9.
Real-time BI Demonstrations
This site demonstrates many BI technologies including PerformancePoint Dashboards, OLAP cubes, Excel Services, Data Mining and Reporting Services. Many databases are used including real-time feeds from Performance Monitor, Web logs, New Zealand Census and Foodmart. All the delivery is via thin client browser including support for Mobile devices.
Visit the Microsoft Resource Center
Make your decision a whole lot easier. Get tools that can help you gain insight into creating an integrated, cost-effective Microsoft Business Intelligence (BI) solution.
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The Microsoft Business Intelligence Newsletter is full of the latest news, resources, product information and events related to Microsoft BI that we encourage subscribers to forward to friends and co-workers. If you've received this issue from someone via e-mail and would like to receive the free Microsoft Business Intelligence Newsletter bimonthly, all you have to do is subscribe.
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February 2008
Volume 2
In This Issue:
Product News
Customer Success
Partners
Events
Upcoming Webcasts
Resources
Resources
Visit the Microsoft Resource Center
Make your decision a whole lot easier. Get tools that can help you gain insight into creating an integrated, cost-effective Microsoft Business Intelligence (BI) solution.
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Looking for More Information on SQL Server 2008?
Learn more about SQL Server 2008 with learning resources that include Academy Live Webcasts, Data Sheets, Product Overviews, Technologies, White Papers, Webcasts and more. Partners click here for more information. Customers click here for the latest information.
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Learn More about Microsoft Business Intelligence
Visit the Microsoft Business Intelligence website to learn more about our solutions, products, learning opportunities and other great resources.
*The Magic Quadrant is copyrighted 2007 by Gartner, Inc. and is reused with permission. The Magic Quadrant is a graphical representation of a marketplace at and for a specific time period. It depicts Gartner's analysis of how certain vendors measure against criteria for that marketplace, as defined by Gartner. Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in the Magic Quadrant, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors placed in the ""Leaders"" quadrant. The Magic Quadrant is intended solely as a research tool, and is not meant to be a specific guide to action. Gartner disclaims all warranties, express or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. "
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