We asked one of our interns, Donna Haws, why she chose to begin her career at Influential Software. I was interested in applying the base skills from my university course in a practical setting. With a background in financial analysis and a first degree in Economics, I’ve always had an interest in data; the opportunity […]
Haynes’ best-seller: The Imperial Death Star Owner’s Manual. Haynes offer a shining example of the surge in revenue that digital publishing can bring1, cutting through the prevalent scepticism that the industry will only triumph through traditional publishing and the market for ebooks is reaching its potential2. However, positing that there is a limit to ebook […]
Influential Software supports the career development of graduates through internships, with our largest intake yet beginning in Autumn 2014. To gauge how effective the programme is, we asked interns who have worked with us over the last year how their experience has helped to develop their technical and business skills. This blog will provide a […]
Successful M&As require watertight plans for organisations to metamorphose into data-tight IT infrastructures. Merger plans need to include comprehensive risk considerations and knowledge about the parties’ current infrastructures. They must be executed with speed to avoid business losses and all the care of microsurgery to avoid data loss. Many studies have found that only 30% […]
Online retailers gather a wealth of data about their customers which offers great potential to optimise sales, to the extent of being able to surmise not only that a customer is pregnant, but the due date.1 A retailer can then offer appropriate products, although the widely-cited story of a father finding out that his daughter […]
Germaine Greer stated on Radio 4 that e-books ‘should cost pennies’1, but is this consumer ideal a realistic possibility? Ms. Greer proffered that digital publishing doesn’t require the bulk of traditional publishing costs, perhaps unaware that printing accounts for 10-15% of book’s price2 or the wider costs of publishing operations, sales and marketing. However, the sentiment […]
Skeuomorphs; the user-interfaces or their icons that borrow from the physical items they’ve rendered obsolete, are arguably applied not only to digital graphical design but structural design of digital publications in the migration from traditional print. A recent article¹ warns that this unwitting approach is prevalent — and narrow-minded: Printed publications are designed to be browsed […]
The recent announcement that eBooks now outsell printed volumes has been interpreted as a pessimistic outlook for the publishing industry¹. But rather than a “death knell”, this is a signal that consumers are ringing in changes to which publishers must rapidly respond; to accept the significant role eBooks play within their offering. Yesterday, Bloomsbury chief […]
A question such as “Would the proposed HS2 rail project represent the best use of government budget?” soon attracts a range of qualitative opinions. Analytical data modelling offers clearer answers around the quantitative results that can be expected and the extent to which problems are solved and created. Further, comprehensively answering the question requires more […]
Influential Software, the UK-based IBM & SAP BI Gold analytics partner, is delighted to announce the acquisition of the IBM Cognos division of Intelligent Solutions (Midlands) Ltd. The division’s client base, contracts and staff have transitioned across with immediate effect. This acquisition lends strength to Influential Software’s IBM Cognos team and its capability to deliver […]