By turning offshore projects into Ohio jobs,
ICC earns accolade for outstanding service

Information Control Corporation continues to help accelerate Columbus’ growth in technology and leadership, earning a finalist selection in outstanding service at this month’s TechColumbus Innovation Awards. The awards spotlighted companies that had defined, introduced and marketed a technology-based service in 2011. Among companies with at least 250 employees, special mention for Outstanding Service went to ICC’s Information Factory, an onshore data integration delivery service.

“It’s exciting and rewarding to be recognized for delivering high value and superior quality for our clients,” said Allison “Sunny” O’Neal, Information Factory Manager. Her projects supported the hiring of more than 50 staff in central Ohio last year.

TechColumbus’ goal is to accelerate business growth, job creation, and prosperity in the 15-county region of Central Ohio. The Innovation Awards drew an audience of 1,000 for keynote speakers Gordon Gee, president of The Ohio State University, and Les Wexner, founder of the retail and marketing conglomerate which includes The Limited, Victoria’s Secret, and Bath & Body Works. Outstanding Service was measured by groundbreaking technical innovation, superior business approach and opening of new markets, and measurable revenue growth, cost reduction, changes in market position or market share, and impact on company employees or organization.

The Information Factory’s approach “is one of the best I have ever comes across,” said Jerry Bisaha, director of business intelligence at Limited Brands. “They are the only consulting firm that I have used that have truly been able to put in practice a systemic, Agile project approach for Business Intelligence and ETL development.”

Located in Columbus for more than 15 years, ICC specializes in the planning, implementing and managing technology so businesses can maximize efficiency in a world where time is always of the essence.

“A strong percentage of ICC’s high performance teams come from Ohio universities and colleges, so we are having a positive impact on the local job market and economy — and keeping the best and brightest of our young people here in Ohio,” O’Neal added.

The Information Factory’s effectiveness is built on a “Zero Defect Guarantee” to clients on their Information Factory implementations. ICC has developed an accurate estimating process that allows the Information Factory to confidently offer fixed priced outcome-based contracts — unheard of in offshore models.

Through innovation, a unique data integration delivery model, and an established training academy for Central Ohio talent, Information Factory offers a groundbreaking cost-competitive alternative for clients who are considering using offshore vendors for their business intelligence needs, or have been dissatisfied with their offshore experience.

About Information Control Corporation

Information Control Corporation is the largest privately held business and technology solutions firm in the Midwest, employing over 500 people. ICC serves as a leader in solving IT-related business issues. ICC has developed nationally recognized practice areas, including business intelligence, digital interactive services, Microsoft Technologies, and other strategic competencies. For more information, visit www.iccohio.com.

Jim Gallo, ICC Partner Channels Manager, brings thought leadership to the Business Intelligence community through his insightful article recently published on the Beye Network’s Agile BI Channel.

In his article Applying Agile Methods to Data Warehouse Projects, Jim discusses how Agile methods can be applied to the building of analytical databases — data warehouses, data marts, operational data stores, etc. When the work associated with designing the databases and integrating the data is driven from the business side, project costs can be held to a minimum and business value can be delivered more quickly.

Jim Gallo is a recognized Business Intelligence expert and has published a number of articles on the practical realities of BI/DW. He is a regular speaker at conferences and industry-related events. He has led a number of large, complex BI projects for Fortune 1000 companies in addition to delivering value to federal and state governments and international clients. For successive years, Jim has been named by IBM: IBM Champion for Information Integration and Federation.

TechColumus has recently announced ICC’s Information Factory as a semi-finalist for the 2011 Innovation Award for Outstanding Service for a company over 250 employees.

The Information Factory, an onshore data integration delivery service, was developed by Information Control Corporation. ICC’s Information Factory focuses exclusively on converting outsourced offshore markets, by delivering data integration solutions in Central Ohio at a cost equal to offshore vendors, while providing superior quality results at a faster pace.

In addition to providing a Zero Defect Guarantee to clients on their Information Factory implementations, ICC has developed an accurate estimating process that allows the company to confidently generate detailed Information Factory fixed priced outcome-based contracts — unheard of in offshore models.

Through innovation, a unique data integration delivery model, and an established training academy for Central Ohio talent, Information Factory offers a groundbreaking cost-competitive alternative for clients who are considering using offshore vendors for their business intelligence needs, or have been dissatisfied with their offshore experience.

To discover how ICC’s Information Factory can assist expertly assist in fulfilling your data integration requirements, contact one of our Information Factory data integration experts.

Information Control Corporation, a leading solutions provider in Information Management, is pleased to announce the continued growth of its IBM Netezza delivery practice. By continuing to leverage the performance and simplicity of the IBM Netezza Data Warehouse platform ICC is able to successfully deliver reporting and analytics solutions to Fortune 1000 companies. The success of ICC’s clients has allowed ICC to continue to expand its Netezza delivery offerings and talent pool to match the market requirements.

As a Premier Partner of IBM, ICC is able to deliver forward-thinking solutions that allow its private and public sector clients to turn data into a usable asset. By marrying the Netezza platform with ICC’s Agile Business Intelligence methodology they are able to deliver reporting and analytics solutions that deliver data at the speed of thought. Ultimately this has allowed ICC’s clients to gain competitive advantages in their respective industries.

“As a Premier IBM Netezza partner we are able to power our forward-thinking reporting and analytics solutions with the sophistication of IBM technology,” says Jim Gallo, ICC Partner Channels Manager and IBM Champion. “This allows us to deliver innovative solutions that drive business results for clients.”

For companies adopting the IBM Netezza platform, ICC provides consultative services that leverage its vast array of experience to help clients realize the true value of their Business Intelligence/Data Warehouse solutions. With the largest pool of Business Intelligence experts with Netezza technical certifications, ICC is powered to expertly implement and deploy IBM Netezza solutions.

Recently ICC was fortunate to add one of the country’s leading Netezza Senior Architects to its growing team of experts, Bill Raper. For the past seven years Bill served as the lead architect of Netezza’s largest retail client. This addition has allowed ICC further growth as an IBM Netezza thought leader and solution provider.

About Information Control Corporation

Information Control Corporation is the largest privately held IT services provider in the Midwest. ICC serves as a leader in implementing information technology solutions for Fortune 1000 and public sector clients. ICC has nationally recognized practice areas, including Business Intelligence, Creative and Interactive Services, and other competencies strategic to today’s businesses. IBM Netezza is a member of the ICC Partner Program, a national program designed to help accelerate the success of our clients’ Information Technology initiatives.

This recognition by IBM expands an ongoing relationship between the two organizations. The Premier Partner level is in recognition of ICC’s strong commitment to IBM expertise, advanced certification, and a demonstrated success delivering IBM-based solutions for clients. The teaming agreement will enable ICC to move quickly and in close collaboration with IBM.

“We are pleased to have our strategic partnership recognized by IBM in their decision to promote ICC to the Premier Partner level,” said Jim Gallo, Channel Partner Manager, ICC. “Our IBM services team is well positioned to implement innovative large-scale IBM solutions for our clients. We help organizations grow their businesses through IBM technology, and deliver each client more value through cost-effective Business Intelligence and Application Development.”

About Information Control Corporation (www.iccohio.com)

ICC is the largest privately held professional services organization in Ohio. ICC addresses business issues in Information Technology for national commercial and government agencies across today’s top IT business areas, including Business Intelligence, Application Development and Creative Services. ICC uses Agile BI development methods in our trademarked Information Factory to create focused efforts toward fixed goals. The Information Factory offers a cost-competitive alternative for clients who are considering using offshore vendors for their data integration and business intelligence needs or have been dissatisfied with their off shore experience.

About IBM PartnerWorld

The IBM Business Partner program, delivers valuable benefits to help partners succeed in the marketplace and strengthen their relationship with IBM. Advanced level Business Partners, like ICC, have committed to maintaining a prosperous business relationship with IBM and are recognized and rewarded for that commitment with enhanced levels of marketing, sales, technical enablement and skill development support.

IBM Champion, Jim Gallo, has been deeply involved with delivering business intelligence and data warehousing strategies and solutions for over 16 years. As part of IBM’s Smarter Questions for a Smarter Planet site, Jim answers how a pharmaceutical company updated its Oracle Discoverer Business Intelligence environment.

According to the company, “Cognos was chosen as the new standard for Business Intelligence due to its robust suite that directly supports the primary functions of an effective BI solution and it also fits well with the data warehouse architectural direction the company has established.”

Companies interested in replacing their outdated (and out-of-support) Oracle Discoverer environment with Cognos 10 can leverage a cost effective conversion solution created by ICC. The combination of ICC’s Discoverer to Cognos conversion utility and their tried and true methodology allows companies to quickly migrate to IBM’s best of breed Business Intelligence solution.

Read Jim Gallo’s article on how this pharmaceutical company got smarter about replacing their outdated Oracle Discoverer environment.

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This one-hour presentation is for both the SAP BusinessObjects user and those considering deploying a mobile BI solution. We hope you will join us!

>> Wednesday, Sep 7th — 11:00 am EST
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The ability to run smarter “anywhere” is about making informed decisions with instant access to targeted, personalized information wherever you are – in the board room, at a customer site, or on the shop floor.

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IBM Champion, Jim Gallo, has been deeply involved with delivering business intelligence and data warehousing strategies and solutions for over 16 years. As part of IBM’s Smarter Questions for a Smarter Planet site, Jim answers how a large clothing retailer tackled its pressing business need for quick access to critical information.

When the retailer made the commitment to invest in a business intellience and data warehousing solution, they chose IBM’s InfoSphere DataStage and QualityStage, the IBM Netezza data warehouse appliance, and ICC’s Information Factory model to transform their retail data into the business information needed to drive their growth and profitability.

According to the retailer’s Business Intelligence Director, “After completing an analysis of data integration products, there was no doubt that IBM’s product suite was the right choice from both a features and benefits and cost point of view. And when ICC replaced the incumbent consulting firm and deployed their Information Factory model, both productivity and quality skyrocketed.”

Read Jim Gallo’s article on how this leading clothing retailer got smarter about integrating data for analysis.

IBM’s Information Champion Program was established by IBM to recognizes individuals who are not officially affiliated with IBM for their years of experience with others in the field, and to recognize their work as contributing greatly to the overall success of IBM Information Management. As part of this elite group of named champions, IBM honors Gallo’s strong commitment in maintaining IBM expertise and a demonstrated success of IBM-based solutions implemented at client sites.

“This award reflects Jim’s continued dedication and thought leadership to the IBM technology community.” says Don Jackson, vice president, Business Intelligence Solutions, ICC. “Jim has leveraged a stellar 20 year track record in IBM technology to become a thought leader in guiding the architectures of commercial and government clients in IBM technologies.”

For full details on this program, visit the IBM Information Champion website, or Jim’s Award Profile.

Eric Etter

In his article Building Agile Scrum Plans from Business Intelligence Requirements, Eric discusses the challenges facing business in turning data into meaningful information that can support vital decision making. Eric brings together today’s business requirement challenges and addresses how agile methods allow organizations to focus on two distinct value chains: The Business Value Chain and The Technical Value Chain. Eric recommends the use of the Business Value Chain as a vehicle to gather and vet requirements, build and prototype BI business models, and provide the basis for the data mart solution.

Eric Etter is a dynamic speaker bringing excitement to the everyday business topics associated with data warehousing. His practical experience in Agile BI practices, enterprise data modeling, decision support applications, and as a data architect is creatively woven across his presentations and writing.