The concept of business intelligence has been evolving since its inception in 1958 and its rapid development in the 1990s. The idea that an organization has to gather information about itself and its competitors is a core tenet of business dogma. The methods have changed and the people have changed but the basic ideas remain the same.

Any predictions about the future and particularly given the speed at which technology and business practice is changing, is purely speculative. In this article I attempt to put my own perspective of the future risks and opportunities in this area.

The first major development I expect is that business intelligence as a concept will have greater profile and influence over the average business structure. The entrance of competitors and the need to constantly revise practice in line with new trends means that without good business intelligence, firms will be hampered in the extent to which they can make viable ventures. Read the rest of this entry