Intelligent Enterprise

Today is my first day at the helm of Business Intelligence Pipeline, so I figured it's a good time for us to get acquainted. My name is Antone Gonsalves and I previously ran InternetWeek, another site within CMP Media's TechWeb online group. Other hats I've worn within CMP include working as a staff writer for InformationWeek Online and the magazine. I live in San Francisco, where I've covered business technology for the last 10 years.

During my time with Business Intelligence Pipeline, I plan to do my best to provide you with the latest business intelligence news, as well as related topics. I encourage you to e-mail me as often as you like, passing along your opinions on news stories and anything I've written. I love discussing issues, and welcome all comments, particularly those that go against my opinions.

In the meantime, there are a couple of news stories on the site you should check out. The first is on our government's inability to get its act together in sharing terrorist-related information across agencies.

You would think that events leading up to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks four years ago would have been enough to light a fire under federal bureaucrats. But the General Accounting Office says the nation still lacks government-wide policies for how to use and share data across the 26 agencies involved in protecting the nation against terrorism.

This kind of foot dragging is inexcusable. The technology tools for integration and data sharing, analysis and reporting are all available. But it's up to the Bush administration to give it the priority needed to get the job done.

If administration officials need help in figuring out how to move quickly following a disaster, they may want to take a look at the insurance industry, which took a beating following Hurricane Katrina. With stockholders looking over its shoulder, the industry can't wait for an executive order to get the job done, so it's re-examining IT strategies and operations in preparation for the upcoming hurricane season.

Among the preparations are plans to improve predictive analysis tools, as well as adding mobile devices and network security.

Of course, there's no guarantee the insurance industry will do a better job than the government. If they fail, however, executives will be sent to the unemployment line a lot quicker than slow-moving civil servants.

Drop me an e-mail to let me know what you think.