Ventana Research to Chair Webinar Panel Discussion with Kalido, IBM and Knightsbridge Solutions on Master Data Management for Data Governance

Business Wire, Dec 6, 2005

BURLINGTON, Mass. & LONDON -- Online Seminar to Highlight Best Practices for Implementation of Master Data Management in Support of Data Governance Initiatives on December 8th, 11:30 EST

Kalido, a provider of enterprise data warehousing and master data management software, announced that Mark Smith, senior vice president of Ventana Research, will chair the webinar "Master Data Management Comes of Age Part II: Expert Forum on Data Governance." The session features a panel discussion on best practices for implementation of master data management (MDM) in support of data governance by industry experts from Kalido, IBM, Knightsbridge Solutions and Ventana Research. The second in a two-part series on master data management, the webinar will take place December 8th at 11:30 EST/4:30 GMT and can be registered for at: http://www.kalido.com/newsandevents/event.asp?event_ID=179

Data governance - the active management of corporate data - is crucial to ensuring the accurate and timely measurement of business performance for reporting, yet many large organizations are finding this increasingly challenging. A root cause of the problem is the proliferation of master data - business definitions of entities such as customers, brands, suppliers and financial indicators - which are typically stored in multiple operational systems, each with differing codes and coding structures.

This situation makes it difficult to obtain consolidated views of performance from across these systems in support of data governance initiatives if the master data is not effectively managed. The issue is fast rising up the corporate agenda, with senior executives at a recent Kalido event placing master data management as one of their top three priorities for the coming year.

The panelists will analyze what data governance constitutes, the role of master data management for data governance, and the benefits of investment. They will also advise webinar participants on data governance processes, technologies and best practices, with case study examples. The webinar will conclude with a question and answer session, where audience members will have the opportunity to put their questions directly to Mark Smith and other panel members.

The panelist line-up includes:

--Dr. David Waddington, VP & Research Director - Master Data Management & European IT Research, Ventana Research. A Global Research Director at Ventana Research, David serves as head of information technology research in Europe, a practice that includes integration management, information management and business intelligence. As former Chief IT Systems Architect for Unilever's two Food Groups in Europe, David led a team to develop a Master Reference Data Repository, establishing common data standards and data warehousing.

--Daniel Gaines, Senior Principal and Chief Technology Officer for the Health and Life Sciences practice at Knightsbridge Solutions. In his 18 years of consulting and software development experience, Daniel has specialized in the design, implementation and management of analytic systems and data warehouses.

--Paula Wiles Sigmon, Product Marketing Director, IBM Information Integration Solutions. During most of her 28-year career in technology, Paula has focused on critical intra-enterprise and inter-enterprise business requirements that can be addressed by best practices in data integration.

--Winston Chen, Consultancy Practice Manager, North America, Kalido. In his years of working with global organizations, Winston has played key roles in numerous enterprises-scale master data management projects, helping customers architect, design and build data warehouses and master data management solutions.

The first webinar of the Master Data Management Comes of Age series is available to access online on: http://www.kalido.com/resources/resource.asp?wp_ID=210

About Kalido

Kalido provides adaptive enterprise data warehousing and master data management software to Global 2000 companies. The KALIDO(R) application suite (KALIDO) delivers consolidated views of enterprise performance and can rapidly adapt them to major changes in the business such as mergers and acquisitions, market consolidation, or new regulatory requirements. This improves the speed and accuracy of management and financial reporting without the cost and delay of operational system standardization. Kalido customers who have measured the business benefits of their projects have typically found they have derived annual savings of millions, and in some cases tens of millions, of dollars through improved management of their company performance and reduction of IT costs.

Kalido customers include some of the largest companies in the world, such as BP, Cadbury Schweppes, HBOS plc, Intelsat, Labatt Breweries of Canada, Merial, Owens Corning, Philips, Royal Dutch/Shell Group of Companies (Shell) and Unilever. These companies and many others use Kalido's award-winning software in over 100 countries for their enterprise-wide data warehousing and master data management projects.