What Role is "Business Intelligence" Playing in Developing Countries? A Picture of Brazilian Companies

Abstract

Constant technological innovation and increasing competitiveness make the management of information a considerable challenge, requiring decision-making processes built on reliable and timely information from internal and external sources. Although available information increases, this does not mean that people automatically derive value from it. After years of significant investment to establish a technological platform that supports all business processes and strengthens the operational structure’s efficiency, most organizations are supposed to have reached a point where the implementation of information technology (IT) solutions for strategic purposes becomes possible and necessary. This explains the emergence of “business intelligence” (BI); a response to information needs for decision-making through intensive IT use. This chapter looks at BI projects in developing countries – specifically, in Brazil. If the management of IT is a challenge for companies in developed countries, what can be said about organizations struggling in unstable contexts such as those often prevailing in developing countries?