The Business Issue
Businesses are becoming ever more complex and competitive, making business decisions increasingly difficult to make. The potential implications of wrong decisions can be huge, especially in financial terms, so it is crucial to select the right options and hence gain an advantage over your competitors.
Decision support modelling can allow those decisions to be based on rigorous analysis rather than on a manager’s gut feeling. It applies scientific methods to structure problems, cut through complexity, provide genuine understanding and deliver practical solutions. Our clients use business models in a risk free environment to understand the likely effects of potential changes, massively improving their ability to make the right decision.
Our Expertise
Capgemini’s Decision Support capability lies within the Operational Research (OR) group. The OR group has an unparalleled experience of solving problems and delivering solutions within a wide variety of industry sectors across Europe.
Our Approach
There are four key aspects to our approach to decision support modelling.
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Problem Structuring |
Understanding a problem is always the first step to solving it. Having discussed the business issues with the client and gathered information on the problem, we will play back our understanding before proposing a modelling approach and technique. |
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Data Analysis |
Modelling is a ‘data-rich’ activity. Data mining, statistics and forecasting complement the modelling approach and use techniques such as clustering to understand behavioural patterns and to evaluate the sensitivity of key data variables. Data Analysis projects analyse the availability, completeness and accuracy of historical data to improve data quality, employing the quantitative rigour that is a hallmark of the OR method. |
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Process Mapping |
A clear understanding of a particular function or issue (As-Is or To-Be) is obtained by interviewing key business personnel and using process mapping techniques. The outputs from this stage are clearly defined processes which can be used as the basis for a business process model. |
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Modelling using Rapid Prototyping |
With our validated understanding of the problem, we work closely with the client to build a prototype model. Rapid prototyping demonstrates our capability, helps the client to define their decision support needs and delivers tangible results very quickly. |
Typical deliverables might include:
- A detailed analysis of the data available within the organisation, its nature, quality and consistency.
- Business rules for identifying and managing data quality issues such as availability, completeness, accuracy and quality.
- Analysis and understanding of the patterns and inter relationships in your data
- Prototype models to quickly give confidence that the modelling approach will deliver valid results.
- Definition of the most appropriate methodology and most effective modelling techniques to meet your requirements.
- Decision support models that can be integrated into a client’s own computer systems for regular automated use.
- Testing, validation and fine-tuning of the modelling algorithms or parameters.
- Updated and aligned business processes and organisational structures.
The OR team’s expertise in decision support modelling is based on many of their other capabilities such as Business case, Optimisation, Business Games, Forecasting and Simulation. This means that our consultants can call on a wide range of techniques and approaches to ensure that the solution is tailored to your precise needs. Capgemini has world class technology and information partners and we use analytical tools and technologies from all of the world’s leading providers such as SAS and SPSS to ensure our solutions are robust and powered by high-quality, accurate data management.
Business Benefits
There are many potential business benefits to be realised from Capgemini’s approach to Decision Support:
- Better understanding of the dynamics of the business.
- Effective decision support tools.
- Significant savings in operational costs.
- Robust decisions made in the face of uncertainty.
- Optimal strategies under complex constraints.
- Ability to try different scenarios before implementing them.
- Improved training and therefore smoother transition during change.
- Better understanding of performance issues.
- Well justified investments.
Our Experience
Capgemini has successfully delivered Decision Support work for a wide range of sectors and clients, as illustrated by our case studies (see below).
Related Success Stories
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