SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH, May 30, 2000—How do you deliver more services to taxpayers and still stay on budget? The State of Utah’s Division of Finance, is able to answer that question quickly and effortlessly every day since it implemented the Cognos^® business intelligence solution. Cognos (Nasdaq:COGN; TSE:CSN) is the world’s largest and most successful business intelligence company.

The key to the department’s success was the ability to break down the barriers preventing state employees from accessing vital information, according to Brent Sanderson, information technology manager, Division of Finance, State of Utah. The State had been maintaining a data warehouse since 1994 and it needed a way to give its employees effective, immediate access to that information over the Web. Effective Web-based information access and reporting would allow the state government to move more quickly to address the needs of its citizens, while also ensuring consistency and communication between departments.

"For our organization’s 600 users, easy, up-to-the-minute access to information was critical. We wanted to empower our users with easy-to-use data reporting and analysis, and relieve the administrative burden on IT," said Sanderson. "We also needed a flexible way to allow users to tap data via the Web. This would allow consistent use of information across departments and through the geographically-dispersed offices throughout Utah."

"The clear choice was Cognos reporting and analysis," said Sanderson. Users are able to share reports via the Web and generate their own reports quickly and easily.

The end result, according to Sanderson, has been the ability to not only share data effectively but also determine the effectiveness of policies and legislation through sophisticated cost-benefit analysis.

The Cognos solution is currently in use in state courts, by legislative staff and financial officers. The officials use Cognos reporting and analysis to measure and track the costs and benefits associated with particular programs or legislation. In this way, staff can effectively evaluate the merits of restoring, cutting or enhancing funding for those programs or discontinue legislation.

The other powerful use of the Cognos solution is the State’s Online General Ledger System, which is used by financial managers and accountants to measure revenue and expenditures associated with departmental programs. HR departments use the system to track and analyze the productivity of full-time employees.

"The State of Utah’s Division of Finance has been able to tackle the dual, and often mutually exclusive, imperatives of budget management and better services. For governments everywhere, the reliance on consistent, timely information about their operations is now beyond critical," said Joanne K. Masingill, senior vice president, marketing, Cognos. "The State of Utah and many other public sector organizations have found the answer."