One of the major issues organizations face today is managing data, whether in terms of volume, location, format, or context. The complexity of these factors makes it increasingly difficult and time-consuming for your organization to find, use, and share information effectively. Also, as companies try to do more with less because of intense competition, organizational structures are becoming more complex, including virtual, flat, and distributed environments. Within these multifaceted organizational structures, business information can be stored in a multitude of places—server folders, intranets, e-mail, the Internet, personal computers—increasing the challenge of locating critical information efficiently. As a consequence, businesses need search and information tools that help them to be more productive, make better business decisions, and achieve greater business success in order to compete. Integrated data management solutions from Microsoft provide the means to improve customer and partner relationships, create innovative products, and improve operations and profitability—to offer information empowerment for your organization.

Organizations generate more and more information that is increasingly valuable, but also increasingly hard to locate and use in a meaningful way. Knowledge workers spend 15 percent to 30 percent of their work days looking for information, and at least 50 percent of online searches are not successful. The number and complexity of information sources are growing constantly, which results in people storing more data in more places. Disparate user interfaces present data differently, and this creates inconsistencies and confusion.

As a result, the return on information for enterprises is lower than it should be; companies, inundated with information, are unable to take full advantage of its potential. The growing complexity of business information makes it increasingly difficult to structure, organize, and process the information to improve business insight. Compounding this issue, people have an increasing amount of data on their computers, much of it stored and organized poorly. Often, when this data is placed on corporate networks or server folders, there is no unified process or method for filing and retrieving it.

Companies need to be able to exchange documents and information internally, among multiple locations—such as server folders and intranets—and teams must work together across physical and cultural boundaries. People have found that managing communication, schedules, and file-sharing tasks is difficult using traditional methods such as directory root and tree searches, and sending e-mail to colleagues for information. What knowledge workers need instead is the ability to locate and communicate with each other directly in the context of their business processes and the applications they use every day to do their jobs. Most firms manage and access content in silos, and each silo has its own data-storage method. As a result, information workers can rely only on relatively inefficient and disjointed methods of accessing the data and content they need.

Effective business information management requires providing the tools and access to an organization's people, helping them to make better decisions, be more productive, and achieve greater success. These tools and processes help people to find, use, and share information quickly, easily, and more securely.

The beginning of the information process typically begins with access—quickly and smoothly connecting people with the right information—which can dramatically impact an organization's productivity. To provide adequate access, make sure that your people have:

• A single interface that is integrated across the desktop, corporate network, and Internet, reducing the time spent looking for information. This interface helps people to look for multiple types of information—.pdf files, e-mail, e-mail attachments, line of business data, even people profiles—to identify in-house experts and their associated files and documents.
• A smart search that quickly finds relevant results with business-specific search capabilities—across line of business applications, databases, and more.
• An intuitive search. Effectiveness is maximized when people use a familiar user interface, integrated into all familiar Microsoft Office applications.
• A secure search, such as the one users can expect with the Windows Vista operating system, which offers improved protection from viruses, phishing, and other malicious software.

Information, once found, must be organized and managed to be used effectively. When data, facts, and figures are assembled in a coherent manner, they become knowledge and insight that your team or organization can use to drive the business forward. Effective data management requires:

• Sorting and selecting. Windows Desktop Search offers visual page previews with detailed summary information to help reduce the time people spend interpreting search results.
• Customizable, up-to-date searches. Retrieve your information on demand with saved searches that organize and quickly display up-to-date information. People can work with the latest version of documents with comprehensive data synchronization among desktops, the corporate network, and connected devices.
• Integration with applications. Excel, PowerPoint, and other Microsoft Office applications smoothly incorporate data regardless of its format, to help your people transform information into knowledge. A comprehensive, integrated suite of information management tools, Microsoft Office makes it easy for information workers to synthesize business knowledge by quickly creating dynamic and professional presentations complete with charts and graphs.
• More secure access. Protect your company's intellectual property and abide by regulatory compliance efforts with defined rules for storage, access, and distribution of documents and e-mail. You decide whom you want to have access to your business insights.

When people can easily and quickly communicate insights and knowledge with peers, customers, and partners, they drive business success. Give your people the tools they need for:

• Quick publication. With Microsoft SharePoint Server 2007, easily create and publish Web content directly from familiar applications or e-mail. Personalized, dedicated SharePoint sites make data storage and sharing easy.
• Dynamic and frequent collaboration. Reduce travel costs through the use of online meetings and team workspaces that help groups to better collaborate on or off the corporate network. Workspaces offer a single place to store all team tools and information, and they can be easily updated by all participants.
• Effective communication. With the integrated Microsoft platform, your people can easily find and communicate with peers, partners, and customers in multiple ways (such as e-mail, phone, and instant messages). With team profiling tools, personnel can take advantage of people networks, both inside and outside your organization, to connect and share knowledge. Microsoft Office applications provide tools that help people to easily filter prioritize incoming information.
• Partner and supplier connections. Windows SharePoint Services helps you achieve tighter integration and high-value connections with your partners and suppliers through the easy creation of more secure extranet sites. This integrated approach can streamline shared business connections and reduce the time spent on administrative matters.
• Secure sharing. Through the use of team profiles and rights management, information can be more securely shared across organizational boundaries with external customers, partners, and vendors.

The challenge most companies face is separating business software and processes from the people who make the business successful. Every business must expand its customer base, create new practices and products, devise efficiencies, and identify and adapt to change. Business situations that require effective business information management are numerous. Imagine if your company were able to:

• Reduce product development cycles and remove collaboration and process blocks among teams.
• Provide informed responses to rushed Request for Proposals from customers and prospects.
• Make more effective sales and marketing decisions, and respond faster than your competition to marketplace changes.
• Provide customer representatives with information they need to respond quickly to customers' questions at call centers and in stores.
• Use customer data from the company's CRM and other systems more effectively, to provide the right information to customers at the right time.

Software does not do these things—people do these things. When integrated business information management tools are in place, people can be empowered to make better decisions and drive results within and beyond your organization.

Business information solutions from Microsoft give people a stronger connection and engagement with the tools and information used to run the business—and therefore give them a better opportunity to drive positive business performance.