When I joined the company I found something that, if you simplify the situation enough, can be summerized like this:

Definitely not what you normally dream about. Many components in the infrastructure, many different tools, many platforms and data sources (from MySQL through IBM DB2 and SyBase to Microsoft SQL Server, from monitoring to workflow and ticketing tools or even SAP, etc.) and, not to forget, several customers. Each customer with different reuirements, sometimes with very complex services and service levels (SLAs).

Certainly a challenge.

Both the environment and the information are rather complex, a full report package is several hundred megabytes, maybe a gig. It means that if you have limits on resources you will need to much time to produce everything or if you are determined to deliver on time, resource requirements start growing rapidly. Dilemma.

What should be put in the middle green circle to provide the management with quick and reliable data with short delay?

Definitely not Business Objects.

In the next post: why I wanted to avoid using BO, formerly known as CR?