Kudos to Vanguard Software from Analytics Magazine

Analytics magazine says Vanguard Software Pushes the Boundary of Enterprise Risk Modeling

Cary, NC – Aug 1, 2009 – In the latest issue of Analytics magazine, Sanjay Saigal cites the many ways in which Vanguard Software expands Probability Management, a new analytic framework for fast and robust risk analysis. In his article, "Probability Management in Action", Saigal commends Vanguard for its enterprise focus, easy Excel integration, boundry-pushing grid computing, and front-running Web-based delivery of analytic models.

The use of Probability Management to identify enterprise-wide risks and opportunities is a shift from the error-prone method of using statistical averages when estimating outcomes in information management. Probability Management moves risk analysis to the use of highly accurate simulation models based on libraries of probability distributions. Saigal recognizes Vanguard as one of two companies that foresaw the need for Probability Management and offered customers the tools before the term was coined. Vanguard is honored as a long-time champion of the collaborative, modular style of modeling that is at the heart of Probability Management.

Saigal praises Vanguard's focus on developing software that meets the needs of the Enterprise by drastically exceeding desktop analysis tools in addressing complex applications. In one example, Saigal notes that Vanguard is being used to provide new product design cost impacts for a $19 billion aerospace giant.

Saigal goes on to compliment Vanguard's support of common Probability Management modeling formats as well as the ease with which it integrates Microsoft Excel models. To his surprise, Saigal found that only a quarter of available simulation packages provide Excel support, and he remarks that Vanguard not only extends but also improves upon the model performance of common desktop analysis tools such Excel. He explains that Excel simulations are integrated easily into complex Vanguard models and that performance speeds for these Vanguard models are 60 times faster than spreadsheet models (a simulation that takes an hour in a spreadsheet will take only one minute in Vanguard).

Owing that Vanguard's base products already run business simulations on desktop computers at 60 times the speed of similar models in spreadsheets, Saigal points out that Vanguard's software really pushes the boundaries of Probability Management with its grid computing capabilities. The Enterprise Grid that Vanguard offers can be a cluster of computers that act as a dedicated grid, or it can be made up of networked individual computers that all assist in performing the simulation. In addition, Vanguard offers a Grid Computing Service for running large Monte Carlo simulations. The service lets Vanguard customers run their Monte Carlo simulations 25 times faster than using Vanguard on their desktop computers, and about 250 times faster than someone using spreadsheet simulation add-ins.

While Vanguard provides the first-ever grid computing simulations, it also allows users to modify and run interactive models on the Web. With just the click of a button, Saigal extols, Vanguard users can publish models to the Web as interactive Web applications. Vanguard also provides a special Web development add-in that gives users complete control over how a model looks and behaves on the Web. As the Web continues to become a critical part of modern business processes, Vanguard remains at the forefront of business technology.

Analytics magazine is a quarterly, digital magazine that provides a comprehensive look at the analytics profession through news articles, features, columns, and departments. Analytics, Summer 2009 is available online at www.analyticsmagazine.com.

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About Vanguard Software

Vanguard Software is a privately held corporation founded in 1995 to develop business Decision Support software. Customers in over 60 countries and in every major industry use Vanguard’s software for forecasting, resource optimization, Web-based expert systems, and financial modeling. For more information about Vanguard, visit http://www.vanguardsw.com/.