Performance World—the "place to be" at Cognos Forum 2008

If you're attending this year's Cognos Forum in Las Vegas, we hope you'll spend a lot of time in Performance World, Cognos Forum's exciting on-site resource center.

Performance World is the one place where you can experience the entire Cognos ecosystem. You can make an appointment for a product demo or one-on-one session using Scheduler. But with more than 60 exhibits, Performance World is also a great place to simply wander, mingle, and introduce yourself to partners, Cognos product experts, and other attendees with similar interests.

Performance World Reception Sponsored by Composite Software Palazzo L – Level 5 Tuesday, May 13 5:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.

Performance World is located in the Palazzo Ballroom, on the fifth floor of the Venetian. That's right next to the main dining area, which means that Performance World is a great place to visit with your friends before or after meals.

There's much more to see and do in Performance World than we can possibly describe here in SupportLink. But we want to share some of the highlights of Performance World's five interactive zones.

Networking Zone

Performance World will be the venue for several of Forum's most fun and interesting networking events. During the Welcome Reception, on Monday, May 12, for example, a fast-paced "Speed Networking" event will give you a chance to meet up to 10 other attendees who share similar responsibilities in their organizations.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, Birds of a Feather Lunches in Performance World will offer informal discussions on topics ranging from financial performance to network security. And a series of 30-minute Performance Leaders Roundtable sessions will give you a chance to hear customers share their success stories and best practices.

Solutions Zone

In the Solutions Zone you can meet with Cognos product managers, IBM Cognos Performance Blueprint specialists from the Cognos Innovation Center, and representatives from our worldwide network of partners.

You can sit back and watch a full-length, 30-minute product demo in one of two Demo Theaters. Or, get a one-on-one demonstration of our latest products or solutions, such as IBM Cognos Now! for operational BI.

Cognos Forum Connect Get acquainted with other Forum attendees—online—through Cognos Forum Connect. Log in, create a profile, then communicate via group blogs and personal message boards. Visit Cognos Forum Connect >

The Solutions Zone is also the place to see Accenture's Pre-Contract Analytics for the pharmaceutical industry, or Deloitte's Integrated Performance Management (IPM) diagnostic tool.

Hands-On Zone

The Hands-On Zone is where you can put your hands on the keyboard and experience the speed and sophistication of the latest Cognos products.

You can try IBM Cognos Executive Viewer (formerly Applix Executive Viewer) and see how easy it is to apply filters and use format options such as traffic lighting. You can also try your hand at designing a report using Analysis Studio with IBM Cognos 8 BI.

In the Hands-On Zone's Education and Implementation Methodology Lab, you can go step-by-step through the Cognos Solutions Implementation Methodology (SIM) and see for yourself how this methodical process helps ensure successful, repeatable Cognos deployments.

Software Services Zone

Meet with our education, professional services, and support experts in the Software Services Zone. If you have a challenging test case, a design issue, or some other pressing question, schedule a 30-minute appointment through Scheduler. You'll be able to meet face-to-face with our knowledgeable experts to get the answers you need. (If all appointments are full, stop by anyway and we'll try to fit you in.)

Visit the Cognos Professional Services booth for advice on maximizing the business value of your Cognos solution. Then go to the Cognos Education booth to learn about opportunities for training tailored your specific product, data, and application needs. You can even create a personalized education plan and discuss customized enterprise training to increase user adoption in your organization.

Feedback Zone

The Feedback Zone is where we ask your help in guiding the future of Cognos solutions. We'll show you some conceptual prototypes and ask you to share your opinions on usability, functionality or any aspect of product design that interests you.  

This year, the Feedback Zone's Usability Lab has two distinct areas. At Usability Verification, you can participate in a hands-on usability test with just 2-4 of your peers. Or, you can join a larger discussion with up to 25 others in the Usability Theater. There, you'll see an in-depth presentation on a possible future vision, then share your opinions in a free-wheeling discussion and vote on the features and functions you like best.

Finally, stop by the Documentation Lab and take a look at our product documentation. Tell us how you search for information, and what you look for in a product guide or user manual. We look forward to hearing your comments and suggestions about format, layout and content.

It's a big world…

As we said earlier, there's more to Performance World than we can properly cover in SupportLink. But you can learn more about Performance World at the Cognos Forum Web site.

And please join us from 5:30-6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 13, for the Performance World Reception, sponsored by Composite Software. It will be a great opportunity to unwind after the first full day of sessions.

See you in Las Vegas!

The clock is ticking… but there’s still time! Don't miss out on Cognos Forum 2008 - it's not too late to register!