Research network based at University of Toronto gets funding boost to improve business intelligence
A Canadian group of data management researchers today received a $5 million grant from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) to develop better information management systems for business applications.
"Business intelligence means using information to make informed decisions," says computer scientist Renée Miller, Bell Canada Chair of Information Systems at the University of Toronto, and primary investigator of the Business Intelligence Network (BIN). "From a research perspective, it includes everything from strategy and policy management, social media, information extraction, data integration, and data quality. Our goal is to provide new solutions for business, scientific, and government organizations to enable them to solve modern problems and make decisions using integrated, trustworthy, and up-to-date data."
The Business Intelligence Network will create a mechanism to enhance collaboration between the top Canadian knowledge and information management researchers and the top Canadian companies in business intelligence. "The Canadian information management research community is renowned for its contributions to all of these research areas," says Miller. "The proposed network will provide a forum for cross-fertilization of ideas and collaboration, as well as a focus and a defined application context to concentrate this impact within Canada."
"Through BIN, we will bring together organizations that are in the business of using, creating, and delivering business intelligence solutions, who need to strengthen their innovation pipeline. Our network will provide a venue for engaging business and government organizations to articulate the real problems that limit their efficiency and burden them with costs."
The BIN network is one of two U of T projects to receive a $5-million funding boost through NSERC's Strategic Research Networks program, announced today at McMaster University. The other - led by Gilbert Walker of the Department of Chemistry - aims to speed up cancer diagnosis by incorporating an emerging technology known as plasmonics into existing procedures that use cancer markers found on the surfaces of cells.
"We are delighted that two of the nine networks created today are based at U of T," says Professor Paul Young, U of T's vice-president (research). "These grants fund large-scale multi-disciplinary projects that have the potential to bring great benefit to society in the coming years, and this is exactly the kind of work that Professor Miller is leading. We will look to her and others like her who are working closely with collaborators in academia and industry for innovations that will improve the nation's economy and the quality of life of its citizens."
In addition to Miller and other U of T computer scientists, the BIN network includes researchers from the universities of Alberta, British Columbia, Ottawa and Waterloo, as well as Carleton and Dalhousie. Investigators are working with researchers at SAP, IBM, iAnywhere, Palomino, IC-Agency, and Zerofootprint to develop BI solutions in a number of application areas including managing and understanding climate change.
"We are extremely grateful to NSERC for its continued investment in excellence and for its support of U of T research," says University of Toronto president David Naylor. "The Business Intelligence Network represents an exceptional partnership that will transform the existing patchwork of systems currently available in complex organizations."
Source: University of Toronto
