Vanguard System

Business Analysis Software

Vanguard System (formerly DecisionPro Professional) picks up where your spreadsheet leaves off combining key quantitative analysis methods into a graphical interface that lets you easily model any business problem. Vanguard Studio includes powerful functionality for the power user through a variety of optional add-ins: forecasting, decision tree analysis, monte carlo simulations and linear programming optimization.

Benefits

Visual Approach to Business Modeling.

Like a spreadsheet, Vanguard Studio is a general business analysis tool. Vanguard Studio significantly increases your analysis power by letting you model your business problems visually and providing a wide variety of powerful analysis tools not available in spreadsheets. It also processes complex problems much faster than a spreadsheet is able to.

Model virtually any business scenario imaginable such as:

Strategic Planning - Competitive threat/opportunity assessment, Business modeling, Market share and trend analysis, Experience curves, Financial risk assessment, Acquisition analysis and valuation, Economic analysis
Marketing - New product valuation, Market segmentation, Demand analysis, Test market analysis, Marketing strategy selection, Price optimization, Promotion/advertising/sales force valuation, Sales and profit forecasting, Contingency planning
Finance and Accounting - Financial forecasting, Company/project valuation, Financial risk management, Cost/benefit analysis, Investment analysis, Securities pricing and modeling, Performance measures calculation, Management reporting
Operations - Production modeling and optimization, Reporting, Production scheduling, Inventory planning
Legal - Litigation strategy, Competitive negotiation analysis

Easily analyze and communicate business problems using Vanguard Studio's tree structure.

Problems that can be difficult to model on spreadsheets can now easily be "divided and conquered" and clearly communicated to others.

Advanced quantitative analysis functions in the base software include:

Statistical Analysis: All of the most widely used statistical data analysis methods such as mean, standard deviation, min, max, correlation, etc.
Database Connectivity to link your models to external data sources. Vanguard Studio can be set up to automatically read data from an input source, analyze and process it based on analysis models that you have set up and then output results.
List Processing and Matrix Math
Numeric Calculus using Integral and Derivative functions.
Units of Measure functions to convert between different measuring systems (e.g. Metric to US).
Complex Number functions
And much more. . .

Optional Add-in Modules Include:

Forecasting (Included in Operational Forecasting, Strategic Forecasting and Business Analytics Suites)

Vanguard Studio's forecasting add-in includes a wide range of time series and regression analysis forecasting methodologies including moving averages, exponential smoothing, regression curve fitting, Fourier spectral analysis techniques and more.
Use the Forecast Wizard to guide you through choosing the optimal method for your data.
Use the Batch Forecast Wizard to forecast hundreds of thousands of items at one time.
Automate your forecasts by setting Vanguard Studio up to automatically import your data, choose the best forecasting method, calculate desired inventory levels and export the results to your database.

Decision Tree Analysis (Included in Decision Tree and Business Analytics Suites)

Decision Trees are ideal for modeling and solving business problems where you face uncertainty and the possibility of several outcomes occurring. Vanguard Studio's Decision Tree module helps you model the various possible outcomes, apply probabilities to them and analyze the outcomes that will most likely provide favorable results. The Markov Simulation tool that is also included in this add-on lets you run simulations to model a business situation with changing states.

Monte Carlo Simulation (Included in Strategic Forecasting and Business Analytics Suites)

Most spreadsheet models rely on "deterministic" models where a limited set of input assumptions (e.g. best case/expected case/worst case) provide a limited number of output scenarios. Monte Carlo simulations take this a major step forward by identifying the true risk and probability of success. By simulating thousands of scenarios of input variables, you can obtain a much more accurate assesment of the range and probability of the most likely outcomes. The functions include:

Custom and pre-defined input distributions as well as automated distribution fitting based on your existing data
An unlimited number of inputs including the ability to correlate the inputs
Output reports including distribution charts and statistics

Optimization (Included in Business Analytics Suite)

Vanguard Studio's optimization module allows you to determine the optimal set of input values that maximize or minimize a result. For example, how to maximize total sales by varying spending levels on various individual budgets (e.g. advertising, direct mail, expanded sales force, etc.). Or, how much of each product should be produced in a factory to maximize profit. The Optimization module includes the following techniques:

specify your objective and constraints in plain English form unlike other typical optimization tools.
Linear Program Optimization for optimizing results with any input values
Integer Program Optimization for optimizing problems involving integer/whole number variables.

Reviews/Testimonials/Customers

ORMS Today: "DecisionPro is already a standard tool and sure to remain one."

DecisionPro [the product that Vanguard Studio is replacing] is used around the world by leading companies such as 3M, AT&T, KPMG, Merck, Procter & Gamble, Hewlett Packard, Lucent, General Electric, Sprint, Boeing, Ernst and Young, Motorola, Toyota, Intel, ABC, Shell, Deloitte & Touche, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, Ford, Principal Financial Group, Sears, Morgan Stanley, Kodak, Verizon and many others.

Technical Specifications

Personal computer with a 386 or higher microprocessor; Microsoft® Windows® 95, 98, NT 4.0, or 2000, ME, XP or later; 32 MB of memory; Hard disk with at least 10 MB of free space; CD-ROM drive; VGA or higher-resolution video adapter

60 DAY GUARANTEE ON Vanguard Studio!

Please ensure your e-mail address is accurate.
Download instructions will be e-mailed to you.

You can also use Vanguard Studio to develop powerful, dynamic web applications based on these advanced methods including Wizard-style decision support applications. Contact us for more information.

For pricing information on additional add-ins or other information, please call 919-859-4101 (please say that you were referred from MBAWare).

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