CRM, ERP, and homegrown legacy systems endeavor to empower organizations by automating all manner of business transactions. But the resulting data silos can render potentially valuable information inaccessible or unusable. Informatica Corporation solved this problem with an ambitious product called the Analytics Delivery Platform. This product provides people with integrated visibility into all their operations, as well as novel tools for the aggregation and analysis of this information.

During product development, Informatica identified a variety of strategic challenges, including the need for a front-end solution that would be as valuable as the back-end solution. But while such a product could increase Informatica's brand awareness and its per-client revenue, the company realized it could not capitalize on these opportunities without help. With no satisfactory third-party tools available, Informatica gave Cooper a call.

Cooper conducted research into the needs of a wide range of potential users. Equipped with these insights, Informatica directed its initial resources to create a single place where executives could create and share reports and reviews of information.

Most analytics platforms provide users with static data divorced from the context where genuine insight may be gained. This traditional approach may provide access to supplemental information, such as associated symptoms or the origin of the problem itself, but this access depends on the user's ability to negotiate labyrinthine data views.

Cooper took another approach to the problem. In close collaboration with Informatica marketing and engineering staff, Cooper created the "Chained Reports" concept. "Chained Reports" enables executives to easily manipulate relevant data structures, allowing full comprehension of complex and dynamic relationships. Cooper's solution also provides executives natural language and direct-manipulation controls for the retrieval, display, and analysis of information that is relevant to them. Moreover, the design instantiates workflows reflective of actual user needs, while anticipating executive communication needs to share information using the Internet and mobile devices. Finally, our appealing visual design communicates the purpose and use of information and tools.

By facilitating swift data aggregation, pattern recognition, and causal analysis, executives can understand and forecast critical events. By unlocking valuable enterprise data, the design helps describe and, ultimately, solve organizational challenges.

Through weekly presentations, collaborative meetings, and design consultations, Cooper enabled technologists, marketers, and executives to find satisfaction in a common vision. Cooper customized the form & behavior specification for this project, so that the final report dovetailed with a concurrent related project. In the end, Cooper helped Informatica become known as much for satisfying the needs of users as for solving thorny data architecture challenges.