Progress Software commissioned independent specialist technology market research company Vanson Bourne to undertake the research upon which this report is based. Four hundred interviews were carried out in July 2009 with major companies representing the energy generation, telecommunications and logistics sectors, in the USA and Western Europe.

Never has operational responsiveness, the pursuit of how continually and quickly to deliver maximum value to customers while deriving maximum profitability, been nearer the top of the business agenda. A key ingredient must be the ability to tame the business event torrent and to be able to interpret and act quickly upon the opportunities and challenges it reveals. As this paper will demonstrate, harnessing business events, smart interpretation and fast response are definite objectives, and the need is immediate.