Developed in conjunction with IBM, MDM-in-a-Box offers a Quick Start Solution that addresses specific areas of Master Data Management (MDM). Built on IBM's InfoSphere Master Data Management Server, MDM-in-a-Box adds value as a preconfigured solution to reduce deployment time and effort. MDM-in-a-Box delivers a fast return on value and creates a roadmap to continue enterprise-wide MDM deployment through ongoing phases.

Master Data Management is the central collection and management of all of an organisation's critical customer data and when applied correctly, can deliver increased back-office efficiencies and greater customer insight, which in turn lead to more effective sales and marketing campaigns, within a streamlined IT infrastructure.

Cognizant's MDM-in-a-Box solution accelerator is preconfigured to lower costs and dramatically reduce implementation time for a typical enterprise-wide MDM deployment, delivering greater business value and justification to support ongoing deployment. "MDM-in-a-Box provides a rapid, flexible approach to Master Data Management that can deliver business benefits and ROI faster than previously envisaged," says Tony Smith, European head, Customer Solutions Practice (CSP) Cognizant.

The Customer Insight Module of MDM-in-a-Box has been designed to specifically meet the customer data needs of banking and insurance companies, for whom MDM is particularly important. Competition within this industry is intense and customers can switch providers quickly and easily. Without a single view of customer data, compliance is compromised, customer service suffers, and cross-selling and up-selling effort is ineffective.

Built on IBM's market-leading InfoSphere Master Data Management Server platform, the Customer Insight Module offers enhanced functionality and process improvement through key features relevant to financial services organisations:

• Compliance Enablement, for Know Your Customer (KYC) proceesses and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) flagging
• Enhanced Data Stewardship, for greater control over critical data changes and hierarchy management
• Advanced Search and Reporting, providing better insight into customer data
• Flexible Data Integration, making it easy to assimilate data from multiple systems

"IBM's InfoSphere Master Data Management Server is a software platform to deliver trusted information for a range of business processes and applications that require a consistent, accurate and complete view of master data," said Paraic Sweeney, vice president product management, IBM Information Management. "This proven system enables Cognizant to deliver solutions to meet their customers' needs such as building better customer relationships, reducing IT infrastructure costs and helping prevent identify fraud."

Implementation is carried out by Cognizant employees who work with the customer to refine the solution to their specific requirements. Over the coming months Cognizant will roll out additional MDM-in-a-Box modules, each addressing evolving high-priority issues for the financial services sector and giving organisations a roadmap to successful enterprise-wide MDM deployment.

The Customer Insight Module of MDM-in-a-Box is available now in the UK. Cognizant will continue to develop its suite of Quick Start Solutions, working with other leading technology companies across a range of sectors including life sciences, utilities and telecoms. The suite of Quick Start Solutions will provide companies with a modular approach to tackling technology areas that have traditionally been difficult to implement and will enable companies to realise the benefits and value from these projects quickly.