Palisade Launches BigPicture for Microsoft Excel

Spreadsheet add-in from decision analysis experts visualises ideas or big data through dynamic mind maps

London, UK – 8 January 2015 – Palisade Corporation, a leader in decision and risk analysis solutions, today announced the release of its latest product, BigPicture for Microsoft Excel. A diagramming, mind mapping and data visualisation tool, BigPicture will appeal to strategic planners, data analysts, human resources professionals, and others. BigPicture is currently available for download in beta version, and is the first and only mind mapping tool on the market based completely in Excel.

With BigPicture, decision makers can organise thoughts and ideas, or create dynamic topical maps from any type of spreadsheet data, utilising mind mapping techniques. A mind map is a diagram used to visually organise information with shapes and connectors. Typically, topics or ideas are drawn in shapes around, and branching from, a beginning concept. BigPicture can be used for traditional mind mapping and for any free-form diagramming exercise with the goal of visualising an abstract problem. The technique dates from the 1970s and is widely taught in MBA programs.

When used with data, BigPicture creates maps automatically from source data sets, with little user effort. Taking advantage of its Excel integration, BigPicture also updates its maps whenever there is a change in the source data. All maps can be customised for colour, shape and formatting, using Excel native features.

BigPicture has been developed with a wide range of challenges in mind: data analytics, financial planning, strategic planning, business process management, operations research, decision modelling, human resources functions and marketing analytics. Because BigPicture is based in Excel, its maps and reports can be readily shared with any Excel user, even those without BigPicture installed. For these reasons, BigPicture is expected to see wide adoption across a range of industries.

BigPicture’s features include:

• Flexible mind maps for brainstorming and decision-making
• Translation of spreadsheet data into dynamic topical maps that update whenever source data changes
• Automatically-generated organisational charts from personnel data
• Ability to perform rollup calculations or link to formulas in data maps

“For over 30 years, Palisade has provided Fortune 500 decision makers with spreadsheet-based tools to aid decision-making with better insights into risk, data, and uncertainty, which makes BigPicture a natural fit within Palisade’s decision software product range,” said Randy Heffernan, Vice President, Palisade. “With BigPicture, Palisade aims to provide users with new and visually exciting ways to model decisions and gain insights into their data, in the flexible environment of Excel. We expect BigPicture to be a valuable resource tool across many industries, within a variety of roles and at a very affordable price.”

Final release of BigPicture is expected in the first half of 2015. The beta version is available for free download here: http://www.palisade.com/BigPicture/Beta/default.asp.

About Palisade
Palisade Corporation is a software developer and solution provider that produces decision support tools for professionals in many industry sectors. The company was founded in 1984, and at present more than 150,000 people use Palisade’s software in fields that range from finance to oil and mineral exploration, real estate to heavy manufacturing and pharmaceuticals to aerospace. Its software is used by more than 90 percent of Fortune Global 500 companies. Sample clients include Royal Dutch Shell, Petrobras, Procter & Gamble, PEMEX, China Minmetals, Mitsubishi, Merck, Unilever, Allianz, Total, Raytheon and BHP Billiton, as well as top business schools around the world.

For more information or a complimentary review copy, please contact:
Nicola Males/Kate Alexander
Vanilla PR
T: +44 7976 652491
E: Nicola@vanillapr.co.uk / kate@vanillapr.co.uk

Source: RealWire