All these efforts require projection of sales and, therefore, the sales forecast.
Apple lowered its projection of sales for the current quarter, the first of fiscal 2001, to about $1.6 billion, which is expected to drag down results for the full year.
For a mid-level manager with a good idea, the trick is to pitch a social project with sales projections to back it up, Kramer said.
But the company missed analysts' revenue projections, reporting sales of $2.36 billion compared with forecasts of $2.5 billion.
Intuitive Surgical and Hansen Medical, makers of expensive robotic surgery systems, have also slashed projections for sales of new equipment.
The perfect use for this software has finally arrived, and it's not in building income projections or sales charts.
Company executives at Limited, a major specialty chain, raised their own projections for sales growth last week, to the mid-single digits from the low single digits.
Meanwhile, analysts are generally sticking with earlier projections that sales in the United States will top 13 million vehicles this year, up from 11.6 million in 2010.
Intel, the world's largest chip maker, reported profit that outpaced Wall Street estimates, but sharply lowered its 2012 projections for sales growth.
The video game maker beat Wall Street projections as sales rose 53 percent, and said it expects revenue growth of more than 20 percent in its core business this fiscal year.
