Business Intelligence

Using cost and related data to better understand activity behavior, define problems,
draw conclusions, make recommendations, and take actions.

Business intelligence

Any information that pertains to the history, current status or future projections of an
organization. See BI software and business intelligence portal.

business intelligence
This article or section is not written in the formal tone expected of an
encyclopedia article.
Please improve it or discuss changes on the talk page. See Wikipedia's guide to
writing better articles for suggestions.

Business intelligence (BI) is a business management term which refers to

applications and technologies which are used to gather, provide access to, and
analyze data and information about their company operations. Business intelligence
systems can help companies have a more comprehensive knowledge of the factors
affecting their business, such as metrics on sales, production, internal operations,
and they can help companies to make better business decisions. Business
Intelligence should not be confused with competitive intelligence, which is a separate
management concept.

Rationale for using BI

Business intelligence applications and technologies can enable organizations to make

more informed business decisions, and they may give a company a competitive
advantage. For example, a company could use business intelligence applications or
technologies to extrapolate information from indicators in the external environment
and forecast the future trends in their sector. Business intelligence is used to improve
the timeliness and quality of information, and enable managers to be able to better
understand the position of their firm as in comparison to its competitors.

Business intelligence applications and technologies can help companies analyze

changing trends in market share; changes in customer behavior and spending
patterns; customers' preferences; company capabilities; and market conditions.
Business intelligence can be used to help analysts and managers determine which
adjustments are most likely to respond to changing trends.

BI systems can help companies develop a more consistent, data-based decision

making process for business decisions, which can produce better results than making
business decisions by "guesswork." As well, business intelligence applications can
enhance communication among departments, coordinate activities, and enable
companies to respond more quickly to changes (e.g., in financial conditions,
customer preferences, supply chain operations, etc.). When a BI system is well-
designed and properly integrated into a company's processes and decision-making
process, it may be able to improve a company's performance. Having access to
timely and accurate information is an important resource for a company, which can
expedite decision-making and improve customers' experience.
In the competitive customer-service sector, companies need to have accurate, up-to-
date information on customer preferences, so that the company can quickly adapt to
their changing demands. Business Intelligence enables companies to gather
information on the trends in the marketplace and come up with innovative products
or services in anticipation of customer's changing demands. Business Intelligence
applications can also help managers to be better informed about actions that a
company's competitors are taking. As well, BI can help companies share selected
strategic information with business partners. For example, some businesses use BI
systems to share information with their suppliers (e.g., inventory levels, performance
metrics, and other supply chain data).

BI systems can also be designed to provide managers with information on the state
of economic trends or marketplace factors, or to provide managers with in depth
knowledge about the internal operations of a business.

BI Technologies

For the BI technology system to work effectively, companies address the need to
have a secure computer system which can specify different levels of user access to
the data 'warehouse', depending on whether the user is a junior staffer, manager, or
executive. As well, a BI system needs to have sufficient data capacity, a plan for how
long data will be stored (data retention). Analysts also need to set benchmark and
performance targets for the system.

Business intelligence analysts have developed software tools to gather and analyze
large quantities of unstructured data, such as production metrics, sales statistics,
attendance reports, and customer attrition figures. Each BI vendor typically develops
Business Intelligence systems differently, to suit the demands of different sectors
(e.g., retail companies, financial services companies, etc.).

Business intelligence software and applications includes a range of tools. Some BI

applications are used to analyze performance, projects, or internal operations, such
as AQL - Associative Query Logic; Scorecarding; Business activity monitoring;
Business Performance Management and Performance Measurement; Business
Planning; Business Process Re-engineering; Competitive Analysis; User/End-user
Query and Reporting;Enterprise Management systems; Executive Information
Systems (EIS); Supply Chain Management/Demand Chain Management; and Finance
and Budgeting tools.

Other BI applications are used to store and analyze data, such as Data mining (DM),
Data Farming, and Data warehouses;Decision Support Systems (DSS) and
Forecasting; Document warehouses and Document Management;Knowledge
Management; Mapping, Information visualization, and Dashboarding; Management
Information Systems (MIS);Geographic Information Systems (GIS); Trend Analysis;
Software as a service (SaaS) Business Intelligence offerings (On Demand)- similar to
traditional BI solutions but software is hosted for customers by a provider.[1] ;Online
Analytical Processing (OLAP) and multidimensional analysis; sometimes called
"Analytics" (based on the "hypercube" or "cube"); Real time business
intelligence;Statistics and Technical Data Analysis; Web Mining, Text mining and
Systems intelligence.
Other BI applications are used to analyze or manage the "human" side of businesses,
such as Customer Relationship Management (CRM) and Marketing tools and Human
Resources applications.Web Personalization For examples of implemented Business
Intelligence systems, see the BI screenshot collection at The Dashboard Spy.

The Future of Business Intelligence

In this rapidly changing world consumers are now demanding quicker more efficient
service from businesses. To stay competitive, companies must meet or exceed the
expectations of consumers. Companies will have to rely more heavily on their
business intelligence systems to stay ahead of trends and future events. Business
intelligence users are beginning to demand [Real time Business Intelligence] or near
real time analysis relating to their business, particularly in front line operations. They
will come to expect up to date and fresh information in the same fashion as they
monitor stock quotes online. Monthly and even weekly analysis will not suffice.
"Business users don't want to wait for information. Information needs to be always
on and never out of date. This is the way we live our lives today. Why should
Business Intelligence be any different?" Charles Nicholls, CEO of SeeWhy, a Software
company, Windsor UK.

In the not too distant future companies will become dependent on real time business
information in much the same fashion as people come to expect to get information
on the internet in just one or two clicks. "This instant "Internet experience" will
create the new framework for business intelligence, but business processes will have
to change to accommodate and exploit the real-time flows of business data." -- Nigel
Stokes, CEO, DataMirror Corp., Toronto

"BI 2.0" is the recently-coined term which is part of the continually developing
Business Intelligence industry and heralds the next step for BI. "BI 2.0" is used to
describe the acquisition, provision and analysis of "real time" data, the implication
being that earlier Business Intelligence and Data Mining products (BI 1.0?) have not
been capable of providing the kind of timely, current data end-users are now
clamoring to have. Realizing that hype has historically outpaced reality as Business
Intelligence software companies compete for marketshare, it would be wise to keep
in mind the observation of veteran analyst Andy Hayler as they now begin to
describe their products in terms of the "real time" and "BI 2.0" nomenclature.

Hayler recently wrote the following in an article titled, "Real Time BI - Get Real":"I
permitted myself a wry smile when I first heard the hype about 'real time' business
intelligence". Hayler then goes on to explain, "The mismatch between fantasy and
reality is driven by two factors. The first is that business rules and structures
(general ledgers, product classification, asset hierarchies, etc.) are not in fact
uniform, but are spread out among many disparate transaction system
implementations...The second problem is that the landscape of business structures is
itself in constant flux, as groups reorganize, subsidiaries are sold or new companies
acquired".

As long as Business Intelligence relies upon some kind of data warehouse structure
(including web-based virtual data "warehouses"), data will have to be converted into
what Hayler calls "a lowest common denominator consistent set." When it comes to
dealing with multiple, disparate data sources and the constantly changing, often
volatile, business environment which requires tweaking and restructuring of IT
systems, getting BI data in a genuinely true, "real time" format remains, again
according to Hayler, "a pipe dream...As long as people design data models and
databases the traditional way, you can forget about true 'real-time' business
intelligence across an enterprise: the real world gets in the way".

In the near future business information will become more democratized where end
users from throughout the organization will be able to view information on their
particular segment to see how it's performing. In the future, the capability
requirements of business intelligence will increase in the same way that consumer
expectations increase. It is therefore imperative that companies increase at the same
pace or even faster to stay competitive.

The remainder of this article may require cleanup to meet

Wikipedia's quality standards.
Please discuss this issue on the talk page, or replace this tag with a more
specific message. This article has been tagged since June 2006.

Key Intelligence Topics

Business intelligence often uses Key performance indicators (KPIs) to assess the
present state of business and to prescribe a course of action. In the 2000s,
companies are tending to make data of various types available more promptly. Prior
to the widespread adoption of computer and web applications, when information had
to be manually inputted and calculated, performance data was often not available for
weeks or months. Recently, banks have tried to make data available at shorter
intervals and have reduced delays. The KPI methodology was further expanded with
the Chief Performance Officer methodology which incorporated KPIs and root cause
analysis into a single methodology.

Businesses that face higher operational/credit risk loading, such as credit card
companies and "wealth management" services often make KPI-related data available
weekly. In some cases, companies may even offer a daily analysis of data. This fast
pace requires analysts to use IT systems to process this large volume of data.

Designing and implementing a business intelligence program

When implementing a BI programme one might like to pose a number of questions

and take a number of resultant decisions, such as:

• Goal Alignment queries: The first step determines the short and medium-
term purposes of the programme. What strategic goal(s) of the organization
will the programme address? What organizational mission/vision does it relate
to? A crafted hypothesis needs to detail how this initiative will eventually
improve results / performance (i.e. a strategy map).
• Baseline queries: Current information-gathering competency needs
assessing. Does the organization have the capability of monitoring important
sources of information? What data does the organization collect and how does
it store that data? What are the statistical parameters of this data, e.g. how
much random variation does it contain? Does the organization measure this?
• Cost and risk queries: The financial consequences of a new BI initiative
should be estimated. It is necessary to assess the cost of the present
 operations and the increase in costs associated with the BI initiative? What is
the risk that the initiative will fail? This risk assessment should be converted
into a financial metric and included in the planning.
• Customer and Stakeholder queries: Determine who will benefit from the
initiative and who will pay. Who has a stake in the current procedure? What
kinds of customers/stakeholders will benefit directly from this initiative? Who
will benefit indirectly? What are the quantitative / qualitative benefits? Is the
specified initiative the best way to increase satisfaction for all kinds of
customers, or is there a better way? How will customers' benefits be
monitored? What about employees,... shareholders,... distribution channel
members?
• Metrics-related queries: These information requirements must be
operationalized into clearly defined metrics. One must decide what metrics to
use for each piece of information being gathered. Are these the best metrics?
How do we know that? How many metrics need to be tracked? If this is a
large number (it usually is), what kind of system can be used to track them?
Are the metrics standardized, so they can be benchmarked against
performance in other organizations? What are the industry standard metrics
available?
• Measurement Methodology-related queries: One should establish a
methodology or a procedure to determine the best (or acceptable) way of
measuring the required metrics. What methods will be used, and how
frequently will the organization collect data? Do industry standards exist for
this? Is this the best way to do the measurements? How do we know that?
• Results-related queries: Someone should monitor the BI programme to
ensure that objectives are being met. Adjustments in the programme may be
necessary. The programme should be tested for accuracy, reliability, and
validity. How can one demonstrate that the BI initiative (rather than other
factors) contributed to a change in results? How much of the change was
probably random?.

See also

• Analytics
• Business intelligence tools
• Digital dashboard
• Economic Espionage Act of 1996
• Environmental scanning
• Intelligent document
• List of management topics
• OLAP
• OODA Loop
• Pivot table
• Predictive analytics
• Reverse engineering

business intelligence tools

Business intelligence tools are a type of application software designed to help the
business intelligence (BI) business processes. Specifically they are generally tools
that aid in the analysis, and presentation of data. While some business intelligence
tools include ETL functionality, ETL tools are generally not considered business
intelligence tools.

Types of business intelligence tools

• Online Analytical Processing, commonly known as OLAP (including HOLAP,

ROLAP and MOLAP)- a capability of some management, decision support, and
executive information systems that supports interactive examination of large
amounts of data from many perspectives.[1]
• Reporting software generates aggregated views of data to keep the
management informed about the state of their business.
• Data mining - extraction of consumer information from a database by utilizing
software that can isolate and identify previously unknown patterns or trends
in large amounts of data. There are a variety of data mining techniques that
reveal different types of patterns.[2]. Some of the techniques that belong here
are Statistical methods (particularly Business statistics) and Neural networks
as very advanced means of analysing data.
• Business performance management (BPM)

Open Source & Free Business Intelligence Products

• OpenI: simple web application that does OLAP reporting

• SpagoBI: a Business Intelligence Free Platform which uses many FOSS tools
as analytical engines, integrating them in an infrastructure which offers a
cross-operativeness and a consistent vision between Report,OLAP,Data
Mining,Dashboard and over the DWH.
• Pentaho: enterprise-class reporting, analysis, dashboard, data mining and
workflow capabilities
• YALE: open-source software for intelligent data analysis, knowledge discovery,
data mining, and machine learning useful for business intelligence
applications.

Commercial Products

• ACE*COMM
• Actuate
• Applix
• Business Objects
• Cognos
• ComArch
• Dimensional Insight
• Hyperion Solutions Corporation
• MaxQ Technologies
• Microsoft Analysis Services
• Microsoft Excel
• MicroStrategy
• Oco
• Oracle Corporation
• OutlookSoft
• Pentaho
• Pilot Software, Inc.
• Prospero Business Suite
• SAP Business Information Warehouse
• SAS Institute
• Siebel Systems
• SPSS
• Teradata
• LucidEra OnDemand BI