Are you ready for BI? Test the waters first.

I noticed that a lot of the work we have done over the past few years has not necessarily been with a BI platform, such as BusinessObjectsd Edge. For sure Edge offers a whack of functionality for a great price, but in reality, especially in the SMB space, not everyone can afford it. Here are a few ways you can do Business Intelligence without buying a platform:

• Leverage the power of your database engine - most SMBs, somewhere in their business are using a SQL database of some sort. (If it happens to be Microsoft SQL, you're in great shape!) With a modest amount of technical skill, it is possible to use that platform to bring shape to your information. Some of our clients have created data mats using SQL, and we've helped some create multi-company consolidations. Are they as comprehensive and robust as they would be with a sophisticated ETL (Extract-Transform-Load) tool? No, but they're pretty darn reliable, and the cost of deploying and maintaining them was really quite modest - especially when you think of the value achieve.
  


• Use the Force! - I mean, "Use the Power"... of the technologies you already own. Let's face it - we both know you're going to use Excel. It's hard to deny it is a great tool for manipulating data, and with lots of ERP systems providing export abilities, it can be quite easy to get to raw data. Keep in mind when working with Excel that you are now disconnected from the data source, and this is where errors start to occur!!! I'm not saying don't do it, but do it with the knowledge that there is risk involved here.
  


• Let's be Crystal clear! - When we talk about the technologies you already have, I'm thinking you may/probably already have at least one license for Crystal Reports Designer. Now Crystal is not an end-user tool, and does require some understanding of data structures and links. But Crystal is by far the best tool I can think of for designing great-looking reports. And if you give people access to the Crystal Reports Viewer, they can review a report created for them, whether they're on a PC or Mac.
  


• Online Tools - While we're talking about Crystal Reports, did you know you can get a FREE five user start access to crystalreports.com? So with one person creating reports, five others can login securely and view them in a Browser. And like I said - it's FREE! It's one of the best ways I can think of to start testing the waters of Business Intelligence. Use it to gauge your readiness.
  

Hopefully that helps give you some ideas about how to move slowly towards integrating Business Intelligence into your operations. When computerized accounting systems first started to become available, many businesses were reluctant to jump on board because of the large up-front investment. Some tested spreadsheet programs (remember SuperCalc?), using it as an alternative, or as a way of getting some experience. The same kind of path is available for Business Intelligence. And I believe that in the next few years, Business Intelligence can have as profound an impact on your business as computerized accounting did ten or fifteen years ago.

Regards,

Jim

What else can Business Intelligence Do?

A lot of time, when I'm discuss Business Intelligence with people, we end up talking about the really standard things that can be done - Operational reporting, Ad Hoc analysis, a bit of dashboarding... stuff like that. What I have come to realize is that, in many cases, the power and utility of a Business Intelligence platform is realized when you use it for the 'not so standard' business applications. Let's discuss a couple of examples.

One of our clients (an equipment rental company) found that staff were having problems keeping track of the many shipping jobs they had on the go throughout the day. New orders would constantly be coming in, and the packers/shippers were trying to keep on top of what orders had to go out, and in what priority. What did we do? We created a small tracking dashboard, updated every minute, that showed the sequence of orders still to be picked/packed. The board was visible for all packers to see, all day long, and it immediately brought focus to the shipping department, significantly reducing the number of late deliveries. Result? Happy staff and equally important happy customers!

As another example, a client of ours runs a fairly high volume distribution business, with several staff entering lots of orders througout the day. There are several components that are very active in the business, and it is crucial for staff to monitor the level on hand at any time, to avoid promising shipment of an out-of-stock item. The staff could certainly navigate through the order entry system while on the phone with the customer, but for each item this would take about 10-15 seconds, and about 8 mouse-clicks each. Solution - we created a simple report that automatically refreshes every 15 seconds containing stock levels for the critical items. Now the order taker can open the report while on the phone, and see the status of all the critical items immediately. Impact - a significant reduction in time on the phone, and much improved customer service.

As a final example, another client (also in distribution) was requested by one of their vendors, to provide sales volume and location information, so that they could together determine effectiveness of marketing and sales efforts. By leveraging their BI platform, the client was able to create a monthly report with all the required information, delivered automatically to the vendor. Not only that - they have been able to develop similar relationships with several other vendors, and have turned the information into a 'for-fee' offering. Essentially their BI platform has created its own direct revenue stream!

These are just a couple of examples of where BI pays off. I hear lots of people talking about "Time to value" and "Return on Investment", and these are certainly critical to effectively making decisions and leading a business. My point is that these aren't the only criteria. Sometimes the benefit of a BI system is not immediately apparent. And sometimes it comes from areas you least expect.

Regards,

Jim