Consensus

Wow! Three weeks into another year, and this is my first blog post! I feel great shame!!! :)

The topic for today is Consensus, and how it is critical for a successful BI deployment.

Many organizations that start down the path to enabling their users with Business Intelligence capabilities leap into the fray, boldly planning to put answers into the hands and heads of everyone. The problem is that sometimes the users can't ask the question in the way they want. Not because the tool isn't capable. Rather it is because the tool doesn't speak their language.

When you decide to implement a Business Intelligence solution, start by ensuring it speaks the same language as your users. Use their terminology and definitions. And if different groups have different meanings for terms like Product or Vendor or Customer, make sure you get them to either reconcile their definitions into one universal one, or define a different name for their respective elements. Whatever avenue you take, you must eventually reach a consensus about the definitions. Inconsistent semantics result in inconclusive or untrusted BI, and that's never a good thing.