As it is already noticed by everyone, we are currently in the period of another digital revolution, which is driven by data – generated and processed in huge quantities. The value and role of Business Intelligence increase as the importance of data grows. Data is being more frequently taken into account when making decisions and handling business processes as in medium companies as in big enterprises.
And surely you have probably heard and read the term "Business Intelligence" from many sources. And maybe you were also wondering how you can make better decisions for your business operations with BI tools.
But some of us can be confused about what BI really means and how it works. Let's take a deeper look at this together!
What is Business Intelligence?
Shortly explained, BI (Business Intelligence) is a set of processes, architectures and technologies that use software and services to transform data into actionable insights. The term "business intelligence" also often applies to a number of tools that provide quick and easy access to information about the current state of an organization based on available data.
Sometimes people can get confused and mix up the Business Intelligence with Data Visualization terms (more info about data visualisation here).
How does Business Intelligence work?
Usually companies have their operational applications and multiple data sources. The combined data from these sources into one central system is called a data warehouse. Business intelligence relies on exactly these data warehouses for raw information. BI software requests data from the data warehouse and provides the results to the user in the form of reports, graphs, and maps.
Data warehouses can include an online analytical processing engine to support multi-dimensional requests. For example, your company can have an answer to such specific questions as: How are sales in Europe compared to the APAC region this year versus last year?
Business Intelligence tools
BI solutions are different types of software used to collect, process, analyze and visualize large amounts of past, current and future data in order to generate actionable business insights.
It is important to mention that BI tools include key features such as data visualization, interactive dashboards and KPI tables. In addition, they allow users to use automated reporting and predictive analytics features on a self-service basis.
But what exactly are the functionalities of these tools and what do they offer that traditional data management tools can't?
Functionalities of Business Intelligence tools
Analysis & Reporting
BI tools can bring together all relevant data from all different portals like ERPs, CRMs, flat files, databases, APIs, and much more. The collected raw data can be analyzed and transferred into meaningful, useful and actionable information. With provided information and with comprehensive functionalities companies can create, view and modify reports.
Real-time Monitoring
BI tools help companies to analyze data in the real time up to the second the company operation was made. It enables companies to make quick and well informed decisions.
Scorecards & Dashboards
With scorecards and dashboards that are provided by BI solutions, companies can monitor and measure key performance both leading and lagging indicators in a manageable way. For example, customer and financial KPIs are traditionally lagging indicators – the numbers indicate what has already happened. These tools allow companies to make strategic decisions better based on the distance between current performance and the goal.
Advanced Analytics and Visualization
Sometimes for having more advanced analytics and visualization, some business intelligence tools are providing companies with enhanced capabilities. It can be for example real time visualization in different forms and methods or augment additional functionalities.
Benefits for the finance world
Business intelligence plays a crucial role in helping businesses monitor changing trends and adapt effectively to different market conditions. But speaking about the financial side of the company, BI tools are more than essential nowadays.
BI tools provide companies with useful business insights & Enhancing competitive advantage. Power BI data warehousing can help a financial team better understand what working and areas where they are still lagging are. By using business intelligence tools, an organization is better placed to set up alerts more efficiently, monitor metrics, and assist the top management to remain abreast of key performance indicators for the organization. Some of the most reliable ways for organizations to gain competitive advantage include, for instance, budgeting, planning as well as forecasting, which can be performed quickly and quicker using BI software.
With Business intelligence and software like Jenji you can transform your data into actionable insights and profit center! Do you want to know more about it?
Do not hesitate to contact our team at sales@jenji.io We would be glad to answer all your questions!
