bi software report from it central station

8/13/2019 BI Software Report From IT Central Station

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BUSINESS INTELLIGENCESOFTW RE

A PEEK INTO WHAT REAL USERS REALLY THINK

2013

IT Central Station helps IT professionals by providing

A comprehensive list of allenterprise level business

intelligence softwaresolutions.

Several real user reviewsfrom IT professionals and

vendor information.

Specific information to helpIT professionals select the

product that is right for theirspecific needs.

DISCLAIMER

IT Central Station Ltd. does not endorse or recommend any products or services. The views andopinions of reviewers quoted in this document, IT Central Station websites, and IT Central Stationmaterials (i.e. Content) do not reflect the opinions of IT Central Station. We make no guarantees

about the accuracy, currency, suitability, or quality of the content, and we assume no responsibilityfor unintended, objectionable, inaccurate, misleading, or unlawful content made available by Content

authors or other third parties


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ABOUT IT CENTRAL STATION

User reviews, candid discussions, and more for enterprisetechnology professionals.

The Internet has completely changed the waywe make buying decisions. We now use ratingsand review sites to see what other real usersthink before we buy electronics, book a hotel,visit a doctor or choose a restaurant. But in theworld of enterprise technology, most of theinformation online and in your inbox comes fromvendors but what you really want is objectiveinformation from other users. We created ITCentral Station to provide technologyprofessionals like you with a community

platform to share information about enterprisesoftware, applications, hardware and services.

We commit to offering user-contributedinformation that is valuable, objective andrelevant. We protect your privacy by providingan environment where you can postanonymously and freely express your views. Asa result, the community becomes a valuableresource, ensuring you get access to the rightinformation and connect to the right people,whenever you need it.

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ABOUT THIS REPORT

This report is comprised of a comprehensive list of all enterprise level businessintelligence software solutions. We have also included several real user reviewsposted on ITCentralStation.com. The reviewers of these products have beenvalidated as real users based on their LinkedIn profiles to ensure that theyprovide reliable opinions and not those of product vendors.


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VENDOR & PRODUCT LIST

V EN D OR PR OD U C T

Microsoft SQL Server Reporting and Analysis

Logi Analytics Logi Info

QlikView QlikView

MicroStrategy MicroStrategy

IBM Cognos Enterprise

SAP Business Objects

icCube icCube

SAP Business Objects Crystal Reports

Tableau Tableau

OracleBusiness Intelligence EnterpriseEdition

IBM Cognos Express

Arcplan Arcplan

Birst Birst

Actuate BIRT

Bitam Bitam

BOARD International BOARD

IBM Cognos TM1

Domo Domo

Actuate e.Report

MID GmbH Innovator

Jaspersoft Jaspersoft

Oracle Oracle Essbase


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Panorama Software Panorama Software BI

Pentaho Pentaho Business Analytics

SiSense Prism

Salient Management Company Salient

SpagoBI SpagoBI

TIBCO Spotfire

Targit Targit BI Suite

Information Builders WebFOCUS


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SQL Server Reporti ng andAnalysis

Vendor: Microsoft www.microsoft.com

REVIEW BY A REAL USER

Robert GoodmanVerified by IT Central StationBI Expert, University with 500-5000 Employees

PROS

SQL Server is flexible and relatively straight-forward to deploy. It is fantastic that reports can bedelivered via Report Manager without anyadditional license fees. Reports can also be placedon subscriptions with the Enterprise version of SQLServer. This allows different people to get the

same report with data that is tailored to theirperspective.

CONS

The product would be better if it came bundledwith Microsoft SharePoint. Some of the moreadvanced business intelligence dashboards mustbe run through SharePoint (SharePointdashboards, PowerView, etc.). We also found thatSharePoint Dashboards are time intensive todesign.

MY EXPERIENCES

Getting back to the license costs, we have foundSQL Server to be an effective tool at a very goodcost. Compared to purchasing 2 or 3 otherproducts, SQL Server is a very nice all-in-onepackage (SQL Server database platform - MS SQL,SQL Server Integration Services - SSIS, SQL ServerReporting Services - SSRS, SQL Server AnalysisServices - SSAS). The educational discount is alsovery helpful for K-12 or Higher Educationcustomers. Installation and deployment wasrelatively straightforward. There is a slight learningcurve on SSRS, but easy to pick-up.

BUSINESS METRICS

If you are looking at cost savings alone, MicrosoftSQL Server will pay for itself when compared anOracle/Informatica/IBM Cognos solution. In a directcomparison of one-time software fees and ongoingannual support fees, Microsoft SQL Server willcome out much cheaper. I would also argue thatthe software features are similar between the toolsas well - so you're not foregoing functionality to

WHAT REAL USERS ARESAYING

SQL Server is a cost-effective,all-in-one package for businessintelligence.

Great wizard that is valuable indesigning and implementingcomplex queries.

Most complete businessintelligence suite for the leastmoney.

SQL Server offers highperformance & low cost BIsolutions with ability to integratewith other third party tools.


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save cost. We have found that BI developers arealso easier to find on the Microsoft platform -which over time - may lead to lower TCO.

WHAT NEEDS IMPROVEMENT?

It would be nice if the Report Manager portal

interface were more updated. It is much nicer todeploy the reports through the "shiny" SharePointinterface, but it is not as integrated with SSRS asthe Report Manager.


ambapoVerified by IT Central StationCEO, Tech Services Company with 500-5000Employees

PROS

SQL Reporting and Analysis services provideme with a suitable way of analyzing queries

and data objects.

Automated reports can be generated usingSQL Reporting and Analysis in XML and PDFformats which are easier to read andunderstand.

Reports can be generated on demand usingReporting Services or can be delivered basedon a subscription.

CONS

Reporting and analysis tools require additionalskills rather than basic database programming

such as Reporting Definition Language whichmay be a challenge for inexperienceddevelopers.

The installation requirements are quitedemanding and only computers with relativelyhigh processing power and large primarymemory are able to run some SQL Reportingand Analysis tools.


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Logi Info

Vendor: Logi Analytics www.logianalytics.com


Wayne BullingtonVerified by IT Central StationSenior Manager of IT, Manufacturing Companywith 1-500 Employees

PROS

Easy to use, Quick deployment and little to nomaintenance

Excellent TCO

Support Staff is professional and responsive

CONS The only feature I would like to see at this point

is a normalized curve for Histograms

SUMMARY

A must have for the business looking tounderstand their processes in an easy to consumeway


Nigel MontgomeryVerified by IT Central StationBI Expert, Media Company with 1-500 Employees

PROS

Rapid development/deployment of solutions.

Latest versions cope much better with largedata sets.

Low cost server based licensing attractive inhigh user count environments.

CONS

Performance dependent on back-end muchmore than some other toolsets.

Large data sets a major issue until recently.


Logi Info is a very capable &flexible low cost BI solutionespecially for SMBs.

Outstanding customer serviceand technical support,straightforward initial setup.

I like the speed and flexibility ofdevelopment, speed ofdeployment, and licensingmodel.

A must have.


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QlikView

Vendor: QlikView www.qlikview.com


lazarmihaiVerified by IT Central StationProject Manager, Software R&D Companywith 1-500 Employees

PROS

Qlikview has its own ETL engine built-in

You can analyze millions of data - QlikView iseasy to use, letting you easily analyze largevolumes of data

Time to implement - Any user / manager candefine its own set of analyzes

Partner Network Qlikview has more than1000 partners world wide

Development - Qlikview has Scripting

64-bit in-RAM DB - Qlikview is faster thanTableau

QlikView is based on a different technologyfrom OLAP technology. Called AQL (Associative Query Logic), this technology hasbeen patented since 1994

Interactive graphical interface - Extremelyintuitive interface (requires almost no training)

CONS

QlikView can display better analysis but ittakes more skill and time to develop/designthan with Tableau.

Qlikview it is stronger than Tableau forreporting only, but it requires more trainingand is less intuitive than Tableau

You have to employ IT specialist

It is limited by RAM, so Qlikview is not veryscalable

OTHER

Good price compared to other solutions

Flexible licensing system (but not complicatedand consists of dozens of modules)

Very little development time

Easy maintenance


QlikView is a highly effectivemanagement tool, allowing abroad analysis.

QlikView is a very usefulbusiness intelligence toolbecause it uses in-memory

analysis which makes it very fast,it is user-friendly and its graphicsmakes the analysis easy andunderstandable.

Intuitive and easy to use.

Collaborate, in real-time, on thesame QlikView dashboard.

Qlikview really comes alive

when you link to others.

Once you see what it can do,you will want it.


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Ability to provide Business Intelligence Off-The-Shelf

In QlikView, you can develop analyses in justminutes


Elizabeth GrayVerified by IT Central StationProject Manager, Local governmentwith 5000+ Employees

OVERVIEW

QlikView was a great solution for us based on ourrequirements: small business size (1200 users,mostly blue collar); no requirement for datawarehouse, ability to do ETL within the load script(that's what eliminated Tableau for us); ability toshare interactive reports readily between users;and most important: optimized user experience,including easy to learn/use and shortdevelopment cycles. We also needed integrationwith ESRI GIS which is (finally!) coming this yearwith a functional extension. As other departmentscome on (we are one department in a large-ishCity) I think we will be able to manage theenterprise deployment through expressionrepositories, change management tools, andfollowing other best practices.

Our business users love it.


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Microstrategy

Vendor: Microstrategy www.microstrategy.com


Maria YasyukVerified by IT Central StationBusiness Development Staff, OutsourcingCompany with 1-500 Employees

PROS

Our BI consultants single out MicroStrategy BI. Thesolution proofs to be efficient and full ofcapabilities: large volume data is easy to process,capability to tweak the attributes for complexreports and dashboards. One more plus is its

widgets that enable to realize user-friendlyinterface.

CONS

For really complicated and huge projects, oneshould take into account great number of relationsbetween metadata entities. New analyticcapabilities presuppose R languagebackground. And yes, it will cost you. But bothmoney and pleasure to work with.


Anurag Singh ChauhanVerified by IT CentralStationConsultant, Financial Services Firmwith 500-5000 Employees

MISCONCEPTIONS

Business now a days stack Microstrategy againstTableau, Spotfire, SSIS, QlikView and other 'newer'tools (previously they used to compare againstCognos, BO, Actuate, SAS BI)and all in all no onecomes closer to return-on-investment whencompared to MicroStrategy.

Yes, initial setup cost and resource cost may be

higher than most but you will get most of what youwill spend. And in most organizationsMicroStrategy is rolled as a shared platform whichultimately reduces 'actual cost' for any new projectusing MicroStrategy as solution.

In other words, which BI platform will give youcube, mobile, clustering, scalability, object re-


Microstrategy provides morecontrol on the solution beingdeveloped.

Incredibly powerful but its notfor everybody.

Even if the costs are high, thebenefits are huge.

High ROI, dynamic and userfriendly.

A great tool which is servingboth big and small clients withequal strength.


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usability, and detailed SDK with one of most powerSQL engine?


Vicepres5211Verified by IT Central StationBI Expert, Insurance Companywith 500-5000 Employees

PROS

I think the total cost of ownership is lower thanother products, it is flexible and enterprise class.

CONS

The licenses model is complicated. New featuresare slow to get to market (in comparison to nichetools).


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Cognos Enterprise

Vendor: IBM www.ibm.com


Meu1124Verified by IT Central StationSenior IT Manager, Governmentwith 5000+ Employees

PROS

IBM Cognos is a flexible, database-driven HumanResources Management, forecasting and projectplanning tool, which is fully integrated with all coreIBM Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) modules -

replacing the use of multiple, diverse, unlinkedspreadsheets.

Cognos provides invaluable support for allparticipants in the HR and project planning cycles,of even the largest, most complex or fast-changingbusinesses. It supports a rich Web enabledplanning and modeling framework that supportsdriver based planning to help connect HRassumptions to operational outcomes.

IBMs Cognos Enterprise offers a uniquearchitecture, which delivers true "Post-Implementation Agility", allows changes to yoursystem long after initial installation - in response to

changing requirements, and without depending onexpensive external consultants or constrained ITresources. This makes Cognos the ideal choice forservice-based organizations that are affected byfrequent and dynamic business change.

Underpinned by IBM technology, Cognos is theonly planning tool that can efficiently adapt tomajor business change without re-implementation.You can start with native integrations from HRManagement to other core talent managementprocesses in order to support a holistic, end-to-end cloud talent management strategy.

IBM Cognos Enterprise Software offers customers

the industrys most flexible delivery anddeployment options, including IBM smarter cloudsolutions.


RTDiazVerified by IT Central StationBusiness Analyst, Transportation Company


Cognos Enterprise has a verypowerful toolset with manyoptions.

Great support with broad set ofanalytic capabilities, but needs

improvement with integration ofData Discovery capabilities.

Excellent new functionality.

IBM Cognos EnterpriseSoftware offers customers theindustrys most flexible deliveryand deployment options.

Cognos Enterprise offers a

unique architecture, whichdelivers true Post-Implementation Agility."


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with 500-5000 Employees

PROS

Very powerful toolset with many products andoption. Has various ways to present data tomeet requirements.

CONS

Complex to learn and use. Need technicalteam to build solutions.

OTHER

Cognos is a complete performancemanagement system that can work with bothUnix data server and Microsoft Windows out ofthe box and it is known for its performance,scalability and caching. But there are fewthings that need some improvement like ErrorHandling and documentation storing.

REVIEW BY A REAL USERDirector53196Verified by IT Central StationIT Director, Manufacturing Companywith 5000+ Employees

PROS

Can do most things we need it to do. We likethe scheduler.

CONS

Visualization is not as good as some others.


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Business Objects

Vendor: SAP www.sap.com


Mike.buffVerified by IT Central StationProject Manager, Manufacturing Companywith 500-5000 Employees

PROS

Business Object is truly a scalable and completebusiness intelligence solution for largerorganizations. We have made use of the followingcomponents: Live Office, Xcelsius, Crystal Reports,

and Web Intelligence. We extensively use thepublication features of Crystal Reports andscheduling features of Web Intelligence. For anorganization that uses Excel extensively, the LiveOffice direct connect is fast, accurate and userfriendly. Be sure to have some super users in thebusiness that can develop Crystal Reports andwell as Web Intelligence ad hoc queries. This willmake the life of the IT developers andadministrative employees much easier. Overall,with past experiences, I would have to rate ouropinion of BOBJ very highly.

CONS

On the downside, we have had some challengeswith upgrades. Be sure to fully test every aspect inyour development environment before applyingany patches or service packs to Business Objectsproduction servers. SAP was quick to respond toissues, but this still caused problems for users.The bugs we found were deep into softwarefeatures (displaying column headings, formulalogic, etc.) and werent something we found in ourextensive testing. I do admit we pushed the limitsand had a lot of custom coding, but we expectedthese features to work and not break in futurereleases.


Alin RaduVerified by IT Central StationDeveloper, Transportation Companywith 500-5000 Employees

PROS


As a single-platform businessintelligence program, BusinessObjects is not just designed forflexibility and scalability but alsofor performance.

SAP Business Objects iscreated as a single intelligenceplatform to maximally reduce theeffort necessary for cooperationof different users and it has aclear and transparent structure.

Business Objects is a trulyscalable and complete businessintelligence solution for largerorganizations.


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I can say that in SAP Business Objects thestructure of information is flexible, offering goodscalability and all the information is unified, whichsimplifies the access to all resourcesindependently on their format or location. Thisproduct is created as a single intelligence platform

to maximally reduce the effort necessary forcooperation of different users and it has a clearand transparent structure.

CONS

I noticed that multiple locations options work wellbut their enabling was inconsistent and SAP BOhas the risk of gaining inconsistent data results.


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Join the IT Central Station Community

This report features just a few of hundreds of business intelligence software

reviews. If you would like to read more about what real users are saying aboutthe many business intelligence solutions on the market, visit the BusinessIntell igence Tools page at IT Central Station:

http://www.itcentralstation.com/category/business-intelligence-tools

There are a number of ways you can participate in the IT Central Stationcommunity! Write a review, read a comment, or just follow a product. Either way,well be sure to let you know when people are talking about the solutions youcare about!

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