Business IntelligenceConceptual IntroductionBy Ahmed Rami Elsherif
Introduction
• Business intelligence (BI) generally refers to the process of transforming the raw data companies collect from their various operations into usable information.
• BI software comprises specialized computer programs that allow an enterprise to easily aggregate, manipulate, and display data as information that can be acted upon in the decision making process.
Simple Example
Raw Data e.g.A sales/Cost transaction
Introduced in the enterprise ERP
Information e.g.A sales/Cost trend
graph generated by BI Application
Knowledge e.g.A sales/Cost cause
and effect analysis of information generated by the BI Application
Current Situation & Challenges• Companies are flood with raw data stored in their
transactional Information systems but lack the tools to exploit it into information and knowledge.
• Roughly 80 % of Business Analysis time is spent on collection, consolidating, and presenting the information and 20 % on the real analysis and decision making.
• Semantics,Terminology and Metrics are different and ambiguous a cross the companies departments and units.
Solution OverviewBI Application
•Read data from transactional systems.
•Transform,aggregate, and present information.
•Deliver the information for the decision makers in time and quality.
SAP R/3
Oracle
JD Edwards
Other Applications
INPUT
Reports
Charts and Graphs
Costume Queries
Mail Alerts
OUTPUT
Advantages
• Increase speed,accuracy and quality of Information.
• Eliminate data collecting tasks and concentrate in analysis and decision making.
• Cultivate a culture of curiosity and proactive questioning.
• Uniform presentation and calculation procedures.
Project Success Factors
• Guarantee the commitment of the higher management for the BI project.
• Involve the users in the planning and conception phase or the project.
• Establish a culture of measurement.• Make the system as easy to use as possible. • Empower the system with flexibility and adaptability
to answer new requirements that can come up.
Conclusion
A proposed formula to estimate the value of information in the enterprise is:
The Value of Information ~ Users2 X Business Area
BI Portals are very effective, direct means of increasing both variables of that formula reason for which companies have to pay close attention to their analysis, design, development and implementation.