Business Intelligence Software free essay sample

Business intelligence applications can be: ?Mission-critical and integral to an enterprise[-gt;4]s operations or occasional to meet a special requirement ?Enterprise-wide or local to one division, department, or project ?Centrally initiated or driven by user demand This term was used as early as September, 1996, when a Gartner Group report said: By 2000, Information Democracy will emerge in forward-thinking enterprises, with Business Intelligence information and applications available broadly to employees, consultants, customers, suppliers, and the public. The key to thriving in a competitive marketplace is staying ahead of the competition. Making sound business decisions based on accurate and current information takes more than intuition. Data analysis, reporting, and query tools can help business users wade through a sea of data to synthesize valuable information from it today these tools collectively fall into a category called Business Intelligence. What roles do data and business processes play in achieving those benefits Business Intelligence solutions help the key people in your organization make decisions based on information that is current, accurate and relevant. We will write a custom essay sample on Business Intelligence Software or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Business Intelligence Software is used to give deep insight into your business, to make faster decisions, to drive cost saving and to increase revenues. Avnet and Quaker Chemical have deployed over a 1000+ Business Intelligence projects and 40+ data warehouses. Over the last five years, a growing number of companies have nvested inbusiness intelligence[-gt;5] software to help them centralize, better access and get a better understanding of key business metrics such as sales and to predict future performance. The economic downturn of the last few years slowed the growth of business intelligence (BI) software sales somewhat, but the Avnet and Quaker Chemical sector still managed to grow during the recession, as companies were eager to make the most of limited resources with a BI solution that could help them be more efficient, spot areas ripe for cost savings and identify new business opportunities. With a modest recovery underway, Avnet and Quaker Chemical have even more need to make the most of their resources and turn mountains of data into opportunity. 2. What are the main Challenges to the change of mindset required to extend BI tools beyond mere reporting? What can Companies do to overcome them? Use examples from the case to illustrate your answers. Ten Ways Companies Overcome Challenges required to Avnet and Quaker Chemical. 1. Eliminate guesswork: Running a business shouldnt be like gambling, said Ken Dixon, executive vice president of marketing at Avnet and Quaker Chemical Corporation. Far too often, executives must rely on best guess and gut feel decisions as they attempt to steer their companies into the future. They do this because their business data lacks any structure to allow them to make truly informed choices. Business intelligence can provide more accurate historical data, real-time updates, synthesis between departmental data stores, forecasting and trending, and even predictive what if? analysis, eliminating the need to guesstimate. 2. Get faster answers to your business questions: BI users can quickly get answers to business questions, rather than spending hours reading through volumes of printed reports, said Wende Cover, director of strategic marketing at MicroStrategy. 3. Get key business metrics reports when and where you need them: Today, many business intelligence software vendors are making it possible for users to access key business metrics, reports and dashboards on mobiles devices like their iPhone, iPad, Droid or BlackBerry, giving sales and marketing people access to critical business information on the fly. . Get insight into customer behavior: One of the great benefits of business intelligence software is it allows companies to gain visibility into what customers are buying (or not), giving them the ability to turn this knowledge into additional profit and retain valuable customers, said Mike Meikle, CEO of the Avnet and Quaker Chemical. , a boutique management and information technology consulting group that advises companies on business intelligence tools. 5. Identify cross-selling and up-selling opportunities: Business intelligence software allows firms to leverage customer data to build, refine and modify predictive models [that help] sales representatives to up-sell and cross-sell products at appropriate customer touch points, said Mohit Joshi, vice president and global head of the Sales, Banking and Capital Markets Practice at Avnet and Quaker Chemical. 3. Both Avnet and Quaker Chemical implemented Systems and processes that affect the practices of their Salespeople. In which ways did the latter benefit from these new implementations? How important was their buy-in to the success of these projects? Discuss alternative strategies for companies to foster adoption of new system like these. Alternative Strategies for companies to foster adoption of new system are 1. Learn how to streamline operations: With detailed insights into business performance, organizations can easily see where they need to make changes to streamline operations, said Cover. 2.