Panorama Industry News

BI best practices detailed

Fri, 25 May 2012 00:00:00 EDT

Business intelligence software is one component in a successful analytics project. The other half is employee preparedness, with workers able to provide value through observing proper procedures. Several experts in the business intelligence field have recently offered help to companies hoping to get the most out of their analytic tools. Everything from a poor relationship between the business and IT departments to an improper use of a data source can derail a business intelligence project but, when done right, the benefits to a company can be immense.

Working together

Business intelligence involves both the business and IT departments of a company, with business users eager to improve their performance with data and IT overseeing the bulk of BI. Bringing the two departments together is vital to having a successful project, according to expert Marc Schiller, writing for CIO Insight.

Schiller stated that BI projects that fall through do so thanks to a failure to agree upon certain important tenets of the project. He encouraged business and IT users to come together and agree to make sure that each new business intelligence project is driven by the search for a specific answer. The ideal question for BI is one that can provide direct return on investment. Business users and their IT counterparts can brainstorm to make sure that the project is narrow enough to succeed and straightforward enough to reward the time and effort that will go into it.

New and old data sources

Finding the data for a BI project is a critical step in making sure it succeeds. According to TechTarget, Gartner analyst Doug Laney has suggestions for companies looking for an ideal source. He pointed out that there is a great deal of data available for free, whether it is unstructured data in a company's own archives that is only readable with new technology or market reporting released for free by the federal government. He emphasized that companies can start with these easy-to-access sources before moving on.

"Taking it on faith that there was some value here may have been OK when we were dealing with smaller data," said Laney, according to the source. "Now we need to think about driving and measuring information value."

BI success is every company's goal, and can propel firms to gains over their rivals. Following strong practices with staffing and data selection could help separate winners from losers in the analytics field.

Big data - unavoidable and valuable

Wed, 23 May 2012 00:00:00 EDT

The future of business intelligence (BI) involves reaching into reserves of information long closed to data scientists. These reserves are unstructured data, text, video, audio and all figures that cannot be easily placed into traditional reporting tools such as spreadsheets. As analytic tools have grown, the capability to turn these figures into insight has arisen. According to a recent IDG News Service report, the technology has become nearly requisite, with companies of all types drawn in by the allure of unlocking its potential.

Facts and figures

The numbers concerning big data adoption have been run several ways by various polling companies. Informatica released a survey finding that companies' eagerness to add analytic capability has manifested in nearly 70 percent of companies either using or planning to use big data. The survey also found a wide variety of reasons for companies purchasing the systems, with making information reserves answer more questions and increasing overall agility ranked top among them.

CFO World, speaking with BI leader Bill Inmon, found that 85 percent of corporate data is unstructured. Inmon stated that companies will soon turn to these reserves, looking for insight. He believes that big data analytics is the next big challenge for companies hoping to make the most of their BI programs.

"The world of text is completely untapped so with areas like corporate contracts, for instance and other unstructured data, there is great potential," Inman told the source.

Usage cases

Companies that are already using big data are finding success. Sonic, a fast food restaurant with 3,500 locations, recently adopted the systems to make sure there was operational consistency across its large global footprint. The company improved its product delivery abilities with the systems. The company's CIO described the implementation as specializing in discovery, with the data available for every decision-making process.

Talent demand

IDG stated that, with big data getting results and more companies eager to join the fray, talent in the field will soon become extremely important for companies. The source reported that big data thinking is entirely different from regular analytic skills. Using McKinsey market research, the source estimated that there will be a 140,000 worker big data skill shortage by 2018.

The Sydney Morning Herald agreed that big data skills will be necessary for the next generation of data scientists. The source predicted that college graduates with those abilities will be able to transition directly into lucrative positions with firms desperate for their specialized skills.

Mobile BI presents unique value

Mon, 21 May 2012 00:00:00 EDT

A recent TechTarget report instructed business users to weigh the costs against the benefits when adding mobile systems to their business intelligence (BI) arsenal. Mobile BI, however, holds several unique benefits over other systems. These advantages include harnessing new data such as location information and the willingness and even eagerness of executives to learn how to use the systems.

Cost vs. benefit

The TechTarget report stated that companies hoping to use mobile analytic tools have to undertake the same process the preceded any major technology deployment. Business leaders need to debate whether the value drawn from mobile BI will be great enough to justify the costs. This involves drawing up deeply specific usage scenarios for the new systems. Gartner analyst Bhavish Sood said at the Gartner BI Summit that companies should know before deployment which users will get the new software and how the devices will be managed, according to TechTarget.

Sood warned that choosing some members of an organization to have mobile BI access and a company iPad could create jealousy in others. With that caveat in place, however, he stated that there are unique benefits that make mobile business intelligence software a strong choice for companies.

Unique values

TechTarget reported that while mobile BI has its costs, it is also an area with great potential for companies. Sood reminded users that the software itself is often affordable, especially when purchased from a partner already working with a company for traditional BI. The systems are also attractive to executives. The source stated that the iPad has been exciting to executives since its development and, according to Sood, executives are not resistant to using them as they are to some new systems.

Expert perspective

The BI Summit was not Sood's only recent platform to expound on the value of mobile BI. He also teamed with fellow Gartner analyst Andreas Bitterer for a Forbes report on the same subject. According to the piece, one of the key advantages of mobile BI is the use of new data sources such as the location of users. Location, both of customers under study and the BI user, are now plottable data points with the rise of intelligent mobile devices. As with other types of BI data sources, location awareness opens exciting new possibilities. The source stated that, as mobile phones now generate photos, video and GPS data, they are a source of unstructured big data as well as a reporting analytics tool.

BI thrives in hospitals

Fri, 18 May 2012 00:00:00 EDT

The future of business intelligence includes its application in numerous fields, far beyond its original function improving the bottom line in companies. According to Healthcare Finance News, the medical field is an area of special importance of business intelligence software. With complex procedures both in the boardroom and operating room, health is an industry with ample room for better use of information both structured and unstructured.

Advanced functions

According to the source, everything from financial reporting to patient outcomes is apossible site of improvement with business intelligence. Industry insider Taylor Moorehead told the source that one way that the health industry can make use of BI technology is in processing insurance claims. He stated that accountants can use BI to delve into why certain claims are accepted or rejected and understand their patterns on a deeper level. This could allow doctors to set up payment terms with their patients and improve insurance contracts.

Experts also told the news source that business intelligence for the health industry should be spread through the entire organization. Advanced deployments with features such as social BI are allowing average users to access business intelligence data. These are the types of systems that can aid companies in their quest to become more effective.

"It can’t just be for executives - there is so much opportunity for benchmarking the clinical workflows and processes," said BI insider Chor-Ching Fan to the news source.

Another BI expert, Dave Dyell, told Healthcare Finance Review that performing analytics on fresh data as it becomes available is one of the hallmarks of a provider using business intelligence. Describing data older than 40 days as "business history," he emphasized the effect that new, high-quality data can have on operations.

High demand

A KLAS study recently found that providers with business intelligence software are so pleased with the deployments that they hope to install more in short order. The survey discovered 17 percent of BI-using health firms currently employ more than one type of BI system. This number is also expected to rise. Half of the providers surveyed said that they want to add a new BI deployment in the next three years.

The addition of new systems includes diversification in their use. Predictive analytics is an area of predictive analytics, due to its clear implications in improving patient outcomes. Doctors are eager for the day when large amounts of unstructured patient data will be able to provide an accurate picture of future health risks and fight against patient readmission.

Analytics shines in many fields

Wed, 16 May 2012 00:00:00 EDT

There are many businesses currently investigating or employing analytic tools to make better decisions with their data. This data can be made up of anything, from the transaction history of a banking customer to the flow rate through a buried oil pipeline. The unifying factor between businesses that use analytics is their desire to turn the basic data that underlies the industry into an advantage over the competition, be it in speed, reliability or efficiency.

Drilling insight

The future of business intelligence involves unstructured data from myriad sources. Companies drilling for oil have access to a variety of figures from a number of sources. According to the MIT Technology Review, there are many areas in the petroleum extraction business that can benefit from insights gleaned from this unstructured information.

The source reported that Chevron has begun drawing insight from many areas of its business, spread out over eight satellite offices designed to improve efficiency. The company has detected problems in equipment before they could affect productivity and made drilling collaboration decisions based on worldwide production data. The processes are expected to improve as the monitoring technology attached to the company's equipment improves and matures.

"It's pretty sweeping," Chevron's president of energy technology told the source. "Information technology is enabling us to get more barrels of each asset."

High finance

While big data and business intelligence software have found their place in the oil fields, they are also indispensable in banking sector boardrooms. ABA Banking Journal recently spoke with technology expert Alan Fish, the author of a book promoting process automation and the use of big data. Fish told the source that banks need to find the right models to cope with the large amounts of data they collect. He stated that this is a less straightforward process than in the past, but that the large swaths of information in question can provide useful insights.

Bank Info Security investigated a different aspect of the big data question in banking. The source stated that, while banks normally prevent fraud by watching accounts for odd activity, big data presents a more nuanced model. Banks with advanced analytics tools can create models of customer behavior rather than account performance, providing a new choke point to prevent fraud. These reports can become even more effective when cross-checked with insights compiled by credit bureaus.

Effective big data strategies detailed

Mon, 14 May 2012 00:00:00 EDT

Businesses beginning a big data analytics program with advanced business intelligence software may be concerned about affordability. However, according to PC Advisor, there are easy steps that companies can take to make sure that their deployments are successful. These steps include deep research into the business case at hand and prudent financial planning.

Careful planning

"[Big data is] new technology solving a business problem that we often haven't proved. That's important for CIOs to keep in mind," financial consultant Jeff Muscarella told PC Advisor. "The business is going to be coming to them with all sorts of half-baked ideas for what they can do with Big Data. They have to ask: Will it really drive revenue? How and for how long?"

According to the source, carefully vetting business ideas for new big data projects is vitally important for CIOs trying to save money on their big data projects. Gathering details on each projected usage of data means less chance of failure. The source urged companies to target their big data projects, to fire "bullets" rather than "cannons" at specific problems that can provide value for the company. Muscarella told the source that companies can start small to prove that a process works before moving to the company-wide infrastructure level.

Myths vs. reality

As a widely hyped technology often presented as the future of business intelligence, advanced analytics and big data have received a large amount of press. To avoid business confusion, several publications have offered clarifications of what the technology can and cannot offer companies. The Economic Times stated that any business with a product to sell and any company hoping to help make up the potential market for big data. As companies begin to harness the power of big data, competitors could take of the systems in a bid to compete on an even level.

The source sought to puncture myths about what big data can and cannot do. It stated that big data's endgame is unknown, and that many of the features of big data analytics are still spoken of in the future tense. The source found that companies can already use the technology to provide "amazing" customer insights from vast quantities of "irrelevant stuff." While it is important to be careful when integrating big data, making the effort could become a required part of business strategy.

Public sector could gain from big data analytics

Thu, 10 May 2012 00:00:00 EDT

The future of business intelligence (BI) could be closely tied to the public sector. According to a recent MeriTalk survey, the amount of data held by U.S. government agencies is swelling rapidly. A significant portion of this data is unstructured, meaning that it can only be turned into actionable information by specially-designed BI programs focused on big data analytics. The survey also revealed that the government has a long way to go to prepare its users for the coming data revolution.

Unstructured data grows

The recent MeriTalk survey found that data is growing and becoming less structured. Respondents consisted of public sector IT decision makers, 96 percent of whom predict the amount of data held by their agencies will rise over the past two years. The average amount of data growth expected was 64 percent. The information is not ready-sorted, with roughly one third consisting of unstructured data. Such data can include anything that defies easy tabulation, and is on the rise. Among survey respondents, 64 percent have seen unstructured information rise in the past two years.

More knowledge needed

Dealing with large amounts of unsorted data requires a new skill set. According to the survey, it is not yet in place. MeriTalk found 42 percent of defense workers and 60 percent in civilian-facing agencies have just begun to learn about big data. The process of educating these employees in the technology's nuances could be a large difference-maker for federal agencies, inundated as they are with data.

"Government has a gold mine of data at its fingertips," said Mark Weber of the survey's software company sponsor. "The key is turning that data into high-quality information that can increase efficiencies and inform decisions. Agencies need to look at big data solutions that can help them efficiently process, analyze, manage, and access data, enabling them to more effectively execute their missions."

Health success

According to the Vancouver Sun, there is an example that U.S. agencies can follow north of the border. The source stated that British Columbia has used electronic health records for a decade, meaning that healthcare providers in the area can undertake ambitious big data analytics projects. While the programs sometimes stir up public privacy worries, they are rendered safe by scrubbing identifying data from all records used for research purposes. The Sun stated that researchers hope to track large-scale trends such as the side effects of medications through big data.

Retailers rely on BI in tough economic times

Mon, 07 May 2012 00:00:00 EDT

According to a new survey by a U.K.-based software firm, tough economic times highlight the need for business intelligence (BI). Companies eager to exert more control over their operation, make decisions based on carefully curated data and accurate measures of customer sentiment can rely on analytic tools to add value.

Tough times call for data

The research found that in a tough environment, companies place more importance than ever on driving their business decisions through data rather than vague intuition. Of retailers surveyed, 91 percent found that reacting quickly to information is important during financial downturns. Additionally, 87 percent placed high value on having data that is both up to date and comprehensive.

Social benefits

The survey found that organizations are still focused on keeping BI in the IT department. The implication is that spreading self-service BI features throughout a company could help increase reaction time, which the survey;s subjects described as vitally important. Trouble getting information in a timely fashion was most pronounced among the large companies surveyed, namely those with over 5,000 employees.

“Knowing the market , we’ve seen most BI deployments to be departmental and not enterprise in nature. The investment case for a BI implementation is often tactical, driven by the need to meet the reporting/BI requirements of a few user groups. As a result the BI strategy is not geared to scale and meet the requirements of the enterprise," offered Steve Barker, the surveying company's head of U.K. operations.

The surveying company urged companies to take a more collaborative approach to the business intelligence process. Not only should BI spread throughout an entire company infrastructure, it should allow social interaction between users to draw better conclusions. The surveying firm's CTO, Vikas Gupta, stated that collaboration between users can lead to the best analytics decisions. Companies can find business social networking features directly in modern, powerful business intelligence software.

IT priority

A second survey, more general in scope found that there is a distinct desire for analytics technology among companies. Gartner asked CIOs what the top technological priority for their companies is in 2012. Analytics and BI claimed the top spot on the list, with collaboration technology improvement appearing in fourth place. Companies that follow through on adding business intelligence and collaboration technology in 2012 could find themselves in position to react to data faster than their rivals.

Collaboration simplifies BI

Thu, 03 May 2012 00:00:00 EDT

Consultant Jill Dyche, writing for the Harvard Business Review, found a problem with conventional business intelligence use. She stated that a client found herself with many versions of the same report, formatted differently depending on which department would be using the information.

Companies with poor communication between units or wildly disparate data needs can find that the same report, for the same period of time, can be very different across the organization. This has great risks for a business, as a lack of clarity can lead to trouble later on. It can be hard to base decisions on data when no two departments have the same figures, meaning that the future of business intelligence requires collaboration.

Social BI fights confusion

Social BI features ensure that many users are privy to the creation and dissemination of analytics reports. Working together and collaboration are ways to improve BI performance in general and, according to Dyche, excellent ways to fight the confusing proliferation of rival BI reports. With one platform creating reports that multiple users can view, working in tandem to make sure the report suits each employee's needs, holds both savings and improved decision making.

Dyche stated that the simple economy of scale of fewer users creating fewer reports with wider use is value-adding. It also means that those documents themselves can become tools for communication and clarification, with employees asking and solving one another's queries within the creation process. She said that the current state of clarity with social BI can move faster than email, with employees able to view the latest version of a report, recent changes and all, from wherever they are on a mobile device.

According to Dyche, it is also easier to establish patterns if every user is working from one document. While previously users had to obtain data from one another, which could be risky in the age of disparate data across departments, the widely accessible new type of document is clear and easy to read.

BI still growing

The business intelligence software field's evolution is both unsurprising and vitally important in the face of the rapid growth of BI in all industries. A recent Enterprise Apps Today report based on Gartner data demonstrated that decision makers are pouring money and effort into competing in BI space for years to come. Advanced features may be on the rise because, as Gartner analyst Rita Sallam pointed out to the source, BI users are getting younger. The current generation of college graduates is used to a heavily connected and well-integrated world of data, meaning that BI will have to keep pace.

Business intelligence software desired in hospitals

Tue, 01 May 2012 00:00:00 EDT

Business intelligence (BI) has marked out a new frontier in healthcare. According to a recent KLAS study, providers of health services are already avid users of data analytics but are still eager to add more. The addition of new programs comes as part of an effort to transform all elements of operations, not simply the ones associated with BI in other industries.

All facets

The healthcare industry, with the life-and-death nature of its work, has some wrinkles that other business concerns do not. While healthcare providers are using BI to organize financial data and keep their records in order, the KLAS survey indicated that providers are eager to make BI work even in the clinical portion of healthcare. To achieve these lofty goals, providers have proven willing to use multiple BI deployments at once.

Hospitals and clinics also have to deal with heavy industry regulations, making sure that all systems are in compliance at all times. Here, too, experts see an opening for BI use. The KLAS survey stated that the future of business intelligence in health involves the monitoring of possible compliance issues, a vital factor for providers.

"If hospitals can't produce data analytics in the next couple of years, they are going to suffer. As far as I am concerned, data is money in the future," said one of the CIOs polled by KLAS during its research.

Advanced deployments

The business intelligence systems used by hospitals will include advanced big data functions such as predictive analytics, according to the source. Forecasting future problems could prove critical in the effort to provide better care and to keep large organizational structures compliant with stringent laws. Regulations are changing and evolving, meaning that having future-proofed BI systems with advanced capabilities could prove to be an important strategic decision for hospitals.

Clinical usae

One early test case of BI modelling in play with a hospital is currently underway at Southwestern hospitals. Health Leaders Media recently reported that IT workers at the Parkland Health System in Dallas hope that their predictive system will alert them to the danger of preventable readmissions. The hospital system's CFO stated that the system mirrors the way financial institutions have created models to predict future performance. He sees the program as one of the positive uses of EMRs, which he argues are capable of more than some observers give them credit for.