Business analyst data analysis approaches. Business Intelligence. Business analysis systems: basic concepts and solutions. History and principles of web search ranking
Every large business and most medium-sized structures are faced with the problem of providing management with inaccurate data on the state of affairs of the company. The reasons may be different, but the consequences are always the same - wrong or untimely decisions that adversely affect the effectiveness of financial transactions. To exclude such situations, a professional business intelligence system or BI ( from English - Business Intelligence). These high-tech "assistants" help build a system of management control over every aspect of the business.
At its core, BI systems are advanced analytical software for business analysis and reporting. These programs can use data from various sources of information and provide them in a convenient form and cut. As a result, management gets quick access to complete and transparent information about the state of affairs of the company. A feature of reports obtained with the help of BI is the ability of the manager to independently choose in which context to get information.
Modern Business Intelligence systems are multifunctional. That is why in large companies they are gradually replacing other methods of obtaining business reporting. Experts refer to their main capabilities:
- Connections to various databases, in particular, to;
- Formation of reports of varying complexity, structure, type and layout at high speed. It is also possible to set a schedule for generating reports on a schedule without direct participation and distribution of data;
- Transparent work with data;
- Providing a clear connection between information from various sources;
- Flexible and intuitive setting of employee access rights in the system;
- Saving data in any format convenient for you - PDF, Excel, HTML and many others.
Possibilities information systems Business analysts allow a leader to be independent of the IT department or their assistants to provide the required information. It is also a great opportunity to demonstrate the correct direction of your decisions, not in words, but in precise numbers. Many large network corporations in the West have been using BI systems for a long time, including the world famous Amazon, Yahoo, Wall-Mart and others. The above corporations spend a lot of money on business intelligence, but the implemented BI systems bring invaluable benefits.
The benefits of professional business intelligence systems are based on the principles that are supported in all advanced BI applications:
- Visibility. The main interface of any business analysis software should reflect the main indicators. Thanks to this, the manager will quickly be able to assess the state of affairs in the enterprise and begin to take something if necessary;
- Customization. Each user should be able to customize the interface and function keys in the most convenient way for themselves;
- Layering. Each dataset should have several sections (layers) to provide the level of detail that is needed at a particular level;
- Interactivity. Users should be able to collect information from all sources and from multiple directions at the same time. It is necessary that the system has the function of configuring the notification by key parameters;
- Multithreading and access control. In the BI system, the simultaneous operation of a large number of users should be implemented with the ability to install them different levels access.
The entire IT community agrees that business intelligence information systems are one of the most promising areas of industry development. However, their implementation is often hampered by technical and psychological barriers, uncoordinated work of managers and the absence of prescribed areas of responsibility.
When thinking about the implementation of BI class systems, it is important to remember that the success of the project will largely depend on the attitude of the company's employees to innovation. This applies to all IT products: skepticism and fear of downsizing can undermine all implementation efforts. Therefore, it is very important to understand what feelings the business intelligence system evokes in future users. The ideal situation will arise when the company's employees treat the system as an assistant and a tool for improving their work.
Before starting a project for the implementation of BI technology, it is necessary to conduct a thorough analysis of the company's business processes and the principles of adoption. management decisions... After all, it is these data that will participate in the analysis of the situation in the company. It will also help to make the choice of a BI system along with other main criteria:
- Goals and objectives of implementing BI systems;
- Requirements for data storage and the ability to operate with them;
- Data integration functions. Without using data from all sources in the company, management will not be able to get a holistic picture of the state of affairs;
- Visualization capabilities. For each person, the ideal BI analytics looks different, and the system must meet the needs of each user;
- Versatility or narrow specialization. There are systems in the world aimed at a specific industry, as well as universal solutions that allow you to collect information in any aspect;
- Demanding resources and the price of a software product. The choice of a BI system, like any software, depends on the capabilities of the company.
The above criteria will help the management make an informed choice among all the variety of well-known business intelligence systems. There are other parameters (eg storage structure, web architecture), but these require expertise in narrow IT areas.
It's not enough just to make a choice, buy software, install and configure it. Successful implementation of BI systems in any direction is based on the following rules:
- Correctness of data. If the data for the analysis is incorrect, then there is a possibility of a serious system error;
- Comprehensive training for each user;
- Fast implementation. You need to focus on getting the right reports out of all the key areas, rather than serving a single user perfectly. You can always adjust the appearance of the report or add another section of it for convenience after implementation;
- Realize the ROI on your BI system. The effect depends on many factors and in some cases is visible only after a few months;
- Equipment should be designed not only for the current situation but also for the near future;
- Understand why the implementation of the BI system was started, and do not demand from software impossible.
According to statistics, only 30% of company executives are satisfied with the implementation of BI systems. Over the years of the existence of business analysis software, experts have formulated 9 key mistakes that can reduce efficiency to a minimum:
- Non-obviousness of the purpose of implementation for management. Often, a project is created by the IT department without the close involvement of managers. In most cases, in the process of implementation and operation, questions arise about the purpose and objectives of the BI system, the benefits and usability;
- Lack of transparency in management, employee performance and decision making. Managers may not know the algorithms for the work of field employees, and management decisions can be made not only on the basis of dry facts. This will lead to the impossibility of maintaining the existing paradigm as a result of the implementation of the BI system. And often break the culture that has developed over the years corporate governance impossible;
- Insufficient data reliability. Falling false information into the business analysis system is unacceptable, otherwise employees will not be able to trust it and use it;
- The wrong choice of a professional business intelligence system. Many examples in history, when management hires a third-party organization to implement a BI system and does not take part in its choice, speak for themselves. As a result, a system is introduced that does not allow obtaining the required report or with which it is impossible to integrate one of the existing software in the company;
- Lack of a plan for the future. The peculiarity of BI systems is that it is not static software. It is impossible to finish an implementation project and not think about it. There are many requirements from users and management regarding improvements;
- Transfer of the BI system to a third-party organization for support. As practice shows, most often such situations lead to product isolation and isolation of the system from the real state of affairs. Own support service responds much faster and more efficiently to user feedback and management requirements;
- Desire to save money. In business, this is fine, but BI analytics only works if it takes into account all aspects of the company's activities. This is why deep, high-value analytics systems are most effective. The desire to receive several reports on areas of interest leads to frequent data errors and a large dependence on the qualifications of IT specialists;
- Different terminology in the company. It is important that all users understand the basic terms and their meaning. A simple misunderstanding can lead to misinterpretation of the reports and indicators of the BI system;
- Lack of a unified business analysis strategy at the enterprise. Without a single course chosen for all employees, any BI class system will be just a set of disparate reports that satisfy the requirements of individual managers.
The implementation of BI systems is an important step that can help bring your business to the next level. But this will require not only a fairly large infusion of finance, but also the time and effort of each employee of the company. Not every business is ready to competently complete a project for implementing a business analysis system.
The main goal of any data analysis is to find and discover patterns in the volume of data. In business analysis, this goal becomes even broader. It is important for any leader not only to identify patterns, but also to find their cause. Knowing the reason will allow you to influence the business in the future and makes it possible to predict the results of an action.
Data analysis goals for the company
If we talk about business, then the goal of each company is to win the competition. So data analysis is your main advantage. It is he who will help you:
- Reduce company expenses
- Increase revenue
- Reduce the time spent on the execution of business processes (find out the weak point and optimize it)
- Increase the efficiency of the company's business processes
- To fulfill any other goals aimed at improving the efficiency and effectiveness of the company.
This means that victory over competitors is in your hands. Don't rely on intuition. Analyze!
Data analysis goals for departments, divisions, products
Oddly enough, but the goals listed above are fully suitable for analyzing the activities of departments, analyzing a product or an advertising campaign.
The goal of any data analysis at any level is to identify patterns and use this knowledge to improve the quality of a product or the work of a company or department.
Who needs data analysis?
Everyone. Indeed, any company, from any field of activity, to any department and any product!
In what areas can data analysis be applied?
- Manufacturing (construction, oil and gas, metallurgy, etc.)
- Retail
- Ecommerce
- Services
- And many others
Which departments can be analyzed within the company?
- Accounting and finance
- Marketing
- Advertising
- Administration
- Other.
Indeed, companies from any sphere, any departments within the company, any areas of activity can, should and should be analyzed.
How BI Analysis Systems Can Help
BI analysis systems, automated systems analysts, big data for big data analysis, are software solutions that already have built-in functionality for processing data, preparing them for analysis, analysis itself, and - most importantly - for visualizing the analysis results.
Not every company has an analyst department, or at least a developer, who will maintain the analytic system and databases. In this case, these BI-analysis systems come to the rescue.
There are more than 300 solutions on the market today. Our company settled on the Tableau solution:
- In 2018, Tableau became the leader in BI solutions research for the 6th time by Gartner
- Tableau is easy to learn (and our workshops prove it)
- No developer knowledge or statistics required to fully get started with Tableau
At the same time, companies that already work with Tableau say that it now takes no more than 15 minutes to compile reports, which were previously collected in Excel in 6-8 hours.
Don't believe me? Try it yourself - download a trial version of Tableau and get tutorials on how to use the program:
Download Tableau