Depending on who you ask, reporting can be described very differently. Business leaders see it as one of the most critical functions in running their business and are reliant on it for understanding, in detail, the data that drives each department. Compiling all this information into a usable format, however, can be an error-prone, time-consuming struggle causing IT staff to see it as a dreaded never-ending chore.
Traditionally, IT associates or data analysts have been necessary resources for compiling the reports that business leaders need. Source information is often stored in multiple systems throughout the business in various formats, and inaccessible to anyone other than an experienced IT resource. Accurately pulling all the requested information is a tedious process at best, but perhaps the biggest challenges are avoiding bottlenecks, ensuring accuracy and meeting urgent deadlines.
There is clearly a need for a more efficient method of reporting that distributes the ability to pull reports and create dashboards to associates across the company while at the same time ensuring consistency and accuracy. Empowering employees to pull their own data, generate reports and share it with co-workers creates immense benefits. Most importantly, key decision-makers have more time to look at the big picture and are enabled to analyze critical data quickly and make decisions to take advantage of time-sensitive competitive, regional or surplus inventory opportunities.
There are countless scenarios where immediate access to company data can create a positive impact on the bottom line. Imagine having the ability to quickly and easily pull these reports without IT intervention.
- Identify your most profitable products
- Analyze pricing and margins
- Identify areas of growth
- Identify your most profitable customers
- Find out where your business is incurring unnecessary expenses
- Calculate costs per department
- Monitor purchasing and inventory
BI solutions enable the quick identification of all of these data points and more, in easy-to-read graphical charts that can be pulled at any time using live data. The ability to implement this functionality across an organization can reduce manual employee time by up to 50 percent. This is true for both big and small businesses.
Take a moment to consider the costs and delays you experience in your business. Include all associated costs including direct costs, opportunity costs, cost of delays, and cost of data errors. Think about the value of adding a BI solution that could help you reduce those costs in the following ways:
- Automation – cut manual data manipulation time and reduce errors
- Tactical – empower associates company-wide to track individual and team progress toward quotas or other objectives
- Business Analysis – create a single source of truth for the company and eliminate cross-departmental disputes over which reports are accurate
- Operational – correlate purchasing with inventory tracking and shipping data
- Reporting – visually present financial updates to your board or shareholders
A BI solution can fundamentally transform your business. Every business has unique needs, and our experienced professionals have seen numerous scenarios. Let us help you determine the most beneficial implementation for your business.