When companies look to invest in a business intelligence (BI) solution, they often make the mistake of getting bogged down with features, comparing the products of different vendors when they should actually be weighing-up which ones can actually deliver on the business's specific BI requirements.
"It's a trap that many companies fall into," says Paul Morgan, managing director of ASYST Intelligence a focused provider of strategic BI and data management solutions.
"Before companies even begin to looking at products and talking to vendors, they need to draw-up a list of what they expect BI to deliver for the business and identify the criteria for a BI solution based on those requirements. In a nutshell, companies must first decide what they want. Then, and only then, can they start to look at the different vendors' solutions.
"There is no use evaluating solutions against one another without first measuring them up against the company's specific BI requirements."
Morgan adds that most vendors typically focus on the technical aspects of solutions when it comes to marketing so the terms and ideas are generally geared at IT departments.
"This makes it difficult for business decision-makers to understand and evaluate BI solutions against their BI wants and needs. Likewise, IT departments may not understand the business impetus for BI, which means evaluation once again comes down to bells and whistles instead of singling out which solution can best deliver on the organisation's BI requirements. A long list of impressive features does not necessarily mean that the solution can deliver on a company's BI goals.
"For this reason it is essential that there is close collaboration between business and IT in identifying BI requirements and setting the solution selection criteria," advises Morgan.
Once the BI requirements have been set and it comes to evaluating features, companies should aim for a solution that can cover their entire environment. If there is a range of disparate systems already in place companies should seek to choose flexible BI tools that are able to work off different platforms and consolidate from different sources. If however the architecture is already standardised, this requirement is not as relevant.
Ideally, all BI tools that sit on top of the enterprise data warehouse should be standardised.
"BI is a complex scenario and the more systems there are, the more complicated it becomes. With increased standardisation, systems integration and getting BI tools to work properly on top of all of them is easier," says Morgan.
Morgan adds, however, that there are sometimes certain issues that can only be addressed with niche solutions so companies may have to make some exceptions. In these instances it is essential that companies seek to select a solution that is scalable so that they don't grapple with integration issues later on.
"Niche technologies are designed to handle specific requirements so they don't always have the same longevity as the 'wider' BI offerings from the bigger vendors. Then of course, the skills to support niche technologies are also limited.
"That's why companies must keep the bigger picture in mind. In today's fast-paced business environment needs and systems evolve constantly so it is critical to ensure that the BI solution can adapt to changes in the IT environment. You don't want to end up with a patchwork quilt," he says, "Once again it boils down to doing the necessary due diligence; setting the business's BI goals at the start and choosing an appropriate application that has the capacity and flexibility to meet those requirements, now and into the future."
Morgan says that due consideration must also be given to the end-users of the application. If the aim is to introduce BI across the board, for instance to make dashboards available at all levels of the business, an important feature of the selected application must most certainly be user-friendliness.
"Companies look at the user community, the people who are going to be using the system at the end of the day. If it's meant for everyone, it must be simple to use otherwise users will be slow to adopt the technology, if at all. It's as simple as that. Obviously if the system is intended for use by high-level users for specialised functions, the solution's capabilities will be more sophisticated." Morgan concludes saying that companies must conduct a proper proof of technology before deciding on a BI tool.
"Test before you settle. Most vendors offer evaluation licences which allow businesses to test whether the solution can handle their environment. If you have commissioned BI consultants to assist with BI tool selection and implementation, this test phase provides an opportunity to evaluate their competency as well."
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ASYST Intelligence is an empowered South African company providing experienced consultancy and specialising in the provision and improvement of Business Intelligence and Data Management systems. ASYST Intelligence is a Business Objects Enterprise Partner and a Microsoft Certified Partner and boasts an established client base incorporating household names such as Anglo Platinum, Eskom, Mutual & Federal, ABSA, Growthpoint, RMB Private Bank and the Department of Public Enterprises. More information about ASYST Intelligence can be found at www.asystint.co.za
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