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How to help customers embrace business intelligence


Johannesburg, 11 Apr 2019
Paul Marketos, director of IsoMetrix.
Paul Marketos, director of IsoMetrix.

Data, in and of itself, is useless. For it to have any real, tangible value, one must be able to turn data into information and turn information into decision-making. Innovative emerging technology is making this a reality, as associative logic transforms the business intelligence landscape. With this unique logic, insights are presented in a way that wouldn't be clear from a spreadsheet, empowering users to make informed decisions.

Almost a decade ago, before business intelligence (BI) tools were at the forefront of innovation in the industry, IsoMetrix already began seeking insights that delivered real value. As far back as 2011, the business's leaders realised that BI would become a key driver of effective business management. This foresight has empowered the business to leverage the latest in analytics innovations, helping its customers to embrace modern BI.

"We have been quite prescient strategically in this regard. A number of our competitors are embracing commercial business intelligence tools now, whereas we saw a long time ago that it was only going to become more difficult to compete if we continued developing analytics technology in-house," confirms Paul Marketos, director of IsoMetrix.

Marketos believes that partnerships breed good business; and if there's a solution that delivers what customers need, why reinvent the wheel? "We're at the point where writing your own BI analytics software would be akin to building your own database software. Why would you do that when there is fantastic software out there, ready to use?" he asks. With this in mind, IsoMetrix sought a solution that was commercially available, agile and flexible. Qlik ticked all of the boxes.

As a South Africa Qlik Master Reseller OEM Partner, IsoMetrix focuses on delivering software, powered by Qlik, for health, safety and environmental risk management. "Our customers need to understand trends and exceptions within their organisations," adds Marketos. "They need to know why injuries are occurring; what the leading indicators are; why incidents are presenting in a shaft or on a site. Customers most benefit from the efficiencies that can be gained when the right information is at hand."

Transnet, for example, suffered with disparate data systems, most of which were based on paper. Injuries were recorded, but no analysis was conducted. "The data was in the company, but it was not accessible. Once we implemented the IsoMetrix solution, the customer became aware that, for example, they had high instances of hand injuries. As a result, they put processes in place to address this, including training and the use of specific PPE. Without the Qlik dashboards, they would not have had this insight, and problems would have persisted," adds Marketos.

Internally, IsoMetrix also makes use of the Qlik Sense platform. It forms part of the business's internal quality management system, and is used to track its sales pipelines, helpdesk, and action and project management.

Due to its intuitive nature, implementations are made easy and it takes hardly any time for users to get up to speed. "By effectively associating information, we can understand correlations you would never discover by looking at flat reports. This is what makes it so beneficial," states Marketos.

Keeping up with Industry 4.0 means a continuous development approach. With this in mind, Marketos is focusing on delivering real self-service, making the full process 100% seamless, while empowering users to be completely self-sufficient in their dashboard creation and maintenance. "We're also experiencing a strong push for predictive analytics, so we're watching what Qlik is doing in this space," concludes Marketos.

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Qlik

Qlik delivers intuitive platform solutions for self-service data visualisation, guided analytics applications, embedded analytics and reporting to approximately 40 000 customers worldwide. Companies of all sizes, across all industries and geographies, use Qlik solutions to visualise and explore information, generate insight and make better decisions. At Qlik, we optimise Business Intelligence (BI) by harnessing the collective intelligence of people across an organisation. We focus on empowering people by enabling everyone in an organisation to see the whole story that lives within their data.

South Africa Qlik Master Reseller

South Africa Qlik Master Reseller (previously known as QlikView SA) has been a member of the EOH group of companies since 1 July 2014, facilitating a great partnership that aims to accelerate growth for Qlik in southern Africa directly or through its specialised Partner channel. SA Qlik MR's portfolio of products meets customers' growing needs, from reporting and self-service visual analysis to guided, embedded and custom analytics. Over 1 800 customers rely on Qlik solutions to gain meaning out of information from varied sources, exploring the hidden relationships within data that lead to insights that ignite good ideas.

These solutions bridge the gap between traditional business intelligence (BI) solutions and inadequate spreadsheet applications. The in-memory associative search technology that Qlik pioneered in the self-service BI category allows users to explore information freely rather than being confined to a predefined path of questions. Appropriate from SMB to the largest global enterprise, Qlik's self-service analysis can be deployed with data governance in days or weeks. The platform's app-driven model works with existing BI solutions, offering an immersive mobile and social, collaborative experience. Headquartered in Radnor, Pennsylvania, Qlik does business in more than 100 countries with over 40 000 customers globally. For more information, please visit www.saqlik.com.

IsoMetrix

IsoMetrix is a SA Qlik OEM Partner, and a leading supplier of integrated software for governance, risk and compliance. The business operates with the belief that proper management of governance, risk and compliance is not only good for the planet and the people who inhabit it, but it also leads to more profitable and resilient businesses.

The IsoMetrix team maintains close and open relationships with its customers, suppliers and staff to ensure shared success. It leverages solutions for social and community benefit as well as contractor, supplier and third-party management. As a result, the business develops and delivers innovative products which are enjoying incredible success rates in the market. For more information, please visit www.isometrix.com.

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