Business Intelligence Software

Essay by Phoenix45University, Master'sA, May 2008

download word file, 5 pages 0.0

In today's fast paced and competitive business environment, companies need to leverage every opportunity to generate increased revenues. Through the course of business, gigabytes of data are collected, documenting sales, purchases, inventory, overhead, and every other aspect of doing business. With the explosive spread of computer-based data collection, many companies found themselves overwhelmed with information and no way to effectively sort and analyze what they had collected. It is estimated that companies are only able to extract value from about 20 percent of their collected data. This unused, raw data is a potential source of revenue generation, productivity, and competitive advantage for these companies. As a result, companies are seeking out methods and tools to exploit this data.

Business Intelligence (BI) Software provides these companies the tool to consolidate and analyze this data into a productive output. Correctly applied BI software will allow a company to increase their productivity by identify sales patterns, adjust pricing, identify cost savings, and predict future sales.

BI Software accomplishes this through its ability to collect and consolidate data from multiple sources and applications to form a unified databank of information. Most BI software applications include tools for generating reports. With minimal user input, the software analyzes the selected data and generates the requested reports, allowing the employees to compare the information within the company or within a specific market to identify trends and identify opportunities to generate new revenues, improve profit margins, or lower business costs.

BI Software provides key benefits to the end users to improve day to day performance. The software is able to immediately manage business activities as they occur, rather than waiting for manual input at the end of the business cycle. It increases the efficiency of the business by providing the immediate information and feedback to those who need...