What is business intelligence?
Surely you have come across the concept – Business Intelligence. But how does it work and what are the main benefits?
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The information flow has never been higher – and there are great demands on companies and organizations that want to keep up. To be able to act quickly and have your feet when making decisions, you need access to good information.
And there is usually a lot of data and information in all its forms. Our computer systems emit huge amounts of information every second – just think about what, for example, the finance, production, marketing and sales department generates in a week!
So then would you think we have all the prerequisites to be able to work data-driven, fast-paced full of insights that our systems give us?
Basically yes, but it requires a bit more. In order for our information in our various systems to constitute a real strategic advantage, they must be bridged and presented in such a way that there is no obstacle for you to access the information you want. Then our raw data can be useful in a whole new way, it can give you insights, or be used for forecasts and analyzes. If you have such a system in place, it is called business intelligence.
Business intelligence – what is it really?
Simply put, it is about having access to critical information so that you can answer your organization’s most important questions. All your data, from different systems, is transformed into valuable information, so significant and actionable that you can manage your business according to them and make decisions.
At the bottom, of course, is technology, a modern database and software that are designed in a way that you and your employees can approach the information in a good way. But the purpose is to be able to make fact-based business decisions.
"A broad category of applications of technologies to collect, store, analyze, share and access data to help employees make better business decisions"
Gartner
Business intelligence in real life
What can it be in practice? It can be real-time updated key figures for profitability analysis, you may want to understand what sales in a particular market look like and if you have reached your goals, you need a basis for forecasting and planning for the next quarter or you want to look at financial data in different angles for finding patterns and trends.
”For us, business intelligence is about accessibility to the right information. There is a great need for flexible reports, analyzes and plans to be able to make well-founded decisions”
Stefan Sehlstedt
CEO
A good business intelligence system, implemented with a view to business goals and based on what really matters to your business, will give you strategic benefits. It helps you understand why things have gone good or bad and it helps you gain insights into your business on every level.