What Is Business Intelligence and How is it Used?

Business intelligence (BI) helps take the guesswork out of decision-making. It provides a foundation for strategic planning by giving business leaders the information they need to make intelligent, informed business decisions.

Data sources of BI include:

• Customer relationship management (CRM) systems
• Marketing analytics
• Supply chain data
• Sales performance dashboards

BI platforms combine these intelligence sources into one location for analysis and reporting. This turns the raw data from across the company into real, relevant, practical business insights.

BI platforms have four main functions that work together to turn raw data into useful understandings:

Companies have a lot of data, sometimes from as many as 1,000 different sources.

BI platforms integrate multiple data sources from databases, data warehouses, and CSV files.

The platforms also clean data and check its quality, blend it into a functioning data set, and ensure the information is managed in a secure and compliant manner.

Once the data has been collected and funnelled into one place, users can sort through, model, organise, and query the data. Data analysts and scientists can also use BI platforms to perform exploratory data analysis (EDA) to test hypotheses.

BI platforms help businesses make data usable by identifying insights. They also make it easy to collaborate and share that intelligence. Teams can communicate findings through dynamic, customisable dashboards. Many platforms also allow users to work together and comment within dashboards. This simplifies overall collaboration and communication. BI platforms also integrate with other technologies, allowing for better intelligence distribution.

The platforms also clean data and check its quality, blend it into a functioning data set, and ensure the information is managed in a secure and compliant manner.

There are various options for harnessing business intelligence (BI). Companies need to choose between an in-house system or software as a service (SaaS) business intelligence tool.

SaaS BI platforms work through an internet connection and are hosted in the cloud. Users employ a web browser or app to access the platform. This differs from on-premises business intelligence software, which is usually hosted on physical servers at a company’s facility and accessed via an intranet.

Since SaaS business intelligence software is hosted in the cloud across multiple servers, users can access the platform through any device connected to the internet.

Typically, companies pay a monthly subscription for the SaaS system.

Pros

• Flexibility and scalability. Companies can save themselves the difficulties of purchasing, installing, and maintaining in-house software products. SaaS BI tools are available without installation and can be used on-demand.
• Pricing. Different subscription models offer the flexibility for businesses to only pay for the services they need. Plus, they can terminate tools when they don’t need them anymore. One of the biggest advantages of a SaaS BI platform is that it comes with a support team responsible for maintenance and keeping it online and accessible.
• Less burden. The product provider handles running and maintaining the SaaS platform. That means the business doesn’t need to worry about purchasing additional hardware, servers, or IT staff. Plus, the product provider is responsible for the data security process — saving time, money, and stress.
• Easier to start to use. Companies can start a free trial of SaaS BI platforms right away. Tools for business intelligence were a huge investment when they had to be manually installed and run on physical servers. This meant buying a server and paying a team to operate and maintain the system. Hosting business intelligence in the cloud has removed the need for physical equipment and dedicated labourers, resulting in a lower bar of entry. Furthermore, user-friendly interfaces mean users don’t need a technical background to use the tools. Now, even companies with smaller budgets can reap the benefits of BI insights.

However, there are a few potential drawbacks to a SaaS BI system. Here are some points to consider when evaluating these systems for your business needs.

Cons

• Security and regulations. Using a SaaS BI system will place potentially sensitive data in the hands of a third party. This could breach data security regulations for some industries like finance and healthcare. However, most SaaS system vendors have guarantees around safeguarding data and strict security protocols. This can make these systems as secure as in-house system options. Plus, web security protocols continue to improve.
• Unexpected costs. Sometimes SaaS platform vendors are not upfront with their pricing. There may be hidden costs for certain customisation features, extra modules, and live support. Companies may end up overspending if they don’t have an in-depth conversation with vendors about what’s included in the pricing.
• Inadequate customisation. While many SaaS BI platforms are flexible, a company’s needs may not mesh with its tools and offerings. Creating a proprietary in-house system tailored to the business’s requirements would prevent this issue. However, this would need to be balanced against the cost of time, money, and resources to get the system up and running.
• Inadequate integrations. Depending on the particular platform, it can be difficult to incorporate a business intelligence application from other vendors into a SaaS BI system. You could end up with a fragmented system with patches to achieve the full performance you need.

Business intelligence (BI) platforms are important because they allow companies to easily and quickly turn data into valuable, practical insights. From there, businesses can find information about market trends and acquire competitive intelligence. They can also compile internal insights, such as pain points for customers, find patterns and similarities between lost opportunities, and identify key stakeholders.

The overall result of using a BI platform is an environment of democratised data. Employees can easily access the data they need to make decisions faster, whenever required. Collaboration, cooperation, and communication between teams are effortless in a culture of data sharing. This gives companies an advantage by improving overall efficiency and quality decision-making.

With a business intelligence strategy, companies can access complete, organised, and accurate data. Business leaders can make better decisions, prevent problems, find potential improvements, and judge the overall health of their organisation. Employees have more time to work on projects and tasks that will boost the company’s performance — instead of creating and reading complex reports.

To sum up, BI platforms are useful because they:

• Provide knowledge to make better and faster decisions.
• Give greater visibility across the entire organisation.
• Make sharing information between teams quick and seamless.
• Open a valuable view into market and customer insights.
• Provide a descriptive and predictive understanding of data analytics.

Altogether, data gathering is essential for having a competitive advantage in today’s fast-paced, digital world. But raw data is useless without a means to structure or understand it. BI platforms help businesses guide their decisions, predict what may happen in the future, and prepare them to act quickly.