Online access to business data is one of the most important factors in the development of any business. Constantly changing business conditions require a quick response, which means quick information is needed to make effective decisions.
Business reports should be timely and understandable, show trends, and identify problem areas. However, modern management reporting compiled in Excel or reports does not meet these requirements. To implement business intelligence services in your business, please contact Nix United on their official website.
Accounting systems types and various ERP systems are designed as solutions for accountants in which traditional accounting forms and tabular reports are generated from the database.
But when compiling management reports, its own methodology and analytics are used, which are different from accounting. Therefore, reports for managers and business owners, on the basis of which they make decisions, are collected “manually” in Excel: data is duplicated, copied, sent by e-mail, and collected together from various sources and databases. And the whole process very often depends on the speed of closing the reporting period by the accounting department of the organization.
Because of this, executives have to wait days and weeks to get the simplest monthly income statement. In addition, these reports can often be inconsistent with each other, especially if specialists from different departments prepare them.
Plus, the human factor is superimposed:
- managers or business owners often cannot immediately understand an accounting report or an Excel spreadsheet with 100 rows and 40 columns.
- the person who compiled the report in Excel could make a mistake (for example, not copying everything or not stretching the formula) or deliberately submit truncated data.
All this leads to slower decision-making or even to wrong conclusions.
The result is a very sad picture: there is a lot of data everywhere, and a lot of people are processing it, but managers do not have a complete picture of the business with convenient analytics.
BI – A SYSTEM AS A MODERN SOLUTION FOR BUSINESS REPORTING
In recent years, specialized IT companies have developed programs that minimize the above disadvantages. These programs are systems for business intelligence of data of the BI (Business intelligence) class.
Such systems collect and process data from various sources and databases, calculate indicators and business metrics, and build dynamic visual reports instead of accounting tables. They provide managers through a web browser management information in a convenient and understandable form. BI systems can be used by business users to monitor performance indicators (KPIs), or as dashboards, with individual reports, in which it is convenient to detail and obtain additional information for analysis.
Given the amount of data collected in today’s business environment, the main benefits that a BI system provides for business can be identified:
Fact-based decision making:
obtaining detailed reports using a BI system significantly improves management decision-making processes about which products (services) or processes to focus on. The BI system helps to monitor financial performance, customer data, process efficiency data and many other business aspects online.
Identification of new opportunities:
business more easily controls its market advantages and opportunities. Managers can identify the strengths and weaknesses of a business, as well as respond more effectively to opportunities and identify profitable actions to take.
Efficiency Improvement:
A BI system is a powerful tool for saving time and effort for managers who have to spend time and resources searching for the necessary information to make decisions. The BI system collects and aggregates information from different data sources and it is easy to determine business trends from a single access point – the control panel (dashboard). Increased managerial productivity, and operational and strategic efficiency.
Understanding the past, present, and future of the organization:
Data that reflects business performance over time is easier to track with modern business intelligence tools. Benchmarking and the use of smart indicators can inform positive and/or negative business anomalies. And access to historical data and statistics can be used to plan future strategies and operational tasks.
Empowering Business Users:
This is the goal of all business intelligence dashboard tools in the market. Users can conduct their own analysis and generate ideas without waiting for the report they need.
