Contact information.
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Address"Ekzarh Yosif" street, 31, 1000 Sofia, Bulgaria
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Phone:+359 2 980 95 99
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Websitewww.balkanservices.com
4 Best Practices in Business Intelligence System Implementation
Business Intelligence (BI) is a set of tools that provide companies with the ability to effectively use company data presented understandably.
Business intelligence systems aggregate, unify, analyze, and visualize data from a variety of sources internal and external to the company. BI software organizes information according to certain patterns and trends and presents them as reports, dashboards, and visualizations.
BI solutions have applications in any organization that seeks better visibility, traceability, and accountability of its activities. They solve case studies related to:
- The presence of large volumes of inconsistent data across disparate systems;
- Difficult traceability of processes, KPIs, and performance targets;
- Untimely receipt of required information or different versions of the same indicator values existing;
- Need for a lot of manual data processing after export from the transactional system (ERP, accounting system, CPM, etc.);
- Correctness of reports;
- Taking an inordinate amount of time for key staff;
- Presence of technical errors in the data which are discovered at a later stage and need to reprocess the reports.
To address such challenges, BI systems can be relied upon by senior and middle management, business analysts, and key figures in the company.
BI tools can also quickly answer strategic questions, such as:
- How is the sales department doing?
- Which products are selling best?
- What is profitability at the product and customer level?
- What sales can be expected in the current year?
- Are orders placed late and by how much time?
- Is there a gap and what kind between the plan and actual sales performance?
- How has a product or product category performed historically?
- How do discounts reflect on sales?
Read more: Business Intelligence software- what, for whom and why
4 best practices when implementing a BI system
A properly implemented and working BI solution is an essential management tool in companies that provides quick access to all business information, systematized in an easy and understandable visual way.
Based on our 17 years of experience in business software, we summarize a few best practices in implementing business intelligence tools that can be useful when starting a BI software implementation project.
1. Define your business objectives clearly
To get a BI system working for your business, it is imperative that you clearly define the goals that the new solution will fulfill and the expectations for it.
2. Prioritize training of key users
User adoption of a new system is usually a complex and challenging process. Often in our work with clients, we observe that there is resistance to the news from employees. Factors to overcome resistance are people’s conviction and determination to make the project happen, as well as management support.
Thorough training and the availability of post-project development and expert support for the BI system ensures that it will be used effectively, benefit the business, and evolve with it, according to emerging needs.
3. Focus on data quality and governance
Establishing clear data governance processes and practices helps maintain consistency, integrity, and confidence in the results of the business analytics system implemented.
4. Take a continuous improvement approach
By adopting a continuous improvement approach, users of the BI solution and the post-project development and expert support team are in constant communication, sharing feedback, making changes to the system, and continuously improving it.
We recommend regularly reassessing your business needs, and updating your dashboards, reports, key metrics, and data sources to keep your BI solution current and in line with your company’s evolving needs.
Read more: With new BI tool Lavena tracks millions in sales on five continents [case study]
Choosing the right software system for your company is a complex but critically important decision for business development. Choosing an implementation partner is just as key, and sometimes more difficult.
At Balkan Services, we have expert knowledge of business, technology, and legislation, and we speak all three languages. We will listen carefully and advise you on choosing the right business system for your needs.
Balkan Services has been implementing business software solutions since 2006 and has completed more than 720 projects, of which over 440 are in the area of BI systems. We follow a proven implementation methodology with clear steps and best practice know-how.
