What Is Business Intelligence Software And Why Should Your Business Use It?

Business intelligence (BI) is a blanket term that relates to various different softwares that have been designed to analyse raw data through data mining, processing, querying and even reporting. Instead of switching between multiple different software programmes all designed to do a different thing, performance management software combines all of these tools into one main database. Generally speaking, the types of tools included in business intelligence software are related to spreadsheets, dashboards, data mining, analytical processing, reporting and planning systems. So if your business requires any of these, business intelligence software is for you.

Not only is BI more efficient than standard data handling, as it takes away the hassle of flicking between different programmes, but condensing them into one main database is cost effective too. By using cloud computing technology, business intelligence software alleviates the need for various servers and networks. By using ‘The Cloud’ (another term for ‘the internet’) BI software uses an internet connection, as opposed to individual computers, so that files can be created, saved, moved or opened remotely, regardless of time or location. This lifts the pressures away from working on just one computer and makes data easily accessible across a broader range – perfect for multi-departmental businesses, especially those in different offices or different time zones.

For these reasons business intelligence software is excellent in helping businesses make faster and better informed decisions, which in turn leads to better service and therefore maximised profits. By taking away the often arduous process of data analysing and mining, BI can predict targets and KPIs itself so that businesses have more time to decide on the action necessary rather than finding the information. Whereas before a report may have taken numerous workers X amount of time to produce, with business intelligence software this job is entirely eliminated. Not only does this new software present businesses with cost efficiency, but due to it all being continually backed up on the cloud there can be no lost data or missing files. Once data is on the cloud it can be made accessible to all other users immediately without the hassle of email or file sharing.

This is not to say that business intelligence can replace the everyday worker (yet) by any means. At the moment software is able to present necessary data in many different ways decided by personal preference and need. With sophisticated dashboards making the visualisation of data much more accessible, and interactive databases allowing you to delve deeper into your results than ever before, BI enables you to get more out of your business in less time. Now who wouldn’t want that?