Reasons Your Business Reporting Sucks… and How to Fix It

Business Intelligence (BI) tools bring a much-needed structure to the vast amount of data available within organizations today. By consolidating data into a clear and organized format with easy-to-read charts and demonstrable trends in full view, these reports can illuminate both opportunities and challenges. Best of all, this data informs key stakeholders and enables them to make swift changes that can impact the success of their business.

The BI reporting process sounds simple – and it is! So why, then, do some companies struggle to see the results that other companies so easily produce?

The answer lies not within the implementation of the solution, but within the culture of the organization. In the vast majority of companies where results are achieved quickly, leaders are flexible and adapt quickly to change. They tend to be data-driven individuals who are open to new ideas and who embrace new solutions over the comfortable, tradition methods of operation.

To reap the rewards of an investment in a BI solution, leaders must enforce adoption. It’s imperative for all key stakeholders to embrace the new solution and lead by example. If they don’t embrace new processes that rely on BI output, neither will their teams.

Clearly identifying any new processes is key. Once implemented, do a full roll-out at your earliest opportunity. Don’t let the momentum fade. Include training for each person that will be granted access and ensure they understand not just how to run specific reports, but educate them on the power of the solution. They may think of new ideas for implementation or specific reports that haven’t yet been created.

For employees whose responsibilities will change, point out the benefits for them. Explain how BI will make their job easier and let them know what to expect moving forward. The addition of this tool greatly reduces manual processes and gives employees more time to conduct critical analysis. If it is not a person that works on analyses, their responsibilities may change to support customization of reports. For instance:

• The same information may need to be formatted differently for different departments
• Heavy numerical data may need to be redesigned to display in charts or graphs so that it’s easier to identify trends
• The next level of detail may be missing and will need to be added so reviewers can drill down
• Reports will need to be setup to display properly on mobile devices

There will be numerous requests once your teams are engaged. Quantifiable results will follow. Dashboards provide a vehicle for ongoing improvement throughout your organization.

ClicData provides more than 50 visualization widgets that empower users to customize dashboards for their business needs. To learn more about the flexibility and ease-of-use of ClicData’s BI solutions, take a look at a few example dashboards.