Business Intelligence Week 2
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ITS531_M2_Lecture.pptxITS 531: Business Intelligence
Week 2: Video Lecture
Lecture Objectives
During this lecture, we will:
Go over concepts of data warehouses, business reporting, visual analytics, and performance management.
Go over and review discussion expectations for week 2.
ITS 531: Data Warehouses
Data Warehouses (Part 1)
In the realm of business intelligence, it is always good to understand the fundamental concepts of data warehouses. For example:
One characteristic of a data warehouse is that these systems are subject oriented where data is organized by detailed subject, such as sales, products, or customers, containing only information relevant for decision support.
Another characteristic of a data warehouse is that these systems are integrated. For example, data warehouses must place data from dissimilar sources into a reliable format. Furthermore, data warehouses must deal issues associated with naming conflicts and discrepancies among units of measure in essence to be totally integrated.
Data warehouses are also based on time variances. For example, the data in a data warehouse does not necessarily provide a current status unless the technology driven system is real-time. Data warehouses also detect trends, deviations, and long-term relationships for forecasting and comparisons, leading to decision making which is the very foundation of the most important benefit of business intelligence. Even more, every data warehouse has a time-based quality which is a dimension where data for analysis from multiple sources contains multiple time points.
Another characteristic of a data warehouse is that these technology driven information systems are nonvolatile meaning that after data is entered, users of the system cannot change or update the data.
An important benefit of today’s data warehouses is that many are based on web-based technology which creates efficient computing environment.
The design of data warehouses is based on either the relational or the multidimensional model and structure. In addition, the architecture of these technology driven data warehouses have focus on client/server uses which promote efficiency and good productivity for end users.
In addition, data warehouses of today’s technology advancements support real time activities for data access and data analysis.
Data warehouses of today technology era also includes a data form known as meta data which is data about data. In other words, a user would understand how the data is organized and how to best use the data for data analysis to support the decision making process.
Data Warehouses (Part 2 - Processing)
To continue with our foundations of data warehousing, it is good to understand some of the processes used by data warehouses. For example:
Data warehouses must deal with data sources where data is sourced from multiple independent and operational systems and some of these systems could be from external data providers. Data may also come from online transaction processing (OLTP) and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems.
When data is extracted from a data warehouse for the intentions of transformation into usable business intelligence, the transformation process happens with the support ETL software which is based on three database functions including extraction, transformation, and lading.
Another important processing feature of a data warehouse is data loading. In this process, data is loaded into a staging area, where the data is converted and cleansed. After this process is complete, the data would be ready to load into the data warehouse and in some cases a data mart.
Once a data warehouse is in is comprehensive state, this would be the processing capability as a EDW or an enterprise data warehouse where the technology driven information system, in this case, supports all decision analysis by providing relevant summarized and detailed information originating from many different sources.
In addition, a data warehouse will support processing from many software programs to support the process of metadata for organizing data summaries which are easy to index and search, especially with Web tools.
As with any major database architecture, the internal structure of these systems will be protected and middleware tools will be used to allow or enable access. There are many front-end applications that business users can use to interact with data stored in the data repositories, including data mining, OLAP, reporting tools, and data visualization tools.
Data Warehouses (Part 3– The Future)
To continue with our foundations of data warehousing, it is good to see what the future holds for data warehousing. For example below are areas of research everyone may find interesting to explore:
Data Warehouse sourcing using the following technology:
Web, social media, and Big Data
Open source software
SaaS (software as a service)
Cloud computing
Data Warehouse infrastructures base on:
Columnar (Based on storage and access)
Real-time data warehousing
Data warehouse appliances
Data management technologies and practices
In-database processing technology
In-memory storage technology
New database management systems
Advanced analytics
ITS 531: Data Warehouses (SQL Server)
Data Warehouses (SQL Server Demonstration)
For anyone that plans to focus in a career of business intelligence and data analytics may find it very beneficial to explore the SQL language. Below are free learning resources found over the internet:
SQL Server Courses, (2018). Microsoft’s Virtual Academy. Retrieved from https://mva.microsoft.com/product-training/sql-server#!lang=1033
SQL Tutorial, (1999 – 2018). W3schools.com. Retrieved from https://www.w3schools.com/sql/
SQL Tutorial, (2018). Tutorials Point: Simply Easy Learning. Retrieved from https://www.tutorialspoint.com/sql/
SQL Tutorial, (2004 - 2015). Art Branch Inc. Retrieved from http://www.sql-tutorial.net/
SQL Tutorial, (2018). Geeks for Geeks. Retrieved from https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/sql-tutorial/
SQL Tutorial (2018). Mode. Retrieved from https://community.modeanalytics.com/sql/tutorial/introduction-to-sql/
For video demonstrations, everyone might be amazed at what can be located at www.youtube.com using the following keyword searches.
SQL and SQL Server Tutorials
SQL and MySQL Tutorials
SQL and Oracle Tutorials
SQL and Microsoft Access Tutorials
ITS 531: Business Reporting
Business Reporting (Part 1 – Report Types)
In the realm of business intelligence, there are several ways businesses and organization use reports and below are some major uses. For example:
One type of report used in these cases is a metric management report. For example, an organization that use this type of report will accomplish business performance through outcome-oriented metrics. For external groups, these are service-level agreements (SLAs). For internal management, they are key performance indicators (KPIs).
Important Note: All students should conduct further research to see uses and application of service-level agreements (SLAs) and key performance indicators (KPIs) as used by any organization or business.
Another type of report an organization will use is reports in the dashboard format. These types of reports will offer a wide assortment of diverse performance indicators on one page, like a dashboard in a vehicle. Characteristically, developed dashboards will have predefined reports with static components and stationary structures. At the same time, customizations are always possible within a dashboard depending on available technology driven programs.
When looking at the customization and design of a dashboard, below are some key areas to consider:
Benchmark key performance indicators with industry standards
Wrap the dashboard metrics with contextual metadata
Validate the dashboard design by a usability specialist
Prioritize and rank alerts/exceptions streamed to the dashboard
Enrich the dashboard with business users' comments
Present information in different levels for best support
Pick the right visual construction using dashboard design principles
Provide a medium for guided analytics
Furthermore, another type of report that organizations and businesses will use are balanced score cards. When an organization or business uses balanced score cards, they are looking and applying an integrated view of success in the organization. The scorecard measurements can show all sorts of information based on customers, business processes, and future growth potentials to name a few.
Business Reporting (Part 2 – Best Practices)
As we continue with a foundation of business reporting, it is good to understand and explain the importance of Reports to an organization. Who typically reads the reports, and what use is made of reports? Who is responsible for delivering the content of reports?
When it comes to report design, there could always be some variance toward best practices depending on personal and professional preferences and even expectations when reports are used in an official work environment. Regardless, good reports will typically follow some or all of the following not limited to:
Reports when prepared, by a data scientist or data analyst, should always have scale and balance between textual content and any illustrations.
Reports should offer enhanced formatting in efforts to draw attention to key areas of the report. This could be as simple as using bold formatting for report headings.
Reports especially when associated with data analysis and data analytics should be enhanced with visualizations. These visualizations could be the use of charts.
In association more with charts, these are very important visualizations and can help any entity in an organization or business make better decisions. Common types of charts used in these cases include and is not limited to;
Histograms
Gantt charts
Column and Bar charts
PERT charts
Pie charts
Geographic maps
Bullets
Heat maps
Highlight tables
Tree maps and Decision Trees
Any may more
Regardless of overall presentation and format, reports are very important to any organization as data within will help managers, leadership, or any other entity that reviews the report to make better decisions.
ITS 531: Visual Analytics and Performance Management
Visual Analytics and Performance Management
In the realm of business intelligence, the support of data analytics is cortical in the decision making process and to support this process, we have visual analytics. For example,
The development of visual analytics associates with the growth of analytics in a fundamental and universal way.
Vendors that develop business intelligence and data analytic applications are seeing their customers require quick and preferably interactive visualizations, not just for their normal reporting systems, but also to illustrate predictive and prescriptive decision-making information.
The use of predictive and prescriptive decision-making methods are becoming more and more cortical because big data is everywhere and most organizations and businesses, with the capabilities, are using big data to be competitive based on offered services and products where applicable to customers.
In the realm of business intelligence, performance is really all that matters because competition is very high among organizations that may offer similar services and products. When it comes to general performance, below are performance measures an organization and or business should consider, not limited to:
Measurements that focus on key factors.
Measurements that mix and or compare past, present, and future data analytics.
Measurements that support needs of shareholders, employees, partners, suppliers, and other stakeholders but in harmony and balance.
Measurements showing top/down approaches
Measurements showing targets based on research and reality with the avoidance of arbitrary data or research.
Visual Analytics and Performance Management
Going even futher when thinking about the very nature of reports and visual analytics, always remember that:
A report is a communication object equipped with the precise purpose of relaying information in a presentable form and if the report concerns business or organizational matters, then it is called a business report.
Business and organizational reporting is a vital part of the business intelligence process toward improving managerial decision making. In other words, we use technology to help us prepare reports but it is what we do with the reports to support the decision making process.
Furthermore, these reports are more visually adapted to, often using colors and graphical icons that cooperatively look like a dashboard to enhance the information content. In these visual oriented reports, charts are one of the most common types of visual elements.
Business reporting with the aid of various technologies will enable business intelligence and analytics as a decision support tool and when done analytically, these reports are collected with integrated sets of processes, methodologies, metrics, and applications intended to drive the overall business and operative performance of a business or organization.
In other words, well designed reports which have raw data from a database transformed into usable business intelligence can help and business or organization translate strategies and objectives into plans, monitor performance against those plans, analyze variations between actual results and planned results, and adjust their objectives and actions in response to this analysis.
ITS 531: Week 2 Discussion – Case Studies
ITS 531: Week 2 Discussion (Cast Study - Tips) --
For the week 2 discussion, we will be looking at and discussing the application case studies of chapters 1, 2, 3, and 4 and for the first case of chapter 1, think about the following questions:
Why would an organization need an enterprise-wide data warehouse?
In this case, things to potentially consider would be:
Duplication in the process gathering data
Data processing methods that are not consistent or uniform
Data redundancies
Operating cost to manage data is high
What could be the business value of integrated data?
In this case, integrated data could potentially do the following:
Improve marketing
Improve communications
Improve customer satisfaction correlating to increase sales
Improve data reporting correlating to better decision making
What forms of analytics are used?
In this case, analytics to discuss could potentially include:
Descriptive analytics
Predictive analytics
And prescriptive analytics
What other data applications could be developed in this case?
In this case, thinking about a business environment, other application tools could include:
Pricing of products
Regulatory compliance
Hiring and payroll
Risk management
Facilities management
ITS 531: Week 2 Discussion (Cast Study - Tips) --
For the 2nd case of chapter 2, think about the following questions:
Why would an organization want to solve logistic problems with storage?
In this case, and when dealing with logistic problems with storage, always remember that space not typically used is wasted space and reducing wasted space issues will greatly improve spending and operational efficiency.
What could be some benefits of using optimization or other mathematical based models?
In this case, always remember that all mathematical based models including the optimization model can be used in so many ways to help organizations boost efficiency along with more flexibility of operations. In addition, these models can help organizations achieve better quality and safety and a better process of securing resources.
It should also be noted that forecasting models can help organizations reduce errors.
Could Empty Container Logistics Optimization (ECO) help other organizations having problems with empty storage?
When researching ECO in this case, think about the industry as a whole and that there could always be variance in every work condition and environment. At the same time, strategies, heuristics, and intelligent systems are always being tested and suggested to tackle these complex problems.
Could Empty Container Logistics Optimization (ECO) be applied to other domains?
In this case, always remember that several industries will have complex logistic issues well beyond storage and shipping and with limited resources, in many of these cases, the ECO idea could easily be applied to help industries with scheduling, inventory management, routing, and work flow and many other domains.
ITS 531: Week 2 Discussion (Cast Study - Tips) --
For the third case of chapter 3, think about the following questions:
What are the benefits of implementing the Continental Go Forward strategy.?
In this case, things to potentially consider would be:
Restoring profitability
Better industry metrics
Reducing any occurrences of fraud
The role of a data warehouse in support of this case
What be some benefits of a real-time data warehouse?
In this case, things to potentially consider would be:
Improved decision making relying on data that is current and not old
Improved communications
Improved operations
Improved customer support
What are the major differences between the traditional data warehouse and a real-time data warehouse?
In this case, things to potentially consider would be:
A traditional data warehouse moves data from operational databases to a data warehouse on a scheduled basis, typically daily or weekly. This is a consistent process; however, data is never current and could be as old as week and in some cases longer.
A real time data warehouse works the same as the traditional with the exception that data is moved from and updated from databases on a more current time cycle. For example and instead of days or weeks, data is updated to the data warehouse, in most cases, on an hourly basis making data analysis to support decision making more reliable.
What are advantages of real-time system?
In this case, things to potentially consider would be :
Decisions are made based on current and up to date information.
Decisions become more strategic in nature and can be distributed across all levels with information that is more reliable being current.
ITS 531: Week 2 Discussion (Cast Study - Tips) --
For the 4th case of chapter 4, think about the following questions:
What is Premier?
In this case, think about and do research on various health care services which can be used to help hospitals improve cost controls and quality of services.
What are challenges in this case?
In this case, discuss based on experience and or research issues when technology driven information systems do not offer scalability to handle various transactions.
Also in this case, think about ideas for technology and needed infrastructures to handle large or massive volumes of data.
What could be some solutions?
In this case, think about a new platform to be designed to deliver trusted information in the right context at the right time to users based on their roles.
In addition, this platform will need to be able to use a portal to access integrated systems for various clinical, business, and compliance-related applications in order to help the healthcare organizations provide their staff with accurate and timely information to support evidence-based, patient-centric, and accountable care.
Are there any other benefits from integrated systems?
In this case, always remember that potential benefits for saving lives, helping people enjoy healthier lives, and reducing healthcare costs are enormous and any technology which is integrated to do this is always a benefit.
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