| Business intelligence and performance management | | | | any size can benefit from performance management |
| focuses on providing the tools and processes to help | | | | because it's about the data coming in and using it to |
| you make better business decisions. In order to make | | | | power the business. It's not just internal information and |
| better business decisions you first need to understand | | | | data that needs to be analyzed and assessed, no |
| how your business is currently performing, you then | | | | business can afford to be slack when it comes to |
| need to understand why it's working the way it is and | | | | keeping up with their industry and what their |
| this should lead you to be able to see where you need | | | | competitors are doing, by analyzing this information you |
| to take your business next. Business intelligence and | | | | are able to decide which direction you want to focus |
| performance management is all about making sure | | | | your business on. When it comes to critical business |
| you've got the right tools and solutions to make these | | | | applications, like the general ledger, it's often the finance |
| analyses accurately enough to derive better business | | | | department that's in charge and responsible for running |
| decisions. | | | | processes like the annual planning exercise, the |
| Performance management is the encompassing term | | | | budgeting or forecasting exercises. However, in order |
| that looks at both understanding the process of being | | | | to gain real value from performance management you |
| able to pull in all the data within your business, then | | | | need to ensure it encompasses all departments within |
| turning that data into useful information that can then | | | | your organization like sales, HR, marketing etc. For |
| be used with processes like budgeting and forecasting. | | | | example, by understanding the data from the sales |
| Business intelligence is the specific process of taking | | | | department, the marketing department will be able to |
| that data and turning it into useful information that the | | | | ensure campaigns are targeted in the areas that have |
| people within your business can then use. | | | | proven to be successful. This means the finance |
| Performance management is particularly important if | | | | department then acts like a central hub and gathers all |
| your business is growing because of the amount of | | | | the information from the different departments and |
| data you have is always going to be growing and | | | | can use it to the generate projections and outcomes |
| changing as the business grows, this means that the | | | | for the overall business. |
| complexity of your processes, planning, budgeting and | | | | Once you've implemented an effective performance |
| forecasting is also going to be increasing too. The tools | | | | management system, you should start to see |
| you may be using already such as spreadsheets are | | | | improved business performance which will give you |
| going to quickly become overwhelmed and not suitable | | | | the ability to make better business decisions faster. |
| for the data they need to manage. A fully | | | | You'll be able to identify any risks facing your business |
| comprehensive performance management system will | | | | at a glance and mitigate them before they become a |
| enable you to have greater control and add more | | | | real threat as well as being able to identify |
| cohesion to gathering and analyzing the data you need | | | | opportunities and action plans to act on them. |
| to ensure you are able to push your business | | | | Performance management also means you'll be able |
| forwards. | | | | to have confidence that the data you're working from |
| It's not just growing businesses that could benefit from | | | | is accurate and up to date which means time |
| performance management systems, any organization | | | | management should also improve too as no one is |
| from commercial to not for profit to public sector of | | | | going to be arguing over whose numbers are correct. |