| > | | | | competitive advantage in a competitive time frame. |
| Decision makers in any business are expected to | | | | Depending on how the metrics are set, the reports can |
| make critical decisions in support of their | | | | be generated so that they make the most sense to |
| company’s strategy and the success of the | | | | senior leadership in terms of per-share earnings, sales |
| company in general. To aid in making these | | | | required to cover expenses, and other key financial |
| all-important decisions more and more people are | | | | metrics. Because the reports are in a language that |
| turning to business intelligence to produce actionable | | | | is easily understood by leadership, strategies can be |
| information to help them make informed decisions that | | | | approved and acted upon more quickly than strategies |
| will positively transform their companies. This | | | | supported by reports that are undecipherable or need |
| information is, more often than not, ever changing in the | | | | extensive explanation. |
| fast-paced world of business and is best maintained | | | | Actionable information supported by business |
| by a strong business intelligence program that can | | | | intelligence shows senior leadership that the key |
| rapidly collect the necessary data from various data | | | | decision makers for the business are making |
| warehouses and process the data to produce | | | | responsible, informed decisions based on data instead |
| actionable information. This information can then be | | | | of guesswork. The data-driven business intelligence |
| used to present various courses of action to senior | | | | allows for discussion, plan development, corrective |
| leadership. Because they’re produced from | | | | measures, and positive changes in the right direction |
| business intelligence data, these reports will be timely, | | | | for any business. |
| accurate, and defensible, instead of a gut reaction to | | | | |
| the market. | | | | As the business intelligence program continues to |
| In order to have access to true actionable intelligence, | | | | provide actionable information, the company can |
| the business intelligence program needs to have | | | | experience continuous improvement and see tangible |
| constant access to important data for the company, | | | | results that result in positive growth. Tangible results |
| as it is being generated. The program will then be | | | | and positive growth will pave the way for more |
| able to turn the data into actionable information based | | | | business intelligence projects within the company, |
| on preset metrics and can then be used to gain a | | | | enabling radical change across the board. |