Access to correct data is crucial
The need for dynamic and ad hoc reporting is increasing as the demand to analyze data from multiple angles increases.
Access to accurate data about the health and overall status of your business is crucial for you to make the right choices and decisions. Without facts, you’re making decisions based on your gut feeling, which can turn out to be completely wrong. At the same time, the statistical processing of data from multiple sources can reveal correlations that you would otherwise not have discovered.
Speed is important
Growth and the speed at which the market is moving are placing increasing demands on companies’ need for management and measurement. Business leaders increasingly need quick – and often very concrete – snapshots of the state of the business in order to act quickly and keep up with the market.
The economy is important
The increased focus on speed puts even more pressure on the finance and controller function to deliver management information. The company is often also dependent on a single person to create the reports, and all other work has to be put aside in order for the reports to be delivered to management. This is an inefficient workflow and a costly process in the finance and controller function.
In Business Intelligence, data is presented either in dynamic dashboards or flat reports
Dashboards
A dashboard is a dashboard that first and foremost presents relevant data in a graphical environment that the user can understand. They are easy and quick to use, they are always available, the user decides to a certain extent what and when to view them and they provide a valuable overview. However, data is often only collected once a day, so there is a time delay in the data that users are presented with. Dashboards are very powerful for daily/weekly updates of KPI reports.
Users have different dashboards depending on their function in the company and their need for information. The sales director can get statistics on how sales of a particular product are going and how each salesperson is performing. The salesperson can see if they are on budget. The project manager can follow his cases. And top management can get an overview of exactly the conditions they want.
We typically use Power BI to build a dashboard.
Flat reports
Flat reports are reports that are typically run by the finance department, who then validate the data before the reports are sent on.
Flat reports are typically only available to those with data access to the ERP system – and therefore often need to be printed, possibly to PDF. Running the reports can be a time-consuming task.
Flat reports often provide thorough and valid data and are suitable for monthly reporting to management. They provide an overview of exactly the conditions that management wants.
For building flat reports, we typically use Jet Reports.
How to get started with Business Intelligence
We recommend that you start by looking at your own business – before you look at systems and tools.
- What data and reports do you need? On a day-to-day basis? For board meetings?
- Is the necessary data available for the reports?
- Can you create them? How time consuming is it?
- Do they give a true picture? Or are they already outdated by the time they are printed?
- Are the reports easy to read?
- Do reports need to be pieced together from different extracts from different sources?
- Are there often errors in your reports?
- Are there reports that you have opted out of because they are too time consuming or difficult to run?
With so many different reporting options and tools on the market, finding the right solution can be both time consuming and difficult.
Power BI
With Microsoft Power BI, you get an overview of the company’s data, enabling you to make better and faster decisions.
Microsoft Power BI collects company data from your financial system (Business Central) and presents it in a clear way in a dashboard that suits the function the employee is employed in.
But to get the full benefit of a Power BI solution, your data basis must be in place.
Jet Reports
Jet Reports is a tool that delivers corporate analysis and reporting with fast, flexible financial reports in Microsoft Excel.
Jet Reports contains reports and cubes – for those who need accurate data presented in Excel.
Jet Reports can be used alone or with Power BI.
Combine Power BI and Jet
Combining Power BI with Jet Reports can be beneficial.
Jet Reports contains a number of pre-built data models that, with customizations, fit the vast majority of companies. The strength of Jet Reports lies in being able to retrieve, process and analyze data from e.g. Business Central – but also from other sources.
When you use Jet Reports, you may avoid having to set up data models from scratch. Jet Reports’ pre-built data models make it possible to go straight to customization in many cases.
That is, you use Jet’s data models – and let Microsoft Power BI present the result.
Businesses are different – and need different BI solutions
We work with management reporting and Business Intelligence on several different levels because we know that companies are different and therefore have different needs.
Some companies need complex BI solutions, others need simpler solutions or just help setting up reports. However, most companies need an overview of and access to business-critical data and information – in one way or another.
All companies can benefit from Business Intelligence. Both large and small businesses need to make decisions and manage the business on a daily basis. This is best done on an informed basis. In companies, it’s not only top management that can use Business Intelligence, the salesperson and warehouse employee can also benefit from the overview that Business Intelligence offers.
Vektus has the skills
At Vektus, we have knowledge of finance, reporting and IT. With us, you will meet dedicated Business Intelligence consultants who specialize in setting up, designing and making your Business Intelligence solution work.
Business Intelligence consists of three phases: Data collection, data processing and data presentation. It is therefore important to understand the interplay between finance, reporting and IT to create the best Business Intelligence solutions.
Business Intelligence is not a product. Business Intelligence is about using the data that all businesses contain in a more structured way.
That said, there is a wide range of products on the market that support the work with Business Intelligence.
We have the breadth. That’s why we deliver BI solutions at all levels
The different Business Intelligence solutions we create all provide easier access to business-critical data – making them an important management tool for business leaders.
How to get started with Business Intelligence
If you’re getting started with Business Intelligence, ask our experts.
They know how to get you started and what you need to take into account.
Why Vektus
How we work
We work to make your investment in Business Central a success both now and in the long run.
