Best Business Intelligence Tools

Maintaining control over all business operations is becoming more difficult every year as firms of all sizes are confronted with ever-increasing amounts of data. If an organization wants to make judgments that are both long-term and financially rewarding, it will require outside assistance. 

For every company's difficulty to be dealt with quickly, the usage of contemporary and professional BI tools (Business Intelligence Tools) is essential.

With these technologies, companies are given a clear view of all the data they handle to analyze, monitor, and forecast future business scenarios. It is becoming the norm in corporate operations and strategy development to use sophisticated visualizations, self-service analytics, and professional BI dashboards to identify patterns.

These are all essential tools for boosting profit. Self-service options like these allow all users to use the features we just discussed, without any need for a particular training or technical expertise. 

So, they are the right answer for increasing corporate performance by making data analysis more accessible to all employees.

RECOMMENDATIONS 👍

We recommend checking out DOMO as your Business Intelligence tool! There are a variety of ways to use Domo, from a business intelligence platform to an app marketplace for customizing your platform. Get started today!

DOMO

What are BI (Business Intelligence) Tools?

Software that gathers, processes, analyzes, and visualizes huge amounts of data to provide actionable business insights, creates interactive reports, and simplifies the decision-making process is a business intelligence tool (BI tool).

Visual analytics, data visualization, interactive dashboards, and KPI scorecards are all included in these business intelligence tools. In addition, they provide self-service capabilities for automated reporting & predictive analytics, making the analytical process more efficient and accessible.

Why Do We need BI (Business Intelligence) Tools?

We are in the midst of a period of rapid technological advancement. The corporate sector has been particularly impacted by technological breakthroughs, which have had a profound influence on our day-to-day lives.

Businesses have more data-driven tools and tactics at their disposal than ever before, however, not everyone is making use of them. Today, we're going to discuss the importance of Business Intelligence and how it can help your company grow and thrive.

The Benefits of BI (Business Intelligence) Tools

Predictions can Benefit Users

Data scientists and analysts don't have to be experts in predictive analytics to benefit from it. Forecast engines allow business users of all skill levels to develop insights for future situations that will help them alter existing tactics to provide the best potential results.

To counter this, artificial intelligence-powered intelligent data alerts monitor for changes in business conditions and detect any abnormalities that may arise when managing massive volumes of data, allowing you to take prompt action. 

This degree of technology enables you to reduce the amount of manual effort and automate operations so that you may devote more time to other activities.

They Gather All the Required Information

You likely acquire data from a variety of sources, including CRMs, flat files, portals, ERPs, database systems, APIs, and more. To handle all of these sources and gain a deeper knowledge of the gathered data, you'll need to create a high degree of data intelligence.

Because of this, contemporary data connectors may help you centralize diverse data sources & provide you with a single picture of all your business activities. Thus, recognizing issues and trends as well as cross-analytics & taking action are all tightly related and dependent exclusively on data.

They Eliminate Manual Tasks

Modern software removes endless columns and rows and allows for the automation of operations, whereas older methods of company administration promote the usage of spreadsheets and& static presentations.

Want a written report on the situation? In real time, the tool refreshes your KPI dashboard. It's also possible to schedule the reporting process to run at regular intervals so that you can focus on the findings. 

Have an idea for a speech?

A robust interactive dashboard may be created by simply dragging and dropping the variables you want to display on the dashboard. Data analysis will take on a far more natural approach now that tedious PowerPoint presentations are a thing of the past.

Their Self-Serve Analytics Truly Liberate Data

There will be less need to request findings from the IT department if everyone in the firm has access to up-to-date business intelligence tools that allows them to independently investigate the data. 

Self-service BI enables firms to gain a competitive edge since each person will be armed with the correct quantity of data analytics abilities, saving time and money and allowing the IT staff to focus on other vital duties.

They Help Businesses Save Money

It is possible to plan and analyze in real time with the help of BI tools, from sales forecasting to consumer behavior analysis. One study found that more than half of business intelligence customers cited cost savings and revenue growth as the most significant advantages of their software. As long as you can get the job done quickly and precisely, you'll have more success in the workplace and make more money.

Features To Consider Before Choosing BI (Business Intelligence) Tools

Data Warehouse

Without a data warehouse, it is feasible to create an effective business intelligence system. Even if you don't need one, it's among the most critical components of any BI strategy to take into account. 

Why? 

Simply said, a Data Warehouse improves the power, usefulness, and performance of your Business Intelligence investment while also making it easier to utilize. 

Matillion's Cloud-based Business Intelligence software as a service includes a Data Warehouse as one of its main features, and we believe strongly in the benefits it can bring to your organization.

Data Visualization

Business Intelligence has become more popular and publicly available thanks in large part to the widespread use of data visualization. In recent years, it has grown in importance as a business intelligence element.

In today's fast-paced workplace, information must be passed down from one level of the company to the next prompt. It is possible to show enormous amounts of data in a more streamlined and user-friendly manner using excellent data visualization techniques.

Reporting Based on One's Interests

There are only a few people in an organization who have the technical skills needed to produce and maintain standard business intelligence reports because of their complexity. As a result, the whole reporting process may be slowed down by bottlenecks accumulating around these crucial persons.

You need to seek reporting solutions that offer self-service reporting as one of the most important business intelligence capabilities. If you don't have the technical know-how to create sophisticated reports, a self-service reporting tool like Matillion can help you do so.

In-Memory Analysis

Using in-memory analysis might be one of the most effective and easy-to-use business intelligence tools. With in-memory analysis, line-of-business users may do data analysis on their own, without the need for specialized knowledge or assistance from IT. 

Drill-down, grouping, filtering, and pivoting are all possible methods for users to use when posing and answering business questions.

It's also easy for them to compare performance across time, product groupings, client sectors, and geographic locations. If you have a lot of data to analyze, you don't have to worry about slowing down your production processes.

Advanced Security

Among the most discussed BI aspects is security, especially concerning Cloud BI solutions. Previously, organizations preferred on-premise business intelligence solutions because of worries about security, but these issues are diminishing as suppliers offer more sophisticated and strict security measures.

One of the most significant characteristics of Matillion's business intelligence platform is security. You have complete control over who sees what in Matillion BI. It is possible to limit access to only the data necessary for a user by using groups and roles, and also row and column-based security. 

Managers, workers, and even vendors and customers may all benefit from BI when data is shared in this manner.

When it comes to cloud business intelligence, security is a top priority. Our safety measures are comprehensive. We employ encryption that goes above and beyond what is required by banks. ISO 27001, SAS Type II, and PCI-DSS certifications are all in place at our data centers.

Fast Implementation

Conventional business intelligence software has the drawback of necessitating a lengthy and laborious setup procedure. With no in-house expertise, this procedure is considerably more challenging for firms. 

External consulting can cost anywhere from 100 percent to 300 percent of the initial program cost, according to the figures.

Fast and quick implementation is a critical element of any business intelligence solution. Experts are on board at every step of the deployment process when using a cloud-based BI system like Matillion BI. It's also possible to get up and running in only 4-6 weeks with our fixed-price implementation, so you don't have to worry about rising prices.

Unlimited tech support and training are included in your monthly subscription to our software-as-a-service approach.

Popular BI (Business Intelligence) Tools

SaaS Business Intelligence 

Data scientists, text analyzers, data engineers, forecasters, econometricians, and optimization modelers are just some of the people who may benefit from SAS Business Intelligence's many tools and solutions. SAS Business Intelligence, founded in the 1970s, has a long history in the industry and continues to grow and extend its solutions. 

With a Capterra score of 4.2, it is clear that this product is well-liked and trusted by its users.

Key Features

• 5 main subjects

  • Data visualization and simple analytics, interactive reporting, dashboards, and mobile applications are just some of the features that SAS has to offer in its BI offerings.

• The ability to use text analytics

  • You can get useful information from text data like that found in social media and from location analytics, which puts the data in such a geographical context.

• Data exploration aided by artificial intelligence

  • Using SAS' data exploration, businesses may answer questions such, as "Where do my consumers originate from?" using automated analysis and machine learning.

• Compatibility with several third-party programs

  • As a consequence of the Office Analytics solution provided by SAS, you may examine your results immediately inside Microsoft Office Suite programs like PowerPoint, Word, and SharePoint.

• Dashboards and reports available on any device

  • Like the other technologies on our list, dynamic graphics may be accessed via mobile phones and tablets and arranged into interactive dashboards and reports.

Limitations

Most customers on Capterra said that the product's high price range & limited customization possibilities are major considerations in determining if such a business intelligence tool is the perfect fit.

ORACLE BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE

Oracle Business Intelligence, an Oracle technology and application portfolio, focuses on end-to-end solutions for performance optimization and enables enterprises to make quicker and better choices utilizing mobile devices. Oracle is the clear choice when it comes to data management software.

Oracle is the industry standard. 4.2/5 on Capterra & 4.0/5 on G2Crowd have given them a wide variety of skills for managing data. Throughout Oracle's history, the company's primary purpose has been to provide companies with the necessary tools for managing and storing data.

Key Features

• The Oracle dashboard

  • As a result of the tool's customized dashboards, users may access data in an interactive and personalized manner. Live reports, graphs, images, and pivot tables may all be accessed via a web browser.

• Oracle BI's ad hoc capabilities

  • It's an easy-to-use tool that offers consumers ad hoc capabilities. There is no place for complicated operations, and runaway queries are prevented, so users can rapidly make charts and view their data.

• Customized timers for waking up

  • Organizations may monitor their employees' activities via dashboards, e-mails, and even mobile devices thanks to Oracle BI's customizable alert system. A collaborative process can be initiated by one alert and passed to other alerts or users.

• Decision-making server in real-time

  • Real-time information may be integrated into any business process with this capability, which combines rules and predictive analytics. Recommendations and insights are provided in real time via the tool.

• Publisher for Oracle BI

  • Users will have access to scalable reporting, which allows them to safely and correctly present complicated information to various constituencies inside their organization. Adobe Acrobat or  Microsoft Word may be used to create reports that can be sent through email or printed and faxed or uploaded to a portal or shared via WebDAV.

Limitations

The Oracle BI is sluggish while creating reports. Some functions, including adding data to a data model, are claimed to be difficult and time-consuming.

datapine

A BI program called datapine allows you to integrate and analyze data from numerous sources. Create a comprehensive business dashboard (or even several) with all of your data, produce standard or personalized reports, or use intelligent alerts to be alerted when anomalies or objectives are reached using your data. 

Datapine is a strong solution for organizations of all sizes since it can be applied to a variety of sectors, functions, & platforms, no matter how large or little they are.

A wide range of users can benefit from the program, from data analysts to small-business owners. In SQL mode, analysts may build their queries, while in drag-and-drop mode, numbers are entered visually intuitively and impressive charts and dashboards are created utilizing effective visual analytics.

Key Features

• Artificially intelligent insights and alerts

  • If an abnormality happens in the business, the user is alerted or generates numerous sorts of insights ranging from growth trends to value drivers to what-if scenarios with the use of AI, machine learning, & pattern recognition technologies.

• Analytics that are simple to use and can anticipate the future

  • You may choose a KPI, set the number of data points you wish to forecast, and then choose a confidence interval to define the model quality.

• An intuitive drag-and-drop interface

  • Simply drag and drop your KPIs onto the interface and witness how they change onto a professional dashboard without the IT involvement of sophisticated code.

• Many dashboards have interactive elements.

  • Dashboard software capabilities like chart zooms, drill-downs, widget connections, and hierarchical filters may be used to provide a thorough data exploration process.

• There are a variety of ways to report.

  • Generate standard or personalized reports using BI reporting tools and share them via password-protected live URLs, granting viewer accessibility, or sending an email report that may be automated at certain time intervals. If you don't want to invest the money and time on your own BI software, you may integrate datapine out of your application.

Limitations

They have mobile access, however, the dashboards are only available if you install their app and modify them in mobile mode.

SAP BusinessObjects

Designed for extensive reporting, analysis, and visualization of data, SAP BusinessObjects is a business intelligence platform. Excel and PowerPoint may be integrated with their on-premises & cloud SAP systems to generate live presentations & hybrid analytics. Businesses like Customer relationship management & customer experience, ERP & digital core, and many more are the center of their attention.

More than 170 million people throughout the world utilize SAP, making this one of the world's top software providers. 4.2 ratings on Capterra and 3.8 stars from over 400 reviews on G2Crowd show the company's well-established position in the industry since 1972.

Key Features

• Cross-company collaboration

  • To share your findings with several other stakeholders and partners, it is possible to develop a cross-enterprise sharing function.

• It is a business intelligence reporting solution for the enterprise

  • You may use ad hoc queries and an enterprise reporting system to gather data and make informed decisions about your company's future.

• Dashboards that are self-service and role-based

  • Self-service features are at the heart of analytics apps and data visualization, as you may create your role-based dashboards & applications to analyze risks, for example. Similar to other technologies.

• SAP Warehouse and the HANA database

  • SAP BI Warehouse and SAP HANA allow you to filter and alter data using real-time analytics if you connect to multidimensional data analysis.

• Office Integration

  • You can simply connect this SAP solution with Microsoft Office by utilizing Excel Software with SAP to analyze massive amounts of data and incorporate analytics in PowerPoint.

Limitations

According to several reports, advanced analytical features are rarely useful without further user training. In addition, the module fees are exorbitant, and there are few feature upgrades to speak about.

DOMO

There are a variety of ways to use Domo, from a business intelligence platform to an app marketplace for customizing the platform. Data lakes, warehouses, and ETL tools may all be used in conjunction with Domo to prepare data for predictive modeling.

It's possible to integrate your company's data with other platforms, leverage machine learning, and artificial intelligence, and let people explore the data on their own. According to both G2Crowd and Capterra's four-star ratings, this is one of the younger firms on our list, even though the corporation was founded in 2011.

Key Features

• Visualizations that have been pre-selected for you

  • After you add your data source to Domo, Domo suggests visualizations such as graphs, maps, charts, and more based on your data. There are several ways to customize the data, such as annotating it for further discussion or conversation, or restricting who may see it.

• An artificial intelligence engine based on Mr. Roboto

  • It is possible to do predictive analysis using Domo's AI engine Mr. Roboto by combining AI, machine learning, and natural language processing, as well as other AI technologies such as notification alerts and notifications about changes in key performance indicators.

• The availability of a large number of pre-configured cloud connections

  • You may connect to more than 1000 cloud connections, on-premises using Domo Workbench, file uploads such as proprietary systems, Excel, or Google Docs, and a federated connector that allows you to query your data where it's housed using Domo Workbench and Domo Workbench.

• ETL's magical feature

  • To prepare your data using a "magic ETL," as Domo describes it, you may use data transformation tools instead of learning SQL.

• App Store for Domo

  • It's an environment of pre-built applications, connector APIs & dashboards, but you can also develop your own and distribute it via Domo Appstore.

Limitations

Domo isn't designed for beginners, but they do provide instruction, so be prepared to get your hands dirty. Although their payment models are opaque, you may presume that this is the most costly option on our list based on the information that is publicly accessible.

Infor Birst

Using cloud-based data and business intelligence tool Infor Birst, customers may analyze and improve complicated processes. Birst was bought by Infor, a multinational software firm with a wide range of products tailored to certain sectors, in 2017.

A sophisticated end-to-end system with a comprehensive data warehouse, visualization & reporting platform, and a networked BI approach that is built on considerable automation & learning technologies have been developed by Infor Birst as of late. According to Capterra and G2Crowd customer reviews, customers love the BI vendor's product.

Key Features

• Interfaces that may be changed dynamically

  • Allows for a great user experience regardless of whether the user is online or offline by providing cross-device access to a platform that fulfills the demands of current work patterns.

• Business Intelligence (BI) in Everyday Life

  • It's possible to combine Birst's cloud solution in your application. This eliminates the need to create your analytics solution while still allowing you to monetize data in a similar software environment.

• Analyses of the industry

  • Various data models and analysis choices for various roles and industries are available. They can help you see particular patterns, as well as weak indications, so you can act faster and make more money.

• Data architecture in the twenty-first century

  • Infor's contemporary data architecture is the foundation of Birst's native cloud Business Intelligence product. High levels of adaptability, data security, and scalability are all advantages of this approach.

• BI in the Cloud

  • Data-as-a-Service (DaaS)-based multi-tenant cloud architecture facilitates the creation of networked analytics and BI instances.

Limitations

The user interface has been described as confusing by several customers. There are additional difficulties in integrating data because a business intelligence tool doesn't generate a data model from the connected datasets in an automatic manner.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What is the Difference between ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) and BI (Business Intelligence) Software?

High-level talks about important strategic choices are aided by BI tools. All of your data, strategic and operational, may be accessed through these solutions (daily sales performance). As a result, corporate executives are better equipped to analyze data and make decisions that further their organizations' goals.

Despite this, an ERP is a system used to produce an operational perspective of your organization, typically without trend analytics, data comparison, or the development of insights into your company. ERP systems provide transactional, operational analytics compared to business intelligence (BI) systems.

Is the Data I'm Storing for My Company Safe?

Any IT system must have high levels of data security and availability. A BI solution must be able to deliver the same degree of reliability, performance, and security as other platforms in your company. Existing security infrastructures are leveraged by reliable business intelligence (BI) solutions.

Conclusion

There is an ever-growing amount of big data in the world, and it's just becoming bigger. Business Intelligence and business analytics solutions offer several benefits, such as making your data management more unified, reliable, flexible, and predictable through a wide range of capabilities.

We wanted to help you locate the greatest business intelligence tools on the market, & we hope that our detailed reviews of each product will motivate you to begin researching these tools and find the right fit for your organization or department.

RECOMMENDATIONS 👍

We recommend checking out DOMO as your Business Intelligence tool! There are a variety of ways to use Domo, from a business intelligence platform to an app marketplace for customizing your platform. Get started today!

DOMO