CRM News: Business Intelligence: Business Intelligence Is a State of Mind

Ideally, business intelligence changes the corporate culture so that every manager is responsible for his own budget, every sales agent knows what he needs to do to improve his performance, and every employee knows how the company is doing on an almost-constant basis. Be careful, though: It's all too easy to get tripped up by technical, training or cultural issues.

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Business intelligence (BI) doesn't have to be a pie-in-the-sky, big-bang, strategic project that takes years to perfect before it generates a return.

For those who get it right, the benefits can be as close as your nearest cash register, as immediate as your next purchase order and as dramatic as capturing thousands of dollars in lost revenue.

Think Fast

Getting results requires an understanding of what really drives profit

and loss in your business , a willingness to keep learning about and training your users in business intelligence, and the ability to move quickly and to question conventional wisdom.

For those who do BI right, the results go beyond short-term improvements in efficiency and profits to long-term cost savings and strategic changes that boost earnings.

Don't Get Blindsided

That's not to say that implementing BI is simple or easy for every organization. It's all too easy to get tripped up by technical, training or cultural issues. One challenge is the seemingly straightforward process of agreeing on common terms. Another is misinterpretation of data if managers focus only on numbers and ignore business processes.

Ideally, BI changes the corporate culture so that every manager is responsible for his own budget, every sales agent knows what he needs to do to improve his performance , and every employee knows how the company is doing on an almost-constant basis.

This Executive Briefing looks at the theory and practice of data-driven decision-making. We talk with experts and examine successful implementations of information management technologies.