Top Business Intelligence Platforms in 2024
Why is Business Intelligence Important in 2024?
The Business Intelligence market is projected to be valued at USD 33.34 billion in 2024, with an expected growth to USD 61.86 billion by 2029. This represents a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 13.16% during the forecast period from 2024 to 2029. This growth is due to the growing desire for data driven insights in business. Using data can help companies gain an edge and take better, more informed decisions. In response to this demand, several business intelligence platforms are changing gears and embracing new business intelligence market trends in 2024 to adapt.
What is Business Intelligence?
Business intelligence (BI) refers to all the processes, systems, and technologies that transform raw data into actionable insights for business executive to base their decisions off of. A part of data analytics, it focuses on insights relevant to enterprises. An organization’s agility and ability to achieve its objectives are directly related to the implementation of BI tools. Business Intelligence tools provide data analysis, converting large volumes of information into comprehensible blocks, such as reports, dashboards, maps, graphs, charts and so on.
What are the Benefits of Business Intelligence?
The key benefits of business intelligence and business intelligence platforms lie in their ability to facilitate better decision-making and gain a competitive edge by harnessing robust predictive analytics capabilities.
Informed Decision-Making:
- BI provides a platform for data-driven decision-making. By summarising and analysing vast datasets, organizations gain valuable insights into market trends, customer behaviour, and internal processes. Informed decisions lead to better outcomes and increased adaptability to dynamic business environments.
Improved Operational Efficiency:
- BI tools help streamline and automate data processing. This operational efficiency not only saves resources but also allows teams to focus on strategic initiatives rather than routine tasks, driving overall productivity.
Enhanced Forecasting with Predictive Analytics:
- BI incorporates robust predictive analytics capabilities, enabling organizations to forecast future trends and outcomes. By leveraging historical data and patterns, businesses can make proactive decisions and adapt strategies for better preparedness.
Real-Time Insights:
- BI provides real-time reporting and analysis, allowing organizations to respond swiftly to market changes. Access to up-to-the-minute data ensures that decision-makers have the most current information, promoting agility and responsiveness.
Cost Optimization:
- Identifying inefficiencies and areas for cost optimization is a key benefit of BI. By analysing operational data, businesses can make informed decisions to streamline processes, reduce expenses, and maximize resource allocation.
Top Business Intelligence Platforms in 2024
Microsoft Power BI
Microsoft Power BI is an interactive and user-friendly data visualisation product. It was made specifically with the interests of businesses in mind. This business intelligence platforms created by Microsoft are actually a collection of software services, apps, and connectors that work together to make sense of data. It provides cloud-based BI, data warehousing capabilities and a desktop interface for user convenience.
Tableau
Tableau provides a number of business intelligence platforms and software products for BI purposes. These products query a variety of databases, including relational databases and cloud databases. The results of these queries are then used to generate graph type data visualisations. The software can also extract, store and retrieve data from an in built memory engine.
Qlik Sense
Qlik Sense offers incredible AI powered insights to its clients. The highly interactive business intelligence platform uses AI and machine learning for augmented analytics, providing top-notch services. It focuses on predictive and descriptive analytics for the use of the business.
SAP Business Objects BI Suite
One of the most popular business intelligence platforms out there, SAP provides a drag and drop and web-based interface that is convenient for users. Its versatile integration makes it compatible with a variety of software products, and thus also makes it scalable for growing enterprises.
Sisense
Sisense is an interactive Business intelligence platform that supports exports to a variety of outputs. Its high performance analytics database, Elasticube, allows users to take “snapshots” of data. It offers both on-premise and cloud based options. It can also integrate data from a variety of sources such as Google Analytics, Google Ads and Salesforce.
SQL
SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) is a server-based report generating software. Unlike other business intelligence platforms, interface is focused and providing data visualisations in the form of reports or graphs. It caters largely to developers, and can deliver automated reports promptly.
How To Choose The Best Business Intelligence Platforms
There are many excellent Business Intelligence platforms available to meet the need for fast, accurate data analysis. However, that does not mean that any one of them will suffice for your needs. Each one of these business intelligence platforms has a different appeal. Proper consideration needs to be taken before choosing which of these business intelligence platforms are right for you. Some considerations include
- Understanding and articulating your data objectives: Outlining what requirements you have from data is the first step. Understanding how data can help your business can help you understand what kind of features you require from the same. Properly defining the needs of the company can help create a clearer picture of what kind of business intelligence platforms will be best suited for you.
- Assessing implementation and maintenance requirements: Having understood what is needed for your business, there may still be several business intelligence platforms that appear suitable. At this point, other consideration such as budget, customer service, and overall value for money come into play.
Conclusion
There are a wide range of business intelligence tools out there, and all have their loyal users and a proven track record of providing solutions for data analysis. But once you have established what your goals are for your data journey, it will be easier to narrow down which business intelligence platform will be the best for your organisation. What needs to be kept front of mind is that employees will be using the platform. Their skills and knowledge are the starting point for extracting the maximum value out of your investment in any BI tool.
Data analytics goes beyond the ability to use tools, to code and to generate reports. It is based on the ability to “analyse” – to read and interpret the data. This data awareness needs to be instilled at all levels of the organisation, especially among decision makers. Generating dashboards, charts, and reports is fine, but meaningless unless BI outputs are examined, challenged and interpreted.
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