It is estimated that 60% of BI projects end in abandonment or failure and market data confirms that out of the 3 standard project dimensions- time, resources, and scope – timelines and resources typically exceed the initial plan while scope consistently falls short of the of the original expectations and requirements.

In addition, no more than 20% of business users actually use their BI applications proactively, and that a staggering 64% of systems functionalities are rarely or never used. As such, an approach that delivers value early in the project while remaining aligned with business priorities is crucial.

Nuvento’s client, a large U.S. construction firm was encountering a similar situation. The organization had started a BI initiative involving implementation of a new data warehouse and BI platform some 8 months prior to the engagement with Nuvento. The system was to serve executives with high-level scorecards, Sales analysis, Supply Chain analysis, JIT inventory analytics, and finally Service analysis, including dispatch improvement. Nuvento was asked to look at the current implementation and provide solutions to roadblocks that were delaying completion.

Nuvento Solutions

• After reviewing the current implementation, Nuvento recognized that the company had made a substantial investment in the new platform, but that the lack of flexibility being experienced by the various business units would not be addressed even by its successful completion. For some areas, the current implementation would be feasible, but a new solution would be required for most of the lines of business. The company could still make use of its existing investment, by, not but complimenting the BI offering with Qlikview from Qliktech.
• Nuvento performed an analysis of the existing warehouse structure and reports and interviewed business users to better understand their expectations for the new system.
• Due to the investment that had been placed in the new Oracle platform, it was determined that units requiring relatively static reporting that is updated less frequently would continue down the original path.
• Of the remaining business units, Nuvento determined that supplying Qlikview with, not to 250 analysts from the various groups would provide immediate value.
• The company would still make use of the new data warehouse, but data from the warehouse would be staged each day in “QVD” files, which are Qlikview proprietary files that hold data in such a way that it can be loaded into Qlikview very quickly and abstracts the users from the underlying source. Users simply point their Qlikview application to the shared QVD files and explore the data. This means that users are not going directly against the databases, and IT can still govern the solution.
• Nuvento determined the appropriate data architecture, created the necessary data loading applications, and trained users on the interface.

Benefits

Improved user satisfaction score by 65%

Reduced TCO of BI platform by 30%

Data Source Systems

Application: SAP, NAV    ,  DW/BI: Oracle

Database: Oracle, Excel ,  Hardware: IBM iSeries

Business Results

1. Using Qlikview’s What-If-Analysis capabilities, the company was able to establish a new goal for inventory turns that is expected to reduce inventory-related overhead by 15% annually.
2. Through analysis using Qlikview, the company was able to establish the best locations for staging areas, reducing supply shortages by roughly 25%.
3. Analysis in Qlikview led to a redistribution of territories, resulting in a 15% reduction in transportation time.
4. These results were achieved within 30 days of user training. It is important to note that it was not necessary to have cubes built or to provide IT will detailed requirements. Users were able to explore the data as loaded from the source systems without special hierarchies being constructed.