Vendor briefing Business Intelligence and Analytics Platforms Gartner 15 capabilities April, 2013 gaddsoftware.com
Table of content 1. Introduction... 3 2. Vendor briefings questions and answers... 3 2.1. Who are you?... 3 2.2. What does your company do and why is it worth investigating?... 3 2.3. What services and products do you offer?... 3 2.4. Why do your customers buy your product or service?... 3 2.5. What business problems does it solve?... 4 2.6. What differentiates your product from existing products and services?... 4 2.7. Where do you fit in the market relative to your top competitors?... 4 2.8. When will you complete your next important milestones?... 4 3. Why GADD Software... 5 3.1. Unique Selling Points... 5 3.2. BI for the many users... 5 3.3. Proven at one of Sweden's largest multinational companies and ISV... 5 3.4. Business case examples... 5 4. Gartner s 15 capabilities and the GADD platform... 6 4.1. Integration... 6 4.2. Information delivery... 7 4.3. Analysis... 8 5. Short description of the objectives of the GADD platform... 10 5.1. The GADD platform cover the complete scope of BI... 10 5.2. GADD platform component overview... 10 5.3. GADD and dashboards... 11 5.4. More illustrations... 11 Gartner Vendor Briefing and 15 BI Capabilities GADD 2013-04.docx page 2
1. Introduction This document focuses on the Gartner vendor briefing. It starts with key vendor briefing questions and answers. It maps the 15 capabilities, using the Gartner descriptions, and relates them to what apply for the GADD platform. Short description and some illustration of the GADD platform is included. More information are available via; www.gaddsoftware.com and www.igadd.se. 2. Vendor briefings questions and answers A concise story in less than five minutes using Gartner questions. 2.1. Who are you? We are GADD Software. A network and partnership oriented company that works in the area of business intelligence. 2.2. What does your company do and why is it worth investigating? Our company will make BI available for all employees in large organizations. We will make a significant change on how BI is conceived in daily operations. Our concept and technology will change the focus of business intelligence from being "collection and monolithic oriented" to being "integration and composite oriented". 2.3. What services and products do you offer? We offer services and products that cover the entire scope of BI for large companies and also for independent vendor software (ISV) companies who wants to integrate BI solutions in their offerings. 2.4. Why do your customers buy your product or service? Customers buy our products and services because they are better than other tools on the market. With our products and services true integration can be accomplished, both towards existing customer systems and also within the organisation since no education is needed and we reach all employees in the company. Customers buy our product because we can retrieve data directly from the original data source and are not dependent on any middle data storage. And because we can consolidate data from several data sources into one result set requiring only one click from the user. Customers buy our products because they are proven in one of Sweden's largest multinational companies that has more than 20 000 GADD users worldwide producing more than 1 000 000 reports every month. Customers buy our products because they tightly integrate with the Microsoft Office suite, and complementing the Microsoft BI suite. Our solutions can be used via any web browser and have a responsive design that enables them to operate on all devices that has a web browser independent on screen size. Customers buy our products because they have been benchmarked with other products, e.g. Cognos and QlikView and concluded to be more technically advanced in key areas, significantly more cost effective and much more appreciated by the user community. Gartner Vendor Briefing and 15 BI Capabilities GADD 2013-04.docx page 3
2.5. What business problems does it solve? We solve the problem how to get BI to large volumes of users. We do it with significant less cost both concerning software licensees and without need of user education. 2.6. What differentiates your product from existing products and services? Most BI products are collection and monolithic oriented. They focus on collecting data into a data storage and then let users analyse the data using one or a few dedicated tools. Integration, adaptations and customisation is supported but is either limited or result in high costs. The consequence of the collection approach is that the BI solutions have limitation in retrieving realtime data. The consequence of the monolithic approach is that only a few employees will use it. Our products and services are integration and composite oriented. Our products retrieve data from the original data source by default. We integrate using common standards if possible as well as to proprietary API s if needed. We support the user with analysis tools but do also integrate to the analysis tools that the user already may have. We meet the user on his own terms and on any device. The advantage with our integration approach is that we can make use of the investment that the customer already has done. The advantage of our composite approach is that we combine and merge making the outcome more valuable that the ingredients. 2.7. Where do you fit in the market relative to your top competitors? We fit into the market in a similar way as the mammals did fit into the market 60 million years ago. We do not fit in. We are easily eaten by any dinosaur because we are so small. But the adaptability that is part of our concept and technology together with our partnership strategy makes the significant difference. With the adaptability in our integration and composite oriented approach we can deliver solutions that are more advanced, significantly easier to use and to a fraction of the cost. With our partnership strategy we will grow a body and will to expand that exceeds our competitors. Our ambition is not to fit in it is to make a difference and a change. 2.8. When will you complete your next important milestones? We will change the stage of BI by enabling our products for the global market. This has just started. The market will become aware during 2014. Main impact will be in the Europe during 2015 and in North America and Asia during 2016. Gartner Vendor Briefing and 15 BI Capabilities GADD 2013-04.docx page 4
3. Why GADD Software With our products and solutions business intelligence is be made available for all employees catalysing quicker decisions and actions, leading to continuous improvements in the daily operations. 3.1. Unique Selling Points Pay when proven Short lead time Integration, White labelling & Customisation Low cost Better 3.2. BI for the many users Our focus is to make operative and tactical information available to as many users as possible to low cost and great simplicity. Our business idea is to make a significant change in the area of business intelligence. With our concept and technology we will change the focus of business intelligence from being "collection and monolithic" oriented to being "integration and composite oriented". 3.3. Proven at one of Sweden's largest multinational companies and ISV Our business intelligence solutions have been successfully proven in production at one of Sweden's largest multinational companies. We also have successfully integrated our solutions with a number of Independent Software Vendors. Our concept, framework, components and products enable advanced customisation, quick implementation, manageability and usage without the need of education. 3.4. Business case examples Get sales and stock figures in real time directly from tills, sales and warehouse systems. Get data in real-time from 38 data sources, consolidate and present in one report using oneclick. Display real-time sales on TV screen for employees to monitor daily goals achievements. Automated order information from sales systems to external vendor handling the transport. Automate daily, weekly, monthly report routines using AutoGADD and Scheduler and publishing on intranet. Display Dashboards on the intranet to push information and enable drill down and selection. Automate data transfer from multiple data sources and consolidate in GADD Data Storage for off-line analysis. Gartner Vendor Briefing and 15 BI Capabilities GADD 2013-04.docx page 5
4. Gartner s 15 capabilities and the GADD platform The below table include the 15 capabilities, using Gartner description, and how they apply to the GADD platform. 4.1. Integration Integration Gartner criteria GADD platform BI infrastructure All tools in the platform use the same security, metadata, administration, portal integration, object model and query engine, and should share the same look and feel. All tools in the GADD platform use the same architecture, administration and user interface. Query Library, User Directory, Query Statistics, Query Engine, Data Exchange and Data Storage are core components used by all tools. Metadata management Development tools Tools should leverage the same metadata, and the tools should provide a robust way to search, capture, store, reuse and publish metadata objects, such as dimensions, hierarchies, measures, performance metrics and report layout objects. The platform should provide a set of programmatic and visual tools, coupled with a software developer's kit for creating analytic applications, integrating them into a business process, and/or embedding them in another application. Query Library is used to manage all pre-defined query information, business characteristics and other meta data. And it is common for all tools. Default report views are supported for pre-defined queries and can be customised by user for all tools. Complete range of development interfaces is supported. The platform can be extended using programmatic approach, for the professional.net developer, for the intermediate MS VBA/Excel developer, and also by a user with no programmatic skills. With the GADD Query & Dashboards Builder the user can creates own queries and visualisations. The platform used is.net and include strong integration to Microsoft products as; SQL Server, MS Access and MS Excel. Collaboration Enables users to share and discuss information and analytic content, and/or to manage hierarchies and metrics via discussion threads, chat and annotations. Information Delivery The platform encourage collaboration and publishing on intranet/internet. Integration to Microsoft SharePoint for customers having this product is one option. WordPress is another option. The platform does not include collaboration solution; instead we focus on integration to existing intranet/internet solutions. Gartner Vendor Briefing and 15 BI Capabilities GADD 2013-04.docx page 6
4.2. Information delivery Information Delivery Reporting Gartner criteria Provides the ability to create formatted and interactive reports, with or without parameters, with highly scalable distribution and scheduling capabilities. GADD platform Automatic reporting is supported using AutoGADD and Scheduler (Microsoft Scheduler or GADD Scheduler). Scheduling, Distributing and publishing possibilities are extensive. All type of formats can be used, e.g. different GADD formats, dashboards with or without interactive drill-down via Web browser, Excel as well as static PDF etc. Also reports can be archived directly in a data storage e.g. SQL Server. Dashboards Ad hoc query Microsoft Office integration Includes the ability to publish Webbased or mobile reports with intuitive interactive displays that indicate the state of a performance metric compared with a goal or target value. Increasingly, dashboards are used to disseminate real-time data from operational applications or in conjunction with a complex-event processing engine. Enables users to ask their own questions of the data, without relying on IT to create a report. In particular, the tools must have a robust semantic layer to enable users to navigate available data sources. Sometimes, Microsoft Office (particularly Excel) acts as the reporting or analytics client. In these cases, it is vital that the tool provides integration with Microsoft Office, including support for document and presentation formats, formulas, data "refreshes" and pivot tables. Advanced integration includes cell locking and write-back. Main channel for dashboards is intranet/internet. Any Web browser can be used to display dashboards in predefined views and support interactivity, e.g. drill-down. Dashboards can also be viewed using Windows based application. Content in dashboards can be updated automatically enabling real-time data to be displays and analysed. Several tools exist for supporting the user with ad hoc query. The user can do ad hoc query on pre-defined/ prepared data sources and the user can also connect to any data source, create own queries, dashboards and pivots. Sematic layers and pre-defined calculations are supported and enables users to easily navigate, construct and share query definitions, views and result. Strong integration exists to Microsoft Office with focus on MS Excel and also MS Access. Automatic and customised integration is supported. Advance integration can easily be done both by an average skilled user and the VBA expert. Gartner Vendor Briefing and 15 BI Capabilities GADD 2013-04.docx page 7
Search-based BI Applies a search index to structured and unstructured data sources and maps them into a classification structure of dimensions and measures that users can easily navigate and explore using a search interface. GADD Data Exchange and Data Storage can be used as intermediate data cache as well as data archiving. Data extract, transfer and load are easily managed al via queries. Data can be retrieved from any data source and consolidated into one data storage. Data can be classified and prepared for making it easier for the user to search, navigate and analyse. Mobile BI Enables organizations to deliver analytic content to mobile devices in a publishing and/or interactive mode, and takes advantage of the mobile client's location awareness. The dashboards and web based tools can be used on any device that has a web browser. To be able to use the same dashboards and query definitions on all devices is a great advantage and avoids the need and costs of platform specific solutions. The dashboards have a responsive design that makes them attractive also on small screen devices. 4.3. Analysis Analysis Gartner criteria GADD platform Online analytical processing (OLAP) Interactive visualization Enables users to analyse data with fast query and calculation performance, enabling a style of analysis known as "slicing and dicing." Users are able to navigate multidimensional drill paths. They also have the ability to write back values to a proprietary database for planning and "what if" modelling purposes. This capability could span a variety of data architectures (such as relational or multidimensional) and storage architectures (such as diskbased or in-memory). Gives users the ability to display numerous aspects of the data more efficiently by using interactive pictures and charts, instead of rows and columns. OLAP is supported via both Web and Windows tools. Slicing, dicing and drilldown give the user possibility to navigate multidimensional paths. User created information can be integrated and consolidated in the analysis, e.g. to consolidating budget and goals, defined by the user himself, with data retrieved from the operational systems and data warehouses. User can have personalised data storage on laptop or to enable off-line analysis. Both in-memory and disk-based is user to maximize performance. Rich variations of visualisation are available. Traditional visualisation as; pivot, chart, pie, bubble, card, gauges and also more complex visualisations as; chord, heat maps, animated bubble are available. Gartner Vendor Briefing and 15 BI Capabilities GADD 2013-04.docx page 8
Predictive modelling and data mining Scorecards Enables organizations to classify categorical variables, and to estimate continuous variables using mathematical algorithms. These take the metrics displayed in a dashboard a step further by applying them to a strategy map that aligns key performance indicators (KPIs) with a strategic objective. Predictive modelling is supported for specific areas. Local Sales Forecasting is an example. Basket analysis is one example of analysis that can be used to conclude customer purchase patterns which can be used to predict sales for campaigns and sales activities. The dashboards concept of GADD includes a wide range of visualisations. It includes basic scorecards as well as a more complex scenario where scorecards are connected and interlinked. Prescriptive modelling, simulation and optimization Supports decision making by enabling organizations to select the correct value of a variable based on a set of constraints for deterministic processes, and by modelling outcomes for stochastic processes. Predefined and customised queries and reports can be constructed to meet requirements and business logic. This can include solutions for modelling and simulations. Ad hoc modelling and simulations is not supported. Gartner Vendor Briefing and 15 BI Capabilities GADD 2013-04.docx page 9
5. Short description of the objectives of the GADD platform This chapter includes illustrations and definitions of the GADD platform. 5.1. The GADD platform cover the complete scope of BI Fig. From data to display. Retrieve and consolidate data in real-time from unlimited number of data sources. Automation of data retrieval and information publishing using Scheduler and AutoGADD. Predefined reports for operational use, that secures information quality, steering and super easy to use for anybody. Automatic web publishing on Intranet of reports, dashboards, KPI using WebGADD. Ad-hoc data analysis via web browser using pivot, tables, charts, gauges, pies, cards etc. that are interactive and drillable. User directory to steer access, authentication and Query statistic to monitor follow up all usage. Integrated with Microsoft Excel and other MS Office desktop tools, using Microsoft technology and an extendable architecture that enable unlimited and efficient customisation. 5.2. GADD platform component overview Fig. GADD component overview including server and client components. Gartner Vendor Briefing and 15 BI Capabilities GADD 2013-04.docx page 10
5.3. GADD and dashboards Fig. GADD Dashboards for Windows and Web. GADD Query & Dashboard Builder GADD Query & Dashboard Viewer GADD Query & Dashboard Web Server (WebGADD) 5.4. More illustrations Gartner Vendor Briefing and 15 BI Capabilities GADD 2013-04.docx page 11