CASE
Cloud analytics lets small
and medium-sized companies
think smarter
The convenience and lower cost of IBM Cognos in the IBM SmartCloud is allowing small and
medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to replace spreadsheets and business information silos
with powerful business analytics – putting them on the same knowledge footing as larger
organizations for the first time.
No organization would disagree that
spreadsheets with envy as they struggle
comprehensive business intelligence
in the data-driven world, business
to get the most out of inferior reporting
tools within the latest release of IBM
intelligence is key. The trouble is that the
systems.
Cognos, and the model of delivering
them ‘as a service’ through the public
barriers to entry can appear high – and
52 | Case
so can the cost and commitment levels
However, the IBM SmartCloud is
seemingly required.
changing this and empowering SMEs
IBM SmartCloud, is truly revolutionary.
to think and act like larger enterprises,
For the first time, he says, SME can
It is for these reasons that business
according to Stijn Vermeulen, Managing
now receive an affordable, scalable and
analytics, or business intelligence,
Director of the leading Business
flexible business intelligence service
has traditionally been the preserve of
Intelligence consultancy company,
without having to lift a finger internally
forward-thinking large enterprises.
element61. The company specializes in
to set up or maintain it.
While they have been able to take
setting up business intelligence systems
data out of silos – and interrogate
for organizations keen to get better
More than cost savings
it to get a clearer view of the entire
insights and make shrewder, evidence-
The associated cost and convenience
organization and the markets it operates
based decisions. According to Vermeulen
benefits of providing business
in – SMEs have looked up from piles of
the combination of the powerful and
intelligence through the cloud are major
advantages, but Vermeulen insists this is
support users who might be accessing
Challenge
only half the story.
the results of business analytics at any
To provide effective, powerful easy-
time of day or night.
to-use business intelligence with
“There are major savings involved in
no upfront software, hardware or
using the IBM Smart Cloud to deliver a
“That’s where the ‘as a service’ adds real
service to our clients but you really need
value. It’s not just the ability to rent for a
to look at the bigger picture to see the
monthly fee. It’s that, instead of putting
Solution
entire set of benefits,” he says.
up all the money in advance, you can
IBM Cognos running on the IBM
just switch on the computer and have the
SmartCloud provides Business
“The major reason why organizations of
service appear for you. There’s no need
Intelligence ‘as a service’ through
all sizes, but particularly SMEs, do not
to train people, no need to invest in new
employees’ web browsers.
use business intelligence applications
equipment and no need for systems to
is that the investment levels seem too
be turned off so they can be maintained;
Benefits
high. That’s not just about investing in
everything just runs for you every time
Companies of any size can think
the tools and setting up and maintaining
you open up the web browser. So it allows
big and take data out of silos
the hardware – it’s also the cost of
SMEs to benefit from the advantages of
to get a complete picture of the
training up staff internally both to
IBM Cognos Business Analytics, in the
organization and its markets
understand business intelligence and
same way large companies do.”
without large upfront investment
data warehousing concepts, and then to
run everything.
training costs.
in hardware, software, training or
New tools on a smart cloud
maintenance.
Vermeulen has been in business analytics
Companies can do this – at an important
for 18 years and worked for the past two
cost – but then if the person leaves, the
years with his team at element61 (a team
skills go with them. That has always
that has more than 250 combined years’
been a huge concern in our experience:
worth of business intelligence expertise)
Often, SMEs are simply too small and
to develop a solution based around
understaffed to invest in building up
IBM’s Cognos business analytics suite,
the required skillset. A lot of SMEs also
operating on the IBM SmartCloud.
operate internationally, across multiple
He was convinced it would revolutionize
times zones, making it very hard to
business intelligence – and early
Case | 53
relatively straightforward questions.
Vermeulen believes offers the most
They just want to know things like:
flexible, yet still comprehensive, suite of
how many products they sold, who sold
tools available to companies.
them, where and to whom and what
“Of all the analytics tools available in the
margin was made on them. From that,
latest release, Cognos is the most suited
they want to find out which are their
to operating over the internet, which
most profitable products and services,
makes it ideal for a cloud-based ‘as a
who are their best customers, and who is
service’ package, even including mobile
performing well within the organisation.
Business Intelligence” he says. “It also
has very broad modules, whereby it can
“Companies of all sizes, and especially
look for information to compile reports
SMEs, are buried in individual, manually-
– and then it’s very good at displaying
generated Excel spreadsheets – they
these concisely as a scorecard or a
spend more time gathering data than
dashboard. It’s very good at hiding all
analysing it. This often leads to mistakes
the clever, hard work it does and giving
in reports or discussions over who has
businesspeople a very simple interface.”
‘the right’ and ‘the latest’ set of figures,
with no ‘single version of the truth’ in
Vermeulen predicts these attributes are
terms of management information.
going to become increasingly sought
after by organizations of all sizes, but
“This is what we’ve helped Europal
particularly SMEs, as they discover the
with. Like many companies, their
power of an external partner setting
ERP couldn’t build up relationships
up, hosting and maintaining powerful
between different sets of data, so they
suites of tools. With the complications
did not have a complete picture. And if
and much of the cost taken away from
indications are that he was right.
a salesperson moved from one region to
them, organizations are left to simply
His company is currently working on
another, for example, their data didn’t
log in and start making better informed
projects to roll out the solution to many
go with them. ERP systems just do not
decisions based on clearly displayed
clients, and has already turned around
provide historical views on data. Business
evidence rather than gut feeling and a
the way one packaging and logistics
intelligence, therefore, can act as a sort
pile of spreadsheets. n
company, Europal, runs its business.
of ‘corporate memory’.”
Stijn Vermeulen
Managing Director element61
While IT commentators talk about the
‘hidden gems’ that surprise a business
The combination of Cognos, operating
once they start to look at the data they
through the IBM SmartCloud, has
hold and learn to process it better,
empowered the SME for the first time
Vermeulen believes most companies’
to compile separate reports on sales of
experience is a little more down to
products, where they have come from, to
earth. They do not expect to mine data
which clients and with what margins.
for a massive diamond they never knew
existed, he believes, they just want to
This can be done at the touch of a button
climb above their information silos to get
rather than through compiling disparate
a better overall view.
sets of Excel spreadsheets, and the
process has also provided an opportunity
“The problem with nearly all companies
for them to improve and unify data entry
who aren’t switched on to business
standards so that every department can
analytics is that they end up using an
make sense of one another’s figures.
ERP system that holds data in a series of
54 | Case
unrelated silos,” he says. “It makes it very
Easy-to-use tools are the key
difficult for the company, as a whole,
The project has been greatly helped
to get answers to what may appear
by the latest release, Cognos, which
Pegasuslaan 5
1831 Diegem - Belgium