A New Frontier in Business Intelligence: BI Applications for Outside AudiencesChallenges, solutions, and the growing potential of developing effective external BI apps

TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION A Game Changer in Business Intelligence: External-Facing BI Apps 3

CONCEPT 1 Streamline the Navigation for Broad Audiences 6

CONCEPT 2 Ease the User Burden with Custom Prompts 9

CONCEPT 3 Fine-Tune the Layout, Prioritize Information 12

CONCEPT 4 Ramp Up the Interactive Features 15

CONCEPT 5 Develop Visualizations Based on Core Design Elements 18

CONCEPT 6 Integrate Time-Saving Notifications and Alerts 22

CONCEPT 7 Give Users Better Export Features 26

CONCEPT 8 Implement Proper Security Measures 30

CONCEPT 9 Optimize Performance to Meet the Standards of Today’s Users 34

CONCEPT 10 Prepare Your App for a Global Audience: Internationalization (i18n) 37

CONCLUSION Key Takeaways in External-Facing BI Application Development 40

WRITTEN BY: Amar Bhose, Program Lead, InfoCeptsShantanu Dixit, Data Visualization Practice Lead, InfoCeptsSarang Masne, SDK ConsultantVaibhav Fating, Senior BI Consultant

A Game Changer in Business Intelligence: External-Facing BI Apps

Business intelligence (BI) dashboards and apps have, for years, helped companies utilize data to make better decisions. It’s only recently, however, that BI applications have moved beyond an internal-facing audience to help customers and business partners access and apply data in meaningful ways.

INTRODUCTION

© 2015 InfoCepts. All Rights Reserved. 4infocepts.com A New Frontier in Business Intelligence: BI Applications for Outside Audiences

Evolving Business Intelligence

Given the relatively new and evolving focus on external audiences in BI, developers and companies alike are scrambling to figure out how to create and implement these apps for maximum user adoption. In many ways, external-facing BI app development is like the Wild West, where rules and laws are not yet written, and lines on maps not yet drawn. What’s driving the outward focus, and what opportunities do external-facing BI apps bring to companies and consumers alike? What challenges do developers face, and what solutions or “best practices” help? This white paper is an attempt to answer these questions — and give companies and developers alike a better understanding of what goes into effective external BI app development. Throughout this document, we explore core components of the development phase and share challenges and solutions for creating effective navigations, interactive features, prompting systems, layouts and visualizations, security, and other elements that can make or break the success of your BI app.

Before we get into the development aspects, however, let us first explain the difference between conventional and external BI apps, how and why BI has evolved to this point, and the potential this new kind of BI brings to companies.

A Natural ProgressionOver the past few decades, business intelligence (BI) has evolved from finance-oriented BI dashboards to applications used by companies and teams in countless industries — all for internal purposes. As the amount of data generated continues to grow, and as technology evolves, opportunities now exist to make the data accessible and useful for external audiences like customers, partners, and suppliers. Many people refer to this as the “democratization of data,” and it’s happening now as products like the Fitbit enter the market and allow individuals to track health-related data; as Netflix and Amazon make personalized recommendations to customers based on browsing and purchase histories; as retailers like PetSmart and Staples collect consumer behavior and preferences that can be reported back to manufacturers and distributors as actionable data; and as Facebook and Twitter sell information to third-party companies and partners.

“Externalizing BI will increasingly be an expected part of most customer and partner relationships. If I am a customer or partner of your organization, it is expected that your organization will provide me with certain information about my interactions with your firm.” — Kurt Schlegel, “New Business Value: Turning BI from a Cost Center into a Revenue Generator,” Gartner Business Intelligence Summit 2010

INTRODUCTION A Game-Changer in Business Intelligence: External-Facing BI Applications

© 2015 InfoCepts. All Rights Reserved. 5infocepts.com A New Frontier in Business Intelligence: BI Applications for Outside Audiences

This new mix of variables calls for a totally different user experience design tied closely to human factors. It also requires tighter security, a higher level of interactive features and visualizations, and the necessary piloting that comes with the rollout of any technology-based product.

Broader User Base, New ChallengesThis new kind of BI differs in many ways from more conventional BI. When we develop a conventional BI app or dashboard for a company, we’re creating a solution for an internal team with specific needs and skill sets. We can design the app to meet those specifications — and train the team to use the app effectively. External-facing BI apps, on the other hand, have much broader target audiences, and it’s impossible to know what level of technology and analytical skills the users will bring to the interactive experience. Since we don’t have access to the audience and can’t train them, we have to develop a user experience that is smooth and unintimidating.

Users of internal BI apps tend to understand BI tools, but we can’t make that same assumption with the users of external-facing apps. With the rise of mobile and web-based apps and portals, the majority of external users are accustomed to highly interactive experiences, fast performance, and one-click actions. Developers need to meet these expectations to make BI apps for external audiences successful.

More About Product DevelopmentAt their core, external-facing BI apps do what apps for internal audiences do: help users gather and make sense of data, and use that data to make decisions, gain insights, or take action. With external-facing apps, however, the app itself is a product sold by the company or offered as a value-added service, instead of a system used by the company. The developer needs to approach it as such, which requires a shift in mindset: the app no longer serves internal audiences for the purpose of improving how a company operates. In most cases, the app is a product for sale to a partner, supplier, customer, or even the general public.

This new mix of variables calls for a totally different user experience design tied closely to human factors. It also requires tighter security, a higher level of interactive features and visualizations, and the necessary piloting that comes with the rollout of any technology-based product.

From a developer’s perspective, these tasks are a tall order. How can you achieve them? We explain in the pages to come.

INTRODUCTION A Game-Changer in Business Intelligence: External-Facing BI Applications

Streamline the Navigation for Broad Audiences

Today’s users of BI applications, particularly those unaccustomed to BI reports and dashboards, expect a convenient and self-explanatory navigation within the app’s various modules and screens. Unfortunately, most out-of-the-box BI apps come with a generic navigation that fails to meet the needs of users (or a specific domain) and is challenging to customize. Unable to find what they need, users grow frustrated and, too often, start avoiding the app.

CONCEPT 1

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