The return on implementing a Business Intelligence solution is a frequent concern for companies who are considering an implementation. After working in BI for a few years, I have seen the returns that companies reap. They can be concisely grouped into a handful of categories and whittled into a single statement:

The business value of BI is the insight and analysis provided in a timely manner regarding markets, customers, vendors and internal processes. Decisions based on the analyses will lead to higher profit margins, increased revenue, reduced cost plus more satisfied and loyal customers and a competitive advantage which leads to greater market share.

Better Customer Relationships
BI opens the door to understanding and predicting the behavior, wishes and possibilities of the customer and that leads to new revenue streams, a better company image and targeted, more successful marketing strategies. You are able to meet or exceed your customer expectations based on factual information and greater customer satisfaction.

Improved Productivity
BI can have an enormous impact on productivity. No longer are there pockets of information in the form of Access or Excel that produce reports a few weeks after data is collected. Instead of manipulating data manually, employees access a report that takes just a few seconds to run.

Performance measurement and monitoring sometimes referred to as “Operational Business Intelligence” leads to improved business processes, greater satisfaction for employees over their work and optimal time management.

Timely, Improved Decision Making
BI makes it easy for decision-makers to get critical information anytime, anywhere through the Web, mobile device or email. Cutting down on reaction time turns into dollar-savings and gives you a competitive advantage. Fraud prevention that used to take weeks to track now can be monitored throughout the day and identify fraudulent activity instantly.

Single Version of the Truth
When analytics lead to decisions, data integrity is paramount. Decision-makers must be confident that the decisions they are making are based on valid data. Moreover, having a single set of definitions and terminology improves communication and leads to more consistent, efficient decisions.

Data Visualization
Data visualization is analysis everyone in the enterprise can understand. Employees across the enterprise can easily keep track of key performance indicators and gain a better understanding of how the business or the individual is performing against the business strategies. When Information in easy to interact with, people are better able to analyze and evaluate it, resulting in well-informed, insightful decision making.

Enterprise-wide Data Share
BI lets you share and manage information in a security-enhanced web environment with a central location to monitor your reports and analyze your data. You can combine and cross-reference important and valuable data currently being captured by internal and transactional systems to enhance your reporting. You are able to produce analyses and reports on all aspects of the business.