It’s well established that release 4.0 of SAP BusinessObjects business intelligence (BI) solutions represents a tipping point for SAP NetWeaver Business Warehouse (BW) customers. This release (and subsequent updates) has some very significant touch points to BW. After all, this was the first major release under the SAP umbrella, and it had to deliver to expectations. That being said, I keep meeting customers looking for guidance on how they should get started with SAP BusinessObjects BI solutions in their current BW landscape in order to benefit from a sum greater than its parts per Aberdeen’s research.
As you embark on this journey, let me share some thoughts regarding the key role that SAP BusinessObjects Analysis can play.
Transitioning SAP BEx Users
Like the vast majority of BW customers, you probably have many BEx users. You may have heard SAP experts explaining how classic SAP BusinessObjects BI solutions, such as SAP BusinessObjects Web Intelligence, would nicely complement BEx analyzer today but certainly not be a strong alternative to its powerful multidimensional analysis functionality and deep integration into MS Excel. So as you adopt the SAP BusinessObjects BI platform for servicing all users, where do you take these existing BEx users?
SAP BusinessObjects Analysis is the answer. It comes with human factors that will please users previously underwhelmed with their BEx experience. It will lead to increased user satisfaction and ultimately broader adoption without disruption to your existing BW landscape. The version 1.3 of the edition for Microsoft Office, that just hit general availability this week, will make this move even easier. Not only does it bridge functional gaps with BEx analyzer that used to exist in previous versions, but it also automates the migration of simple workbooks from BEx to Analysis.
Self-Service BI
As you become more familiar with Analysis, you may realize that its functionality and human factors make it suitable for a self-service BI scenario. While many new business requests ended up in IT for existing BEx queries or reports to be edited, or new ones created, users now have more autonomy to address ongoing demand for new analyses. And there is much more to it. Users of the edition for Microsoft Office with BW powered by SAP HANA can quickly combine corporate BW data with personal data on their own and easily share results in a controlled environment. This new functionality relieves end users from a strong dependency on IT in order to enable agile BI scenarios.
Mobile BI
Another key milestone in your journey will consist of servicing mobile users. The combination of Analysis with SAP BusinessObjects Design Studio comes in handy here. Soon you’ll be able to move content from Analysis to Design Studio and then push it to iPad users in a few simple clicks. As we near the general availability of Design Studio, this is an area of interest for many BW customers.
So, in a nutshell SAP BusinessObjects Analysis brings a great value as you embark on the journey to bring SAP BusinessObjects BI solutions into your SAP BW landscape, where it has a critical role to play in your BI strategy. Don’t miss this opportunity.
If you want to see the latest version of Analysis live and engage with the development team behind it, join us at SAP TechEd in Las Vegas October 15th – 19th. We will have hands-on sessions, meet the expert events, and you’ll even hear directly from customers such as Colgate-Palmolive and General Mills, who are already using Analysis today.
If you can't make it to Las Vegas, and your company or your customer's company could benefit from SAP BusinessObjects Analysis, don’t hesitate to leave me a comment here, email me, or DM @taudas on Twitter.
