Hillman Group, Avnet & Quaker

Business Intelligence
deployments
1

Agenda

What is Business Intelligence?

Business benefits
i. Hillman Group, Avnet & Quaker BI deployments
ii. Case Question : What are the business benefits of BI deployments such as those
implemented by Avnet & Quaker Chemical? What roles do data & business
Process play in achieving those benefits?
iii. Case Question : Both Avnet & Quaker Chemical implemented systems &
processes that affect the practices of their sales people. In which ways did the
latter benefit from these new implementations? How important was their buy in
to the success of these projects?
Challenges
i. Case Question : What are the main challenges to the change of mindset required
to extend BI tools beyond mere reporting? What can companies do to overcome
them? Use examples from the case to illustrate your answer.
Alternate Strategies:
i. Case Question : Discuss alternative strategies for companies to foster adoption of
new systems like these.
2

What is Business Intelligence?

BI facilitates RIGHT INFORMATION, RIGHT TIME,

RIGHT PEOPLE
ness intelligence, or BI, is an umbrella term that refers to a variety of software applications
alyze an organizations raw data. BI as a discipline is made up of several related activities,
ding data mining, online analytical processing, querying and reporting.

racteristics :
Single point of access to information
Timely answers to Business questions
Using BI in all departments of an organization

What does it reap to companies who deploy it?

Helps improve strategic decision making

Cut costs
Help identify new business opportunities
Help identify inefficient business processes that
are ripe for re-engineering
3

Business Intelligence Tools

Business intelligence tools are a type of application software designed to
retrieve, analyze, transform and report data for business intelligence. The
tools generally read data that have been previously stored, often, though
not necessarily, in a data warehouse or data mart.
BI projects can transform business processes. BI tools, coupled
with changes to business processes, can have a significant
impact on the bottom line.
Major impediment to using BI that transforms business
processes is that :
most companies dont understand their business
processes well enough to determine how to improve them.
most CIOs still think of it as a reporting & decision support
tool only
Companies that use BI to uncover flawed business processes
are in a much better position to successfully compete than
those companies that use BI merely to monitor whats

Business Intelligence Applications

BI Deployments
Hillman Group

Avnet
Took the process oriented BI
strategy directly to two major
verticals : SALES & SERVING
CUSTOMERS

Tracked unfilled
customer orders in
real time
The sales executive
could feed query
themselves
Deployment as a mere
reporting tool
No cost benefit

BI Vendors: Informatica,
Business Objects & InfoBurst
Used it beyond a mere
reporting tool
To generate reports on orders,
shipment schedule & date
Knowledge management
system

Quaker

Took the process oriented BI

strategy directly to Finance
BI tools from SAS
Used it beyond a mere reporting
tool
Online Analytical Processing
Management Information System

Decision Support system

Management Information
System

Case Question

Business Benefits
Avnet
Deployed system to generate reports on
Sales orders
Shipment schedules & dates
Benefit: By this deployment Avnet could keep tracker of
products it no longer had to manufacture. Thus, a few
benefits to list:
Cost control
Save time
Save loses by not manufacturing redundant
products

1. What are the

business
benefits of BI
deployments
such as those
implemented by
Avnet & Quaker
Chemical?
What roles do
data & business
Process play in
achieving those
benefits?

Case Question

Contd..

Business Benefits
Transformed Sales & customer service
processes
Rolled out the system to 2000 sales people
Actively incorporated information in their day to
day workflows
Employees used information to modify their
individual work practices
Introduced alert systems to notify sales person if
a customers purchase is about to be dated
To list a few benefits :
Boost sales
Built confidence & trust in customers
Internal knowledge sharing

1. What are the

business
benefits of BI
deployments
such as those
implemented by
Avnet & Quaker
Chemical?
What roles do
data & business
Process play in
achieving those
benefits?

Case Question

Contd..

Business Benefits
Deployed BI system to change the way it manages
accounts receivables.
To Proactively identify which customers were at risk
for not paying in full.
Enabled the salespeople to play a more formal role in
the collection process.
Empowered the sales people with information on
customer payment outstanding

1. What are the

business
benefits of BI
deployments
such as those
implemented by
Avnet & Quaker
Chemical?
What roles do
data & business
Process play in
achieving those
benefits?

Case Question

Contd..

Data & Business

Process Role
Empowering the sales people in both the
organizations with relevant information
Employees use the information to modify their
individual & team work practices, which leads to
improved performance among the sales team

1. What are the

business
benefits of BI
deployments
such as those
implemented by
Avnet & Quaker
Chemical?
What roles do
data & business
Process play in
achieving those
benefits?

Case Question

Collection Process
before BI
1. Collection Managers were primarily responsible for
payment outstanding's.

bill

2. Collection managers had limited information on overdue

balances
3. Collection managers were dependent on the accounting
system and had visibility only on glaring problems.
4. No process in place to identify the sales manager
incharge for the overdue customer payment and getting
him involved.

2. Both Avnet &

Quaker
Chemical
implemented
systems &
processes that
affect the
practices of
their sales
people.
In which ways
did the latter
benefit from
these new
implementation
s? How
important was
their buy in to

Case Question

Contd..

Process Change
1. Enforcing Sales people to play a formal role in
collection process.
2. IT dept. enabled a data feed
of accounts
receivable information from the transaction
systems, which was loaded to the data warehouse.
3. BI tool from SAS was enabled to provide reports on
various customer payment patterns.
4. The reports were automated to be sent to the sales
manager in charge of the overdue customers.

2. Both Avnet &

Quaker
Chemical
implemented
systems &
processes that
affect the
practices of
their sales
people.
In which ways
did the latter
benefit from
these new
implementation
s? How
important was
their buy in to

Case Question

Contd..

Benefits of Change
1. The responsibility of payment collection was
shifted from the collection manager to the Sales
People.
2. Customer Payment patterns were able to be
analyzed at a greater detail.
3. Collection managers no longer have to keep tab on
the payment outstanding information manually.
4. Enabled proactive revenue realization and better
collection process.

2. Both Avnet &

Quaker
Chemical
implemented
systems &
processes that
affect the
practices of
their sales
people.
In which ways
did the latter
benefit from
these new
implementation
s? How
important was
their buy in to

Case Question

Contd..

Importance of Customer
Buy-In
1. In order to use BI as an intelligent information
system from a mere reporting tool process change
has to be enabled.
2. The shifting of responsibility on outstanding
payments from the collection mangers to the sales
people is a process change.
3. In order to enable such a process change, the
technology should be used more effectively and
proactively.

2. Both Avnet &

Quaker
Chemical
implemented
systems &
processes that
affect the
practices of
their sales
people.
In which ways
did the latter
benefit from
these new
implementation
s? How
important was
their buy in to

Case Question
Challenges
Requires a change in thinking about the value of
the information available
People do not like to share the information
Lack in understanding of the various business
process, activities that make up a business
processes.
Lack in understanding of the data flow and
information across various business processes.

3. What are the

main challenges
to the change of
mindset
required to
extend BI tools
beyond mere
reporting?
What can
companies do to
overcome
them?
Use examples
from the case to
illustrate your
answer.

Case Question
Ways to Overcome
Challenges
Rollout the system to the users so that they can
actively incorporate that information into their daytoday workflows and interactions with customers.
With the help of BI Tools, identifying the best
practices within team and extending it across the
company.
Enable the users to see the linkage between
information and business process.

3. What are the

main challenges
to the change of
mindset
required to
extend BI tools
beyond mere
reporting?
What can
companies do to
overcome
them?
Use examples
from the case to
illustrate your
answer.

Case Question
Alternative Strategies
Involve
the
implementation

stakeholders

throughout

the

Enable business process wise KPIS and enable the

users to proficient with them in a staged manner.
Justify the investment in demonstrating real time
improvements and savings in terms of money and
time.
Enabling timely and accurate information and
providing access
of the same to all the
stakeholders for their respective needs and making
them feel empowered with information.

4. Discuss
Alternate
strategies for
companies to
foster adoption
for new system
like these.

Take Away
BI is beyond just mere reporting
Instrumental in decision making
Helps stay ahead of competition
It changes business not just IT
Change in thinking within organization to value information
through BI
Ready acceptance, flexibility & adaptation by the users play a
vital role in its success