Editing Business intelligence (section)

{{Short description|Strategies for analysis and use of data}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2020}}

'''Business intelligence''' ('''BI''') consists of strategies, methodologies, and technologies used by enterprises for [[data analysis]] and management of business [[information]].<ref>{{Cite book|author=Dedić N. & Stanier noC.|year=2016|title=Measuring the Success of Changes to Existing Business Intelligence Solutions to Improve Business Intelligence Reporting. Lecture Notes in Business Information Processing|publisher=Springer International Publishing|volume=268|pages=225–236|doi=10.1007/978-3-319-49944-4_17|chapter=Measuring the Success of Changes to Existing Business Intelligence Solutions to Improve Business Intelligence Reporting|isbn=978-3-319-49943-7|s2cid=30910248 |chapter-url=https://hal.inria.fr/hal-01630541/file/432749_1_En_17_Chapter.pdf|url=http://eprints.staffs.ac.uk/3547/1/Measuring%20JMA_Submitted.docx}} {{Closed access}}</ref> Common functions of BI technologies include [[Financial reporting|reporting]], [[online analytical processing]], [[analytics]], [[Dashboard (business)|dashboard]] development, [[data mining]], [[process mining]], [[complex event processing]], [[business performance management]], [[benchmarking]], [[text mining]], [[Predictive Analysis|predictive analytics]], and [[prescriptive analytics]]. 

BI tools can handle large amounts of structured and sometimes unstructured data to help organizations identify, develop, and otherwise create new strategic [[business opportunities]]. They aim to allow for the easy interpretation of these [[big data]]. Identifying new opportunities and implementing an effective strategy based on [[insight]]s is assumed to potentially provide [[business]]es with a competitive market advantage and long-term stability, and help them take strategic decisions.<ref>({{cite book |title= Business Intelligence Success Factors: Tools for Aligning Your Business in the Global Economy |last= Rud|first= Olivia |year= 2009|publisher= Wiley & Sons|location= Hoboken, N.J.|isbn= 978-0-470-39240-9 }})</ref>

Business intelligence can be used by enterprises to support a wide range of business decisions ranging from operational to strategic. Basic operating decisions include [[product positioning]] or [[pricing]]. [[Business strategy|Strategic business]] decisions involve priorities, [[goal]]s, and directions at the broadest level. In all cases, Business Intelligence (BI) is considered most effective when it combines data from the market in which a company operates (external data) with data from internal company sources, such as financial and operational information. When integrated, external and internal data provide a comprehensive view that creates ‘intelligence’ not possible from any single data source alone.<ref>{{cite book | last1= Coker| first1= Frank | title= Pulse: Understanding the Vital Signs of Your Business | publisher= Ambient Light Publishing
| date= 2014 | pages= 41–42 | isbn= 978-0-9893086-0-1}}</ref>

Among their many uses, business intelligence tools empower organizations to gain insight into new markets, to assess demand and suitability of products and services for different [[market segmentation|market segments]], and to gauge the impact of marketing efforts.<ref name=":0">
Chugh, R. & Grandhi, S. (2013,). [https://www.researchgate.net/publication/273861123_Why_Business_Intelligence_Significance_of_Business_Intelligence_Tools_and_Integrating_BI_Governance_with_Corporate_Governance "Why Business Intelligence? Significance of Business Intelligence tools and integrating BI governance with corporate governance". ''International Journal of E-Entrepreneurship and Innovation', vol. 4, no.2, pp. 1–14.]</ref>

BI applications use data gathered from a [[data warehouse]] (DW) or from a [[data mart]], and the concepts of BI and DW combine as "BI/DW"<ref>
{{cite book
| last1                 = Golden
| first1                = Bernard
| title                 = Amazon Web Services For Dummies
| url                   = https://books.google.com/books?id=xSVwAAAAQBAJ
| publisher             = John Wiley & Sons
| date      = 2013
| page                  = 234
| isbn                  = 9781118652268
| access-date            = 2014-07-06
| quote                 = [...] traditional business intelligence or data warehousing tools (the terms are used so interchangeably that they're often referred to as BI/DW) are extremely expensive [...]
}}
</ref>
or as "BIDW". A data warehouse contains a copy of analytical data that facilitates [[decision support]].