There are a variety of tools used to collect, organize and analyze business data for intelligence purposes. These include spreadsheets for visual data management, reporting and querying software to extract and summarize data, online analytical processing to quickly answer multi-dimensional queries, data mining to uncover patterns, data warehousing for comprehensive reporting, process mining to determine business processes from event logs, digital dashboards for real-time overviews, and performance management tools. Understanding these business intelligence tools is essential for companies to utilize data analytics and make better decisions.

1. Types of Business Intelligence Tools
Business intelligence (BI) is the ability to convert all of the data from a particular organization
into knowledge. BI draws information from all sectors of a business and helps companies make
better decisions based on the available information. There are a variety of tools used to collect,
organize and make sense of the data, and understanding these tools are an essential ingredient
for companies looking to utilize BI.
Let’s discuss the various tools used and how they can better you’re BI efforts. Remember, these
tools are sold as standalone products and only sometimes are they sold in data warehouse
appliances that include an integrated set of operating systems.
Types of Business Intelligence Tools
Spreadsheets – These interactive computer applications manage information in a visual format,
organized by rows and columns.
Reporting and Querying Software – These tools extract, sort and summarize data. There is a
variety of software programs used to present this data, including open-source and commercial
software types.

2. Online Analytical Processing – This processing approach quickly answers analytical queries that
are multi-dimensional. The types of applications included in this processing include business
reporting, marketing, budget and forecasting.
Data Mining – Data mining is the bridge between statistics and computer science. It is used to
uncover patterns in large sets of data.
Data Warehousing – This comprehensive database is used for reporting and data analysis. The
information is uploaded from a separate operational system.
Process Mining – This process management technique logs various events to determine
business processes. Process mining provides techniques and tools that will discover control,
data, process and social structures from event logs.
Digital Dashboards – A single-page interface in real-time that show at-a-glance information.
Decision Engineering – A framework that utilizes the best practices for organizational decision
making. It helps businesses make decisions based on a variety of business approaches.
Business Performance Management – Management and analytic processes that manage a
business’ performance to achieve short- and long-term goals.
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