Abs ac —Fo bo h academics and p ac i ione s conce ned
wi h Business In elligence (BI) sys ems, one o impo an
issues is o iden i y he ac o s which a e i al o success ul
implemen a ion o BI p ojec s. Hence, his pape o e s a b oad
summa y o he mos common and impac ac o s which can be
in luenced in implemen ing BI p ojec s. We belie e i is
aluable o de e mine hese ac o s, pa icula ly o manage s o
hose companies a e in ol ed in implemen ing BI p ojec s and
hey ace o e alua e eadiness o hei o ganiza ions be o e
launching he p ojec in p e-implemen a ion s age.
The objec i e o his pape is o p o ide a be e
unde s anding o he impo an and c i ical success ac o s and
i is o conduc a su ey and comp ehensi e s udy o he c i ical
ac o s in e alua ion phase o he eadiness by classi ying he
ac o s in o wo main ca ego ies; o ganiza ional and echnical.
I is ob ious ha each ca ego y has i s own cha ac e is ics and a
b ie desc ip ion o each ac o is discussed.
Keywo ds—Business In elligence, C i ical Success Fac o s,
Readiness E alua ion.
I. INTRODUCTION
N oday's apid echnological and dynamic and
unp edic able business en i onmen , BI solu ions can
be assis ed he manage s in decision making p ocess. The
in e es in his subjec has inc eased signi ican ly when
he opinions began o appea indica ing ha BI sys ems
a e an impo an componen o a mode n en e p ise's
in o ma ion in as uc u e, as hey con ibu e o i s
success and compe i i eness [1]. A success ul
implemen a ion o BI p ojec enables expe s and
manage s o companies make and ake be e decisions.
Bu acco ding o Fa okhi and Poko àdi [2], isk o
ailu e is high in implemen ing BI p ojec s.
To success in implemen ing a BI p ojec and gain he
associa ed bene i s, we need o iden i y he ac o s which
con ibu e o he success. These ac o s mus be ecei ed
ca e ul a en ion by op manage s and BI p ojec
manage s o hose companies a e e alua ing he eadiness
o hei o ganiza ions. These p e equisi es can be
g ouped in o ganiza ional ac o s and echnical ac o s
o be e unde s anding and concen a ing. Mos o
au ho s a e o en named hese ac o s as C i ical Success
Fac o s (CSF). E e y BI p ojec includes mul iple s ages
and each s age has i s cha ac e is ic wi h speci ic
ac i i ies.
The main aim o his s udy is o ind and ca ego ized
CSFs in se ing-up s age o implemen ing a BI p ojec by
ela ed li e a u e e iew. In his way, he au ho s wi h
assis ing o an expe ienced BI p ojec manage p o ided
hei bes judgmen s based on hei s udies and
expe iences in de e mining and ca ego izing CSFs.
This pape is o ganized as ollows: In he nex sec ion,
we show an o e iew o a BI p ojec and i s componen s
in he o m o a high-le el a chi ec u e o BI. In he
Sec ion 3, we exp ess some easons in impo ance and
necessi y o implemen ing BI p ojec s in companies. The
c i ical o ganiza ional and echnical ac o s a e depic ed
in he Sec ion 4. Finally, he Sec ion 5 p esen s he
conclusions and u u e wo ks o he au ho s.
II. BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE PROJECTS
In 1989, Howa d D ense o he Ga ne G oup
in oduced BI o desc ibe a se o concep s and me hods
o imp o ing business decision making by using ac -
based, compu e ized suppo sys ems [3]. The goal o BI
sys ems [4] is o cap u e (da a, in o ma ion, knowledge)
and espond o business e en s and needs be e , mo e
in o med, and as e , as decisions. One o he bes ways
o he in o ma ion in BI and i s componen s o be
unde s andable is o desc ibe i in o m o a chi ec u e.
Hence, we ha e ied o exp ess componen s o he new-
gene a ion a chi ec u e which is in oduced by W.
Ecke son [5]. This BI a chi ec u e is mo e analy ical,
gi ing powe use s g ea e op ions o access and mix
co po a e da a wi h hei own da a ia a ious ypes o
analy ical sandboxes. I also b ings uns uc u ed and
semi-s uc u ed da a ully in o he mix using Hadoop and
non ela ional da abases. This a chi ec u e is illus a ed in
Fig. 1.
ORGANIZATIONAL AND TECHNICAL
FACTORS FOR IMPLEMENTING BUSINESS
INTELLIGENCE
Vahid FARROKHI1 and Laszlo POKORADI2
1Doc o al School o In o ma ics, Uni e si y o Deb ecen, Deb ecen, Hunga y, ahid. a okhi@in .unideb.hu
2Doc o al School o In o ma ics, Uni e si y o Deb ecen, Deb ecen, Hunga y, [email p o ec ed]deb.hu
I
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Fig. 1. The new-gene a ion BI a chi ec u e (Sou ce: [5])
The op hal o he igu e indica es o classic op-down
a chi ec u e which da a wa ehousing deli e s in e ac i e
epo s and dashboa ds o casual use s and he bo om
hal ep esen s a bo om-up analy ical a chi ec u e wi h
analy ical sandboxes and new ype o da a sou ces. O
cou se, om he business (o ganiza ional) pe spec i e, BI
sys ems mean speci ic philosophy and me hodology ha
e e o wo king wi h in o ma ion and knowledge, open
communica ion, and knowledge sha ing along wi h he
holis ic and analy ic app oach o business p ocesses in
o ganiza ions [6].
III. IMPORTANCE OF IMPLEMENTATION OF BI PROJECTS
IN COMPANIES
In ecen yea s, implemen ing BI p ojec s ha e been
a ed as one o he highes p io i ies o in o ma ion
sys ems and a signi ican po ion o companies’ IT
budge s a e spen on BI and ela ed echnology. A BI
sys em can co espond o he needs o use s in di e en
le els o o ganiza ions, specially manage s, wi h
suppo ing key p ocesses and business decisions. I
u ilizes a subs an ial amoun o collec ed da a du ing he
daily ope a ional p ocesses, and ans o ms he da a in o
in o ma ion and knowledge o a oid he supposi ion and
igno ance o he en e p ises [7]. A success ul
implemen ed BI p ojec plays an impo an ole in
unde s anding business s a us, measu ing o ganiza ion
pe o mance, imp o ing ela ionship wi h s akeholde s
and making p o i able oppo uni ies. The demands o a
ange o capabili ies o sa is y a di e se se o use needs
ha e en o ced BI so wa e companies o de elop be e
and mo e sui able BI applica ions. This concep is shown
in Fig. 2.
Based on he le els o ambi ions o he a ious
s akeholde s, a BI sys em can imp o e e iciency by on
ime sa ing in de eloping epo s and alida ing da a,
educed numbe o oolse s and main enance/in eg a ion
cos s, ime sa ing in managing epo secu i y, e c. Also,
i can be make business mo e e ec i e by inc easing
con e sion a e in ma ke ing, c oss-sell oppo uni ies in
he call cen e , aud de ec ion, a be e ma ching o
a ailable human esou ces and in e nal job oppo uni ies,
e c. BI ini ia i es can also be ans o ma ional by
enabling new business models, using a new p icing
model, p o iding BI o he cus ome s and o e ing
ele an in o ma ion as pa o he se ice. E iciency is
he s a ing poin and i is ha d o c ea e a sus ainable
business case aimed a e ec i eness o ans o ma ion, i
he e is no basic le el o e iciency [8].
Fig. 2. The capabili ies o BI applica ions (Sou ce: [9])
IV. THE CRITICAL ORGANIZATIONAL AND TECHNICAL
FACTORS
The s udy o c i ical o ganiza ional and echnical
ac o s helps us o ex ac he co e ac i i ies ha a e
essen ial o success ul implemen ing a BI p ojec . These
c i ical success ac o s as Rocka [10] de ined a e “ he
limi ed numbe o a eas in which esul s, i hey a e
sa is ac o y, will ensu e success ul compe i i e
pe o mance o he o ganiza ion”. In ac , hey a e he
ew key a eas whe e “ hings mus go igh ” o he
company o success in implemen ing i s BI p ojec . In ou
li e a u e e iew, as we men ioned p e iously, we
ca ego ized hese ac o s as o ganiza ional and echnical
ac o s o be e unde s anding and concen a ing. O
cou se, na u e o hese ac o s is also led us o his
ca ego iza ion. Fo applying a BI sys em, an o ganiza ion
needs o ha e capabili y in bo h o ganiza ional and
echnical ac o s.
Based on ela ed s udies in he li e a u e [11]–[25], he
o ganiza ional ac o s which in luence in a BI p ojec
success a e managemen suppo , decision-making
s uc u e, managemen s yle, manage ial IT knowledge,
goal alignmen , and esou ces alloca ion, use
pa icipa ion, balanced and skilled p ojec eam, and agile
p ojec managemen . The ela ed and c i ical echnical
ac o s a e sys em quali y, in o ma ion quali y, eliable
back-end sys em, me ada a managemen , echnical
amewo k, and agile me hodology. Table 1 p o ides a
summa y o hese ac o s. O cou se, he names o ac o s
a e selec ed based on hei simila i ies in concep s and
de ini ions.
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TABLE I
CRITICAL ORGANIZATIONAL AND TECHNICAL FACTORS FOR SUCCESSFUL
BI IMPLEMENTATION
C i ical Success Fac o Desc ip ion
Managemen suppo
(O ganiza ional) The manage s o o ganiza ion in ol e
and pa icipa e in he ac i i ies o BI
p ojec .
O ganiza ional cul u e
(O ganiza ional) A co po a e cul u e which emphasizes
on he alue o sha ing common goals
o e indi idual pu sui s and he alue
o us be ween pa ne s, employees,
manage s and co po a ions.
Decision-making s uc u e
(O ganiza ional)
The ype o con ol o delega ion o
decision-making au ho i y h oughou
he o ganiza ion and he ex en o
pa icipa ion by o ganiza ional
membe s in decision-making
pe aining o BI.
Goal alignmen
(O ganiza ional) The linking oge he o he business
goals and he BI goals.
Manage ial IT
knowledge(O ganiza ional) Knowledge and expe ience o senio
managemen abou IT.
Managemen s yle
(O ganiza ional) The way in which managemen ends
o in luence, coo dina e, and di ec
people’s ac i i ies owa ds a g oup’s
objec i es.
Resou ce alloca ion
(O ganiza ional) Alloca ing adequa e esou ces o
money, people, and ime.
Use pa icipa ion
(O ganiza ional) In ol ing and pa icipa ing use in BI
de elopmen p ocess.
Balanced and skilled
p ojec eam
(O ganiza ional)
The composi ion and skills o a BI
eam ha e a majo in luence on he
success o he sys ems
implemen a ion.
Agile p ojec managemen
(O ganiza ional) Managing eam membe s wo k
oge he in he mos e ec i e manne
possible.
Sys em quali y (Technical) The pe o mance cha ac e is ics o he
BI sys em i sel , which includes ease-
o -use, unc ionali y, eliabili y,
lexibili y, in eg a ion, and esponse
ime.
In o ma ion quali y
(Technical) I e e s o accu acy, imeliness,
comple eness, ele ance, consis ency,
and use ulness o in o ma ion
gene a ed by he sys em.
Reliable back-end sys em
(Technical) I is c i ical o ensu e ha he upda ing
o da a wo ks well o he ex ac ion,
ans o ma ion and loading (ETL).
Me ada a managemen
(Technical) I is an end- o-end p ocess o
c ea ing, enhancing and main ain
me a-da a eposi o y and associa ed
p ocesses.
Technical amewo k
(Technical) I mus be business-d i en, scalable
and lexible amewo k.
Agile me hodology
(Technical) The pu pose o agile BI is o ge he
de elopmen done as e , and eac
mo e quickly o changing business
equi emen s.
Simila i y o implemen ing BI p ojec s wi h o he
in as uc u al p ojec s like En e p ise Resou ce Planning
(ERP) p ojec s implemen a ion shows ha his kind o
p ojec s need o conside many aspec s o he p ojec
be o e deploymen . Implemen ing a BI sys em is no a
simple ac i i y en ailing me ely he pu chase o a
combina ion o so wa e and ha dwa e; a he , i is a
complex unde aking equi ing app op ia e in as uc u e
and esou ces o e a leng hy pe iod [22], [26]. Good
pe o mance o he CSFs equi es ha hei elemen s (o
cons i uen s) be known so ha managemen can
o mula e app op ia e policies and s a egies o ensu e
ha he elemen s a e cons an ly and ca e ully being
managed and moni o ed [27].
I is gene ally belie ed ha he o ganiza ional ac o s
a e mo e impo an han he echnical ac o s, and
iden i ying hese ac o s can help us o ind he
o ganiza ional s eng h and weakness o he company
wi h ega d o implemen a ion o BI. Bu on e al. [28]
poin ed ou ha o ganiza ional dynamics a e he mos
signi ican challenge o he success o business
in elligence ini ia i es and implemen a ions. The esul s
om he ecen su ey show clea ly ha non- echnical
ac o s we e he ha des o sol e and indica e ha hese
CSFs play a dominan ole in BI ini ia i es’ success in
la ge en e p ises [29]. In he o ganiza ional ac o s,
managemen suppo has been widely acknowledged as
he mos impo an ac o in implemen ing a BI p ojec .
The manage s mus conside he BI p ojec as a op
p io i y and und i and ake an ac i e ole in leading he
change by in ol ing in e e y s ep o he BI
implemen a ion.
In spi e o ha ing second ole o echnical ac o s, hey
mus comple ely be conce ned. Because wi hou hese
elemen s, implemen ing a BI p ojec is impossible and
lack o each elemen can be lead o ail o he p ojec . I
is assumed ha he main asks o be aced by BI sys ems
include in elligen explo a ion, in eg a ion, agg ega ion,
and a mul idimensional analysis o da a o igina ing om
a ious in o ma ion esou ces [30]. Sys em and
in o ma ion quali y a e he mos impo an ac o s in he
echnical ac o s because each BI sys em needs o
in eg a e igh da a and in o ma ion om a ious sou ce
sys ems. Hence, ha ing a sys em app oach o BI p ojec
manage s is a necessi y and hey should make a balance
in conside ing be ween o ganiza ional and echnical
ac o s.
V. CONCLUSIONS AND FUTURE WORKS
An impo an s ep in p e-implemen a ion s age o a BI
p ojec is o iden i y c i ical ac o s which in luence in
he p ojec success. Fi s , in his pape an a emp has
been made o depic an o e iew o BI om a chi ec u al
pe spec i e. Then, he necessi ies o implemen ing BI
p ojec o companies we e desc ibed and inally, based
on he li e a u e su ey, i al and c i ical ac o s in bo h
o o ganiza ional and echnical aspec s which impac on
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he success we e de e mined. We belie e ha bo h he
o ganiza ional and echnical dimensions a e impo an
and hey should be conce ned oge he and in e ac wi h
each o he o leading o BI success. I can be useable o
assis ing manage s who a e decision make s in
implemen ing BI p ojec s by op imizing hei sca ce
esou ces on hese CSFs and concen a e hei
commi men o moni o , con ol and suppo only hese
ac o s. O cou se, anking o hese CSFs wi h he use o
a o mal me hod like he analy ic hie a chy p ocess
(AHP) can be p oposed o u u e wo k o hose schola s
and p ac i ione s who wan o concen a e mo e a en ion
on he CSFs. Also, hese CSFs will be applied in building
a model o assess eadiness o o ganiza ions be o e
launching BI p ojec s by he au ho s.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The wo k/publica ion is suppo ed by he
TÁMOP-4.2.2/B-10/1-2010-0024
p ojec . The p ojec is co- inanced by he Eu opean Uni-
on and he Eu opean Social Fund.
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