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Why QlikView In-Memory wins over OLAP Technology

So why choose QlikView in-memory software over your traditional business intelligence tools? Let’s first talk about all the confusion. After many acquisitions and mergers in recent times such as SAP, IBM, Oracle, and Microsoft, you now have a choice of multiple disparate solutions without any insight into the future of these products.

However if you did decide to purchase one of the many OLAP-based solutions over an in-memory product like QlikView, which one do you choose? Lets take SAP Business Objects for example. Do a search on Business Objects Intelligence Solutions and you will find SAP B.O. Voyager, Set Analysis, Predictive Workbench, XCelcius, Desktop Intelligence, Dashboard Buidlder, and many many more. Are you required to purchase the B.O. Enterprise XI platform as well?

If you have simple Ad Hoc analytical requirements, all you require is a simple solution. Select a product that does what it says with a simple pricing model. In-Memory software is the answer for many reasons. Many of the solutions owned by these large business intelligence vendors are OLAP based solutions. OLAP engines can be very limiting:

• Creating OLAP cubes is an iterative process that takes considerable time, requires specialist skills and involves significant cost. Consequently it’s often restricted to Sales and Finance only. Surely other department have important data too. Just try adding another data source.
• Cube builds often take many hours and are usually built overnight or at the weekend, so real time reporting is not possible. Can you really afford to wait?
• Business user requests to create alternative drilldown paths or change hierarchies must be referred to I.T. and seldom are prioritised, leading to frustration and low expectations
• The staff originally trained have moved on so innovation is scant, resulting in a ‘it’s not broken so don’t fix it’ mentality So what’s the solution?

Learn more about the limitations of OLAP-based solutions, how business had changed, and what the advantages are of selecting QlikView in-memory business intelligence tool. Join our free webcast on How much is your business intelligence software costing you?

Join QlikPower in How much is your business intelligence software costing you?

NOAD for QlikView

NOAD for QlikView!  Recently announced, QlikView has formed a new partnership with NOAD, a leading provider of high-performance, enterprise platform management software for BI applications. The announcement states that NOAD's "EQM product suite provides customers with solutions to cost effectively control change management, automate and monitor business intelligence life cycle processes, conserve resources and control costs on an enterprise scale". This is great news as the existing Qlikview product suite does not lend itself to easily managing change, especially in a multi-developer environment. Tracking changes with ease has always been on my Qlikview wish list. Although the press release does not refer to it, I am hoping that NOAD for QlikView product will contain a module for merging versions of Qlikview documents. From a development perspective there are not many weaknesses to be found in the existing Qlikview suite but the absence of a merge facility has been an inconvenience for my colleagues and I over the years.

This partnership is an excellent move for Qliktech as NOAD for QlikView will also provide complete transparency of the BI life cycle. With ever increasing regulation, Qliktech now have an offering that enables blue chip organizations to remain compliant on an enterprise scale. BI projects and processes can be defined, controlled, monitored and audited through all phases and the deployment facility will assist in alleviating security concerns. Surely such additions to the Qlikview suite can only strengthen the phenomenal growth of the product. All the more reason to understand how much your business intelligence tool is costing you and understand how in-memory technology has found its way to the front of the line with business intelligence products.  I wait in anticipation for the release of Qlikview 10 and cannot wait to see the latest batch of new features and functionality. Previous new releases of Qlikview have always invigorated my passion for the product and I am sure that NOAD for Qlikview and QlikView 10 will follow suit.

To learn more about in-memory technology and how much your business intelligence software is costing you, join this free webinar.

Register here: http://www.qlikpower.com/how-much-is-your-business-intelligence-tool-costing-you

Darren Kerfoot - Senior BI Consultant with Qlikpower

QlikView In-Memory Business Intelligence Moves in on Cognos PowerPlay

QlikView in-memory business intelligence has moved in on Cognos PowerPlay like the iPhone has moved in on the old brick mobile phones with attached antennas.  PowerPlay was one of the world's leading OLAP based analysis tools. However, it was also originally developed back in 1990.  For old technology it functioned, but new needs and higher demands were developed, similar to the evolution of mobile phones.   QlikView in-memory was created out of these demands. As businesses changed, as requirements increased, and data became more complex, technology improved to meet these needs.  Unbelievably PowerPlay is still being used by some organisations today; so why the ‘perceived' loyalty?

As a former Cognos partner, I know of many reasons:

• A large economic investment was probably made in the product originally
• It took a long time to implement and ‘bed down' the original solution and there is no appetite to go through that pain again. Upgrades are difficult enough.
• The traditional Cognos rivals like Business Objects, SAS, Hyperion and Microsoft all have similar offerings using the same OLAP based technology, so why switch horses!

But the software does have its limitations:

• Creating OLAP cubes is an iterative process that takes considerable time, requires specialist skills and involves significant cost. Consequently it's often restricted to Sales and Finance only. Surely other department have important data too. Just try adding another data source.
• Unlike in-memory business intelligence, cube builds often take many hours and are usually built overnight or at the weekend, so real time reporting is not possible. Can you really afford to wait?
• Business user requests to create alternative drilldown paths or change hierarchies must be referred to I.T. and seldom are prioritised, leading to frustration and low expectations
• The staff originally trained have moved on so innovation is scant, resulting in a ‘it's not broken so don't fix it' mentality

In-memory business intelligence gives you the flexibility and ease of use technology to analyze your data when and how you need it.  To better understand the challenges of businesses today, and how decision-making and data analysis has changed since the purchase of your business intelligence tool register for "how much is your business intelligence tool costing" you and learn how you can fix the current issues that your company may be challenged with today.

Register Here:  How Much is Your Business Intelligence Tool Costing You?