Evaluate InetSoft's Self Service Business Intelligence Software

Maximum Self-Service

A key feature of InetSoft's technology, and one that sets it apart from the competition, is that it is easy-to-deploy, easy-to-administer, and easy-to-use.

Unlike traditional BI solutions that are fraught with complexity, StyleBI is simple and approachable for standard business users, while remaining powerful enough for IT customization. Typically, this kind of software is only accessible by power-users and IT personnel.

StyleBI, on the other hand has been designed in a such a way that average business users can do their own analysis, create their own dashboards, and author their own reports with little to no assistance from more technically-able users.

Empowering the End-User with Data Mash Up

Users of BI tools need software that can keep up with the ever-changing business environment. Up until now, traditional BI solutions have failed to address the need for flexibility and adaptability.

StyleBI addresses the need for rapid integration of data sources with full end-user data mashup.

End-users can combine disparate data sources to create reports and dashboards that update automatically. These analytics can be easily shared throughout an organization using only the primary software application.

About InetSoft

Since 1996 InetSoft has been delivering easy, agile, and robust business intelligence software that makes it possible for organizations and solution providers of all sizes to deploy or embed full-featured business intelligence solutions. Application highlights include visually-compelling and interactive dashboards that ensure greater end-user adoption plus pixel-perfect report generation, scheduling, and bursting.

InetSoft's patent pending Data Block™ technology enables productive reuse of queries and a unique capability for end-user defined data mashup.This capability combined with efficient information access enabled by InetSoft's visual analysis technologies allows maximum self-service that benefits the average business user, the IT administrator, and the developer. InetSoft solutions have been deployed at over 5,000 organizations worldwide, including 25% of Fortune 500 companies, spanning all types of industries.

Case Study: Energy Drink Maker Adopts InetSoft's StyleBI for Self-Service BI

One leading energy drink maker adopted InetSoft's StyleBI, an open-source BI platform known for its small footprint, robust data mashup capabilities, and self-service features. This article examines how this manufacturer leverages StyleBI to create self-service dashboards and analytics, highlighting the platform's technical strengths, deployment benefits, and impact on business outcomes, tailored for an IT audience.

The Challenge: Managing Complex Data in a Fast-Moving Industry

Energy drink manufacturers operate in a dynamic environment where data comes from multiple sources: point-of-sale systems, social media analytics, supply chain logistics, and customer feedback platforms. For this manufacturer, the challenge was twofold: first, integrating these disparate data sources into a cohesive system, and second, enabling non-technical teams—such as marketing and sales—to access and analyze data without constant IT support. Legacy BI tools were often rigid, requiring extensive coding or IT involvement to generate reports or dashboards, which hindered agility in a market where trends shift rapidly.

The IT team needed a solution that could:

• Handle large volumes of heterogeneous data in real time.

• Provide self-service capabilities to empower business users.

• Integrate seamlessly with existing systems, including cloud-based and on-premises infrastructure.

• Ensure scalability to support growth in data and user base.

• Maintain robust security to protect sensitive business and customer data.

After evaluating several BI platforms, the manufacturer chose InetSoft's StyleBI for its open-source flexibility, cloud-native architecture, and user-friendly self-service features.

Why StyleBI? Technical Strengths for IT Teams

1. Open-Source Flexibility and Extensibility

StyleBI's open-source nature is a key advantage for IT teams. Unlike proprietary BI tools that lock users into rigid frameworks, StyleBI allows developers to customize and extend the platform to meet specific needs. For the energy drink manufacturer, this meant tailoring dashboards to display metrics like regional sales trends, inventory turnover rates, and social media engagement in a way that aligned with their branding and workflows.

The platform's API-driven architecture enables seamless integration with existing systems, such as the manufacturer's ERP software and CRM platforms. IT teams can embed StyleBI's dashboards into web applications or mobile apps using standard web technologies, reducing development time. For example, the manufacturer integrated StyleBI with its Salesforce instance to provide real-time sales analytics, enabling account managers to track performance without switching platforms.

2. Powerful Data Mashup Engine

StyleBI's data mashup engine is a standout feature, allowing the manufacturer to combine data from disparate sources—such as production databases, e-commerce platforms, and social media APIs—into unified dashboards. For IT teams, this eliminates the need for complex ETL (extract, transform, load) processes, as StyleBI handles data transformation in real time. The platform supports both structured data (e.g., SQL databases) and unstructured data (e.g., social media sentiment analysis), making it ideal for the energy drink industry's diverse data landscape.

For instance, the manufacturer used StyleBI to merge point-of-sale data with social media analytics to identify which flavors were trending in specific demographics. This capability allowed marketing teams to adjust campaigns on the fly, while IT teams benefited from reduced data preprocessing workloads.

3. High-Performance Analytics with a Small Footprint

StyleBI's lightweight architecture ensures high performance without demanding significant hardware resources, a critical consideration for IT teams managing infrastructure costs. The platform's cloud-native design optimizes resource allocation, enabling it to handle large datasets—like the manufacturer's daily sales and inventory data—without performance degradation. For on-premises deployments, StyleBI's small footprint minimizes server requirements, making it cost-effective for hybrid environments.

The manufacturer leveraged StyleBI's analytics data blocks to perform advanced calculations, such as forecasting demand based on historical sales and seasonal trends. These computations, which might overwhelm less efficient BI tools, were executed seamlessly, allowing IT teams to maintain lean infrastructure while delivering robust analytics.

4. Granular Security and Multi-Tenancy

Security is paramount in the consumer goods industry, where data breaches can erode customer trust. StyleBI offers granular security controls, enabling IT teams to define access at the user, group, or data level. For the energy drink manufacturer, this ensured that regional sales teams could only access data relevant to their markets, while executives had a global view. The platform's multi-tenancy support further allowed the manufacturer to create isolated environments for different business units, such as production and marketing, within a single instance.

This security model simplified compliance with regulations like GDPR, as IT teams could enforce data access policies without custom coding. For example, the manufacturer restricted access to consumer demographic data to authorized personnel, reducing the risk of misuse.

Deployment and Integration: A Seamless Fit

1. Cloud-Native and On-Premises Flexibility

StyleBI's dual-deployment model—supporting both cloud and on-premises environments—gave the manufacturer's IT team the flexibility to align with their hybrid infrastructure. The cloud-native architecture enabled rapid scaling to accommodate peak data loads during product launches, while on-premises support ensured compliance with data residency requirements in certain markets. This versatility allowed the IT team to deploy StyleBI across global operations without significant reconfiguration.

2. Easy Embedding and Customization

For IT teams, embedding BI capabilities into existing applications is often a complex task. StyleBI simplifies this with its web-based architecture and support for standard integration protocols like REST APIs. The manufacturer embedded StyleBI dashboards into its internal portal, providing employees with a single interface for accessing production, sales, and marketing data. The platform's customization options allowed IT to match the dashboards' look and feel to the company's branding, creating a cohesive user experience.

3. Scalability for Growth

As the energy drink manufacturer expanded into new markets, its data and user base grew significantly. StyleBI's scalability ensured that the platform could handle increased data volumes and concurrent users without requiring major infrastructure upgrades. For IT teams, this meant fewer headaches in managing system performance during periods of rapid growth, such as after a successful product launch.

Empowering Business Users with Self-Service

One of StyleBI's most transformative features for the manufacturer was its self-service capabilities. Non-technical users, such as marketing analysts and sales managers, could create and customize dashboards without IT assistance. The platform's drag-and-drop interface and pre-built visualization templates enabled rapid dashboard creation, reducing the IT team's support burden.

For example, the marketing team used StyleBI to build dashboards tracking campaign performance across social media platforms, identifying which channels drove the most engagement. Sales teams created reports to monitor distributor performance, enabling data-driven negotiations. These self-service features not only improved business agility but also allowed IT to focus on strategic projects rather than routine report generation.

Business Impact and Outcomes

The adoption of StyleBI has delivered measurable benefits for the energy drink manufacturer:

• Faster Decision-Making: Real-time dashboards enabled teams to respond quickly to market trends, such as shifting consumer preferences for new flavors.

• Cost Efficiency: StyleBI's lightweight architecture and open-source model reduced infrastructure and licensing costs compared to proprietary BI tools.

• Improved Collaboration: Unified dashboards fostered cross-departmental collaboration, with production, marketing, and sales teams accessing the same data.

• Enhanced Customer Insights: By combining sales and social media data, the manufacturer gained deeper insights into consumer behavior, informing product development and marketing strategies.

Lessons for IT Teams

For IT professionals evaluating BI solutions, the energy drink manufacturer's success with StyleBI offers several takeaways:

• Prioritize Flexibility: Open-source platforms like StyleBI provide the customization needed to meet unique business requirements.

• Focus on Self-Service: Empowering business users reduces IT workloads and enhances organizational agility.

• Ensure Scalability and Security: A BI solution must scale with growth and protect sensitive data, especially in regulated industries.

• Leverage Cloud-Native Benefits: Cloud-native platforms offer cost-effective scalability and simplified deployment.