InetSoft BI Webinar: Dashboard Product as a Collaboration Tool
This is a continuation of the transcipt of a Webinar hosted by InetSoft. The speaker is Mark Flaherty, CMO at InetSoft.
Mark Flaherty: It seems to me almost to be creating a new segment in our space that these tools that have all of these different features that enables that type of use, are kind of cropping up and creating a new set of value for especially for business users.
And I think we have been around this world of BI a long time and we have watched adoption rates slowly creep up. And I think that this type of technology, this ability to explore, have a wider access to information, to kind of site step or jump over IT and all of these things play into this category then along with technologies like In-Memory Analytics and so on, all of them are part of the recipe that enables this to occur.
And I see a big trend in that area and I think it’s a powerful trend and a smart one. Well I am a big fan of anything that makes it easier and simpler but still adds power and those seems to be the parts and pieces that are making out that segment right now.
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InetSoft's Dashboard Product as a Collaboration Tool
The InetSoft server is a collaboration tool. So I can publish this dashboard up to the server. And then different people could look at it, they could comment on it, they could filter it, all of the interactivity that you see here like this quick filter and the interactivity that we defined, going from the top to the bottom view, all of that exists on server. It’s a way to share results of an analysis very widely and still provide that interactivity to people.
So you may have a few people who are doing the deep analysis like this on the desktop and a much wider group executives, people on the field, colleagues you just harness into data but still want to see that the dashboards that you create. You may have that wider group that logs into server. And the server let's you embed those views in a Wiki page or a SharePoint so that you can get a dashboard where people already work, if that’s what you want to do. You don’t need the server product to work with desktop; you do need desktop to be able to publish up to server. But the server product is deployed at a number of enterprises and that’s how they share information.
You can connect directly within InetSoft to, for example, MySQL or Oracle or SQL Server. And what that lets you do by writing a native connection it not only lets you connect directly again if you have the credential of course. But it lets you connect directly and it optimizes that connection. So it’s quite a fast connection. And we are usually limited by the speed of the database itself. So if the database is returning results slowly, your analysis might be slow and that’s why you want to bring things In-Memory in many cases or because you are working offline or what have you, but we are always adding new connections, we are actually looking at Hadoop connections right now.
We do work with Aster Data nCluster which has some Hadoop technology. And then we provided a Generic ODBC connection as well. So that’s going to be little bit slower because it’s going through ODBC but if you are not using one of these databases here or Microsoft PowerPivot or something like that then you can use ODBC to connect to any other data source.
What Are the Most Important Collaboration Features of StyleBI?
InetSoft’s Style Intelligence (StyleBI) is a robust business intelligence platform that emphasizes collaboration to enhance data-driven decision-making across organizations. Below are the most critical collaboration features that make StyleBI effective for team-based analytics and reporting.
1. Annotations and Comments
StyleBI allows users to leave annotations and comments directly on dashboards, enabling in-platform communication. This feature fosters collaboration by allowing team members to discuss insights, highlight trends, or flag issues without leaving the platform. It ensures context is maintained, as notes are tied to specific data points or visualizations.
2. Data Sharing and Report Distribution
The platform supports seamless sharing of dashboards and reports across departments via web-based delivery or scheduled email distribution. Users can configure role-based access to ensure relevant stakeholders receive tailored data, promoting secure and efficient collaboration. This feature simplifies cross-departmental communication by centralizing access to critical insights.
3. Multi-Tenancy Support
StyleBI’s multi-tenancy feature enables different users or departments to access distinct datasets within the same deployment. This ensures that teams can collaborate on relevant data without exposing sensitive information, making it ideal for large organizations with diverse needs. It enhances teamwork by providing customized, secure data access for each user group.
4. Interactive Dashboards with Drill-Down
StyleBI’s interactive dashboards allow multiple users to explore data collaboratively through drill-down and filtering capabilities. Team members can investigate specific data points in real-time, facilitating group discussions and deeper analysis during meetings. This interactivity ensures teams can work together to uncover actionable insights quickly.
5. Mobile and Web-Based Accessibility
StyleBI’s dashboards and reports are accessible on web browsers and mobile devices without losing functionality, enabling collaboration on the go. Team members can review and discuss data from anywhere, ensuring real-time input and decision-making. This feature is critical for distributed teams needing constant access to shared analytics.
These collaboration features make StyleBI a powerful tool for organizations aiming to foster teamwork, streamline communication, and drive data-informed decisions across departments.
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