Some vendors narrowly define business intelligence (BI) to mean end-user, ad hoc query and reporting tools – hindsight reporting of past occurrences. Others are simply referring to a data platform on which developers can build BI solutions. If the market generally accepts these limited definitions as "business intelligence," then enterprises need to look beyond BI if they really want competitive advantage.

A platform doesn’t offer true business intelligence unless it satisfies all these criteria:

• Breadth. It integrates functions and technologies from across theenterprise.

Truly integrated business intelligence integrates data from every corner of the enterprise – from operational/transactional systems, multiple databases in different formats, and from all contact channels. Information flow can then transcend functional silos, organizational boundaries, computing platforms and specialized tools.

• Depth. It reaches all who need it, in a way that is relevant to them.

A true BI solution provides appropriate interfaces and tools for users at different levels of the organization, who have profoundly different needs. The results of analyses should be easily disseminated across all functional areas and organizational levels, so everyone can contribute to the organization’s success.

There are new, browser-based, self-service interfaces to suit all types of users across the organization – from statistical "power users" who need behind-the-scenes control of underlying logic, to business users who need on-demand answers to business questions and "what-if" scenarios, to executives who need a high-level view of performance metrics and the ability to drill into any detail. Meanwhile, IT retains control over data integrity, rights and permissions with a single point of administration designed to meet their needs and manage a diverse BI environment.

• Completeness. It is a comprehensive, end-to-end platform.

BI success doesn’t just happen at the application layer. And it isn’t just query and reporting. It depends on a chain of applications and technologies working together from a common data foundation to create a single, verifiable version of the truth. Some vendors claim "end-to-end" solutions but actually provide only a part of the picture or rely on partnerships or other relationships outside of their control to provide needed capabilities.

• Advanced analytics. It delivers FORESIGHT, not just hindsight nor insight.

OLAP (online analytical processing) is a valuable part of the picture, but not your optimum source of competitive differentiation. Historical query and reporting – what many vendors call "BI" – merely tells you where the organization has been. Going beyond BI requires predictive analytics, such as forecasting, scenario planning, optimization and risk analysis.

• Data quality. It gives applications one validated, verified version of the facts.

All major IT industry analyst houses recognize the importance of data quality to the return on BI investments, yet many vendors do not offer or integrate data quality into their BI tools and applications. Multiple, disparate data sources and applications should be integrated across the enterprise through common metadata – information about how data elements are derived and managed. Consistent metadata enables diverse applications to contribute to shared intelligence that transcends functional and organizational boundaries – and it helps deliver this intelligence to the right people, at the right time, in the format they can best use.

• Intelligence storage. It meets the information needs of intelligence applications.

The data storage platform must be able to draw on information from many sources, prepare it for analysis, and deliver it quickly to the applications and platforms that need it.

• Collectively, these attributes define a platform that goes beyond BI to support genuine competitive differentiation.

By adding advanced analytics to business intelligence, enterprises can scrutinize every facet of the organization and determine how to respond faster and more creatively to new challenges, in line with overall strategic objectives. You’ll know you’ve gone beyond conventional business intelligence when the platform delivers these results:

• Lower cost of ownership. The right platform will work with existing technology investments and address the needs of all the diverse users in your organization, thereby reducing deployment cost. And if you choose to deploy a single-vendor platform, you’ll reduce integration issues and gain a more robust solution – especially as mergers and acquisitions continue to reshape the vendor landscape.

• Achieve better bottom-line results. You gain more ROI with each successive level of intelligence – from hindsight (what happened and when?), to insight (why did it happen?), to foresight (what will happen, and how can we influence it to best advantage?) Your organization will become more efficient and effective by spotting trends and new opportunities.

• Eliminate organizational silos. Previously isolated specialists and functional areas can now collaborate to achieve corporate-level goals. Decisions can be made rapidly with full knowledge of their context and hidden interdependencies.

• Gain confidence in information. With integrated metadata and data cleansing capabilities, decision makers can be confident that the information they rely on is consistent, high quality, and reflects a single version of the truth.

(Sonny Halili is the managing director of SAS Institute (Phils.) Inc. and has worked in the information technology industry for 20 years. He has had extensive experience in Business Management, Sales and Marketing, Information Systems Consulting - Systems Integration, Software Engineering, Long Range Information Planning, Information Systems Organization, and Internal Information Services Management. You can email him at sonny.halili@sas.com)