During the evening rush hour, navigation software can always find the shortest route with the least traffic; During exercise, wearable devices can record people’s heart rate, speed and other data, and then determine the most suitable exercise method for users… These are inseparable from data analysis.

“Data is power.” Today, with the high development of information technology, the value of data has received unprecedented attention: not only the amount of data, but also the insights hidden under the data. This has given rise to a new concept, business intelligence (BI).

In 1996, Gartner put forward the concept of business intelligence (BI), that is, using modern data warehouse technology, online analytical processing (OLAP) technology, data mining and data presentation technology to analyze data to realize business value. At present, business intelligence has been applied in procurement management, financial management, human resources management, distribution management, sales management and other links.

However, traditional BI and application software bearing business process are two completely independent application software interfaces, and users have to switch back and forth between multiple systems to complete the data needs of a business activity, which is not wise in terms of work efficiency, data transmission efficiency and other aspects. How can BI and business applications be more easily combined? Embedded BI came into being.

Embedded BI: Make data analytics ubiquitous

Embedded BI refers to professional BI software that can be embedded in business application software and provide or enhance analysis function for application software. Its goal is to help users work smarter by integrating and analyzing relevant data — data analytics that users leverage directly in their everyday business systems to solve high-value business problems and improve productivity.

In short, the unique value of embedded BI is to make data analytics ubiquitous. By embedding the data analysis platform into the application, users do not have to switch platforms, adapt to new application interfaces, buy and install additional tools, and save time generating and analyzing data in different systems.

Embedded BI has the ability of OEM white label, rich and powerful API interfaces and embedded integration capabilities, supporting embedded application software in a variety of ways. The convenient operation mode of “drag and drop” makes it easy for ordinary business personnel to do data analysis, with high product usability; When viewing the dashboard, users can perform operations such as cross-data source integration, data linkage, and driller to gain truly powerful OLAP online analysis capabilities. Embedded BI provides rich visual components for users to analyze the relationship and rules of business data.

In addition, embedding BI into core applications and business processes can help speed up development, reduce initial costs, enhance competitive advantage, optimize business processes, and more.

Who needs embedded BI?

In the era of big data, more and more enterprises realize the power of data and the added value derived from it. Business intelligence BI software can help enterprise users to quickly build a data visualization analysis platform, realize self-service data analysis, and quickly complete the modification or adjustment of analysis results, and easily convert data into value.

However, not every enterprise has the ability to develop BI independently. One solution is to purchase embedded BI solutions and integrate them into their own business systems, which presents new opportunities for software vendors.

For software developers, embedded BI can enhance the data analysis and visualization capabilities of their own software products, integrate data analysis results and even designers, and open up new directions for software developers beyond the competitive software business functions. For system integrators, embedded BI can help achieve visual project system integration and rapid project delivery, which means greater development space, stronger delivery capacity and higher project profits.

In particular, isVs (independent software developers) have significant strategic and operational advantages from the business perspective that applications provide embedded analytics capabilities.

  • Increase revenue and create competitive differentiation
  • It’s easier to attract new users
  • Improve sales/pre-sales presentation
  • Improve operational efficiency

Statistics show that 83% of application and SaaS providers that embed analytics applications in their main applications say they can charge customers more. In its 2020 Top 10 BI Analytics Trends Report, Gartner predicts that 75% of applications will have BI analytics embedded in them by 2025.

How to find the right embedded BI solution?

To do a good job, he must sharpen his tools.

Then, how to choose the most suitable embedded BI software from many BI software? SegmentFault interviewed technical experts from Grape City, the world’s leading provider of software development technology and low code platform, and combined with Gartner’s suggestions on embedded BI function evaluation, summarized the following important evaluation criteria for embedded BI software selection:

  • Embeddability: customization and integration. The main difference between embedded BI projects and standalone analysis projects is that the former requires integration with the application software environment. This means that embedded projects can have a look and feel consistent with the corporate brand style and are scalable to meet changing business needs.
  • Embedding depth: Not only does the application need to embed dashboard/report design results into one of its menu base scenarios via URLS, but it also needs to embed designers and individual elements into the application’s pages as the application’s native data analysis capabilities. At the same time, support single element DIV deep embedding, and maintain a high degree of interaction with the native page of the application software.
  • Componentialized two-way integration: In addition to the dashboard as the whole picture of the business system, embedded BI products also need to support the integration of the dashboard as a part of the interface of the business system, and the integration of the functions of the business system (such as cameras, 3D models, etc.) as a part of the dashboard.
  • Data environment: The embedded BI solution chosen by the customer will connect to the current data environment and meet data security requirements. It should also have the flexibility to meet future requirements as the data layer evolves.
  • Self-service functionality: This is the core functionality that embedded BI products provide to users, including dashboards and reports, and their executable interaction and analysis capabilities.
  • Development and deployment: The realization of data value is critical to the success of the project, so having a development environment that can create, style, embed, deploy, and iterate embedded analytics will become a necessity for customers to accomplish business functions.
  • Licensing, services and expertise: The right partner not only provides technology, but also the ability to provide expertise level training, support and services, and agree on terms that will ensure business success.

At present, embedded BI software such as Wyn Enterprise and Sisense has gained high recognition in the industry. Compared with foreign elite Sisense, Wyn Enterprise, as the leader of home-made BI software, not only realizes the comprehensive support for home-made operating system and domestic database, In addition, it has developed mature and usable integration solutions jointly with well-known domestic management software manufacturers such as Pan-micro OA, Yonyou ERP, Dingding and enterprise wechat, which have become embedded BI solutions for many software enterprises and continuously lead data empowerment.

conclusion

In an era when data is king, it’s important to get data, of course, but it’s even more important to extract value from it. Embedded BI provides a more inclusive solution: data analysis will no longer be the preserve of technical professionals or data analysts, embedded BI can help applications enhance data visualization and analysis capabilities, so that business users can truly achieve self-service data analysis in business systems.

Embedded BI makes data analysis ubiquitous.