The Dirty Secret of BI: Why Most Companies Will Fail to Reap the Rewards
Let’s face it, the majority of businesses that invest in Business Intelligence (BI) tools will never truly unlock its potential. The reason? They’re not willing to put in the effort to truly embed these technologies within their organization, to gain buy-in from their users, and to empower them to ask the right questions of the data.
Take Sumitomo Rubber South Africa (SRSA) for example. Despite upgrading to a cutting-edge BI platform, they still struggled to get meaningful insights from their data. That was until they partnered with Keyrus, a leading data and digital consultancy, to develop a comprehensive employee enablement program.
The Anatomy of a Successful BI Implementation
So, what did Keyrus do to make SRSA’s BI implementation a success? First, they rolled out a customised change management process to ensure buy-in from the organization. Then, they provided a series of educational "roadshow" sessions for business users, designed to create excitement and prepare them for the changes ahead.
But that wasn’t all. Keyrus also delivered a carefully designed online training program to ensure that business users could easily navigate Tableau’s advanced features and create compelling visualizations to answer complex business questions. And, they provided in-person training sessions at their offices in Durban, where they could get hands-on experience with SRSA’s data.
The Impact of Effective Enablement
The results were astonishing. More than 30 employees from SRSA’s Corporate Planning and Sales Departments attended the training sessions, and they were all raving about the experience. One delegate even praised the facilitator, saying he was "well-suited for training, knowledgeable and patient."
But it wasn’t just the training that made the difference. The enablement program helped to drive a mindset shift about the value of data and how to use it to gain a competitive advantage. As Brett Clark, Director of Operations and Services at SRSA, noted, "The enablement programme served to drive a mindset shift about the true value of data and how to use it to gain maximum competitive advantage."
The Bottom Line
In conclusion, the mere implementation of modern BI tools is insufficient to ensure success. It’s the enablement process that allows businesses to truly reap the rewards of their BI investments. So, if you’re planning to implement a BI solution, don’t neglect the importance of employee enablement. It may just be the key to unlocking the true potential of your data.
