| As corporations create massive data warehouses | | | | understand your requirements, than to teach a |
| that will store more information in the next few years | | | | business professional in Marketing or Finance for |
| than has been recorded in all of man's history, the | | | | instance, enough about SQL and Crystal to efficiently |
| problem becomes turning the data into information. | | | | code anything more than a simple report. |
| Software vendors have come to the rescue with | | | | Outsourcing enterprise reporting can be used to create |
| many user friendly reporting tools and the training | | | | a library of documentation on calculations, formulas, |
| industry is eager to supply courseware on using them. | | | | data definitions, and business logic. Surely this does not |
| But who's job is report writing anyway? If it is not your | | | | apply to your company but, many businesses have |
| job and IT is not staffed to support you, consider | | | | departmental silos of information that are not share, or |
| outsourcing it. | | | | important un-documented tribal knowledge that is |
| From my view there are two skill sets that are | | | | passed down in one-on-one training to those who |
| needed in order to turn data into knowledge or useful | | | | need to know. Sourcing business intelligence (BI) |
| accurate reports. One is your functional expert that | | | | functions like report modification and coding can help |
| knows how the data is collected and the business | | | | solve this problem. |
| purpose of the analysis or reports needed. The | | | | An alternative to outsourcing reporting is to train the |
| second is a programmer analyst or data analyst who | | | | business professional to use tools like Crystal Reports |
| can understand the requirements and is | | | | or Cognos to do their own reporting. The internet is full |
| knowledgeable regarding the data storage architecture | | | | of training companies that teach Crystal Reports |
| of the corporation. This would include the sources of | | | | coding for example to programmers and |
| information going into the data repository from | | | | non-programmers. Most programmers will not need |
| systems like billing, CRM, manufacturing systems, | | | | much training. Non-programmers will need a lot more |
| channel partners and more. This technical person also | | | | training than the average two day class can provide |
| needs to understand things like job scheduling, | | | | and often lack the required foundation for the training. |
| database technology, enterprise reporting systems, | | | | A list of training classes might look like this one: |
| and query languages in addition to reporting software | | | | Crystal Reports Design XI Introduction |
| tools capabilities. Can this type of programmer analyst | | | | Crystal Reports Design XI Advanced |
| work remotely? Sure, as long as they are available | | | | Crystal Reports Design (8.5 - 9.0 - 10.0) Introduction |
| during your work day time zone it's not a problem for | | | | Crystal Reports Design (8.5 - 9.0 - 10.0) Advanced |
| them to be remote and collaborate with you on | | | | Crystal Reports Database Linking and Optimization |
| requirements. | | | | Crystal Reports Executive Level Charting |
| If a company decides to outsource reporting, the | | | | Crystal Reports Parameters and Subreports |
| vendor should report through IT even if they interface | | | | Crystal Reports Functions and Formulas |
| directly with functional users. This way IT can sets the | | | | How many of these classes are needed? What |
| quality assurance and governance standards for the | | | | foundation do you need before you even start |
| outsourcing vendor and the functional business unit can | | | | training? It is not what you learned but what you don't |
| set the priorities. Companies that attempt to | | | | know that causes the problems. Financial Analyst, |
| decentralize reporting into various departments outside | | | | Controllers, or Marketing Managers would be better off |
| of IT find that they are often generating multiple | | | | spending their time developing strategies based on the |
| redundant reports and queries. They also find end of | | | | information on reports than learning to mine data and |
| the period reporting cycles can become congested | | | | turning it into reports. Two days of their time spent in a |
| with multiple users running jobs at the same time that | | | | Crystal Reports class would be better spent teaching |
| are pulling data from the same repository. Job | | | | a developer about the business logic used to define |
| scheduling prevents that. Having your IT department | | | | metrics on the reports or documenting it. Many |
| coordinate reporting is critical to reducing end of period | | | | business professional that I have seen put in this |
| strains on hardware and network resource. | | | | position learn enough to dump the data into MS Excel |
| A dedicated low cost offshore programmer that is | | | | and then create desktop reporting sub-systems that |
| familiar with your data will produce better quality | | | | are below the radar and un-supportable by IT. |
| reports faster than using a non-IT staff member. It is | | | | Using low cost offshore support to mine data and |
| usually not economical to have a non-IT professional | | | | code reports does have a startup cost in training. We |
| do reporting no mater how easy the vendor tells you | | | | send project team members from Brazil to a client site |
| the tool is. We have all heard the sales pitch "with this | | | | in Washington D.C. periodically for training on business |
| tool you don't have to know where the data is". I beg | | | | logic and to get familiar with the technical and |
| to differ, you need to know things like where your data | | | | non-technical employees that they are supporting. The |
| streams are coming from, how often they are | | | | travel expenses of airfare, housing, food and local |
| updated, and what they are keyed on to mention just | | | | transportation for bringing a project lead from Brazil for |
| a few things you need to consider when creating a | | | | a month in Washington adds about $10k to the project |
| query or report. | | | | cost but it is a "must do" to get the full benefit out of |
| Sourcing professional services to help with data mining | | | | your offshore team. |
| and reporting is often the most economical approach | | | | Having an outsourced business intelligence (BI) support |
| and enables the in-house IT staff to focus on keeping | | | | team working in the same work day time zone is a |
| the systems running. It also segregates the dollars | | | | real advantage to our clients. Mining data and creating |
| allocated to data analysis and reporting needs for | | | | business reports requires a dynamic interchange of |
| better control. Service levels from IT departments don't | | | | information and idea. Once the developer and |
| always meet the needs for corporate reporting | | | | functional business expert become a team, corporate |
| request. Mission critical implementation can consume | | | | data is released much faster into the realm of |
| your IT budget leaving little for the time intensive task | | | | corporate knowledge. |
| of meeting with users and developing iterations of | | | | Outsourced BI developers are best used as assistants |
| reports. It often seems like a minor task to your highly | | | | that you assign long-term goals and short-term duties |
| paid IT professionals but to the end user it is often the | | | | as if they were sitting across from you in the office. |
| end product everything else is supporting. | | | | They should be a part of your daily business process, |
| Even the cost of business logic training for a | | | | just remote. They can give the end users that priority |
| programmer is cheaper, and if done right produces a | | | | service for every request, something that most |
| tangible permanent return on investment called | | | | companies IT Departments are not staffed to do. Just |
| documentation. Some companies decide to task | | | | as they build a closer relationship with end users they |
| functional experts with managing their own reports | | | | need a close relationship with the IT Department so |
| instead of paying for extra IT professional services to | | | | that corporate quality assurance and coding standards |
| support them. Every day a senior business | | | | are followed. |
| professional at your company spends working on a | | | | As programming becomes a global commodity, instead |
| Crystal Report would pay for 2-4 weeks of service | | | | of training your business professionals to code reports |
| from a professional developer in Brazil, the location I | | | | or tasking expensive IT staff professionals to do it, |
| am most familiar with. Let's say that developer is a | | | | consider outsourcing a low cost IT professional in a |
| professional programmer familiar with SQL, Oracle | | | | work day friendly time zone to support them. After all, |
| procedures, Java, as well as Crystal Reports or Brio. It | | | | isn't tasking a marketing manager or accountant to |
| will almost always be easier to teach the programmer | | | | code reports a lot like having a building architect laying |
| analyst enough about your business logic so that they | | | | brick? |