Associative Search in QlikView v10

One of the great new features in QlikView 10 is the idea of extending the concept of the associate data model.  The embedded search tool now supports the idea of Associative Search.

Click Search Icon In Caption

When you click on the search icon with in the caption of the list box a new 'chevron appears'.  A chevron pointing to the right searches on the field value in your list box.  

Right Pointing Chevron

If you click on this chevron it will change directions and expand the search box (see image to the below/center).


In v10 when you enter a search term in this box you are no longer just searching the field value within the list box but rather searching other field values that may be associated with the values within the list box. 

For example,  If I am on the Customer Name list box I can use other criteria associated with the customer to try and narrow the list of customer names.  Examples could include: a product they may have purchased, a telephone number, a street name, a sales person, etc...


As you enter a search and select a value QlikView will build a list, allowing you to search on many different terms before limiting your data set.  For example:

In the above associative search I entered a product (and selected with a mouse click), then I searched for a month/year, and finally a state.  As I added selections the number of names in the customer list (on the left) grew smaller and smaller.  Finally after all three search terms I was left with 2 potential names.  I then hit 'enter' on the keyboard and I am left with these 2 customers selected:

Notice that while my 2 customer are selected, the search terms used in my associative search are not used to limit my data set.  You can tell this by the fact that I see more products than just the original 'Vest' item I used in my associative search.  


Take Away:
The take away from this feature is that you can use the power of the associative data model by searching for values associated with any entity in your data model without actually using them as 'filters' as we have come to know in QlikView.


-emb

Who owns BI in your company?

Who owns Business Intelligence?

This is almost seems like a silly (possibly stupid) question - The word business is even part of the question!  So... who owns it at your company?
Is it the 'business' (eg finance, sales, customer service) or folks within the information technology organization (IT)?  

Todays Symptoms:  IT has grown tired of users asking for new reports, 'cubes', charts, and/or visualizations, etc... and the business has reached a new level of frustration waiting for delivery of those requests, and the cost at which the come.  Maybe this can help settle the debate within your company.

How did we get here?:  In today's economy IT has been asked to do so much more with even less resources.  As business leaders are tasked to be more creative in improving the bottom line their requests for good information and analytics increases the burden on an already shrinking IT workforce.  Delivery cycles grow longer the business becomes impatient, Excel hell begins (aka spread-marts) as the business starts pulling together its own data, possible creating metrics and KPIs using sources that are not 'sanctioned' by IT.  Shadow IT efforts are on the rise, tempers flare when the numbers are inaccurate. We all know where it goes from there.

Argument for IT: The business folks often need to be reminded that there is good reason for IT to play a central role in delivering BI.  Data governance, regulatory control, security, they all play a role in why IT must be in the game.  

Argument for the business: On the other hand, for BI to be successful, it is imperative that BI be driven by the business. With any enterprise IT initiative - if the business is not involved in the design, the system will fail (or simply go unused).  

Let's face it, the questions asked by the business are ever changing.  We know that business leaders today most likely know the questions they will be asking tomorrow.  This is the challenge to the business as focus is continually changing under todays economical conditions and increased competition.  The information they get from the first report they received from IT leads to what seems like a set of endless possibilities on how they can measure the business.  With the rise of each new question more burden is put on the IT staff to deliver and deliver in a timely manner.

What is the right strategy in today's market?

In order to be successful we must satisfy the requirements of both IT and the Business.  This is best done by relying on IT for data provisioning and the business for analytics and reporting.

This dichotomy insures that the business is using data that has passed the checks and balances of a sound data governance strategy (yes - I am making an assumption that there is a data governance strategy in place).  This strategy can mean vary in its complexity from company to company (data stewardship, data quality, meta data management, etc...).  Allowing the business to own the development of analytics and reporting insures the they have proper control over the speed in which they can deliver that analysis and information to decision makers.  The business can then deploy tools that are designed for rapid development and deployment - without the wait for costly IT development cycles. 

It seems so simple when you put it on paper.  In many of today's enterprise companies there are significant walls that need to be torn down to facilitate this collaborative approach to BI.  One way to help deliver this kind of value is to embrace the concept of a  BI Center of Competency (BICC) to oversee the process.  The BICC is sponsored by the business with support from IT, insuring that the concepts of data governance, security, and controls are well defined.  More on BICC in a future post (stay tuned).

-emb

B&D / QlikView - Positioned For Success

I am pleased to be writing this first blog entry, having recently joined Business & Decision (B&D) in their Business Intelligence practice in North America.  

B&D is a global consultancy with offices in 18 countries, 2800 consultants (200 in the US), and over 300 million in revenue (65% coming from the BI practice). 


I am very excited to take on my new role as a Sr. Solutions Architect focused on growing our QlikView practice in North America. We are in a very good position to leverage our collective experience implementing enterprise BI solutions on a global scale.  Whether it is  BI Competency Center (BICC) development, ERP integration, or a comprehensive data governance strategy we can add significant value to QlikView deployments within the enterprise.

Over the course of the last 10 years I have had the good fortune of getting to know many of the fine people that work at QlikTech.  As both a customer and partner I have also been a champion of QlikView and the basic principles that differentiate the product in the BI marketplace.


I now have a great opportunity as B&D has given me the stage in which to share this passion with the market by explaining what I have come to take for granted when it comes to analytics.  BI can be agile, flexible, fast, and spontaneous but still be properly governed and compliant within enterprise standards by a properly designed QlikView solution.


I will use this forum to share my thoughts on what differentiates QlikView and B&D - making our partnership a very compelling story when it comes to solving the BI needs of the enterprise.


-emb