Best Kind of an Agile Dashboard
This is the continuation of the transcript of a Webinar hosted by InetSoft on the topic of "What are the Benefits of a Visual Reporting Solution?." The speaker is Abhishek Gupta, Product Manager at InetSoft.
The best kind of an agile dashboard is where the data also reflects the state of affairs as close to real-time as possible. For example, the data could show what were our POS actuals as of last night summarized by regions, zones and country. I would add that you need the ability to slice through the data, to explore it, and to do ad hoc analysis to it. So there are a couple of different things going on here. So that covers the buzz side of it.
You know we always like to learn more about our attendees on our webinars so we’re going to launch a quick survey, this survey question is, are you currently implementing an Agile BI strategy in your organization? Just a quick yes or no. We’re going to take a quick 20 seconds here just to let you answer that.
Folks, you can see that there’s a poll at the bottom of the Gotowebinar panel on the right where you can click and then respond to the poll. So while people are answering, I’ll say that there’s a variety of different viewpoints, and they’re captured different ways. We kind of synthesized this, and that there’s two totally different vintage points. One is the technical side which we’re going to talk about for a few minutes here. The other is the end user side which will come back in a little bit. Supporting the agile manifesto are specific practices like scrum and extreme programming, or any variation which helps support the principles of the manifesto.
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Scrum and extreme programming are development techniques that we use in our software development, and they’re different from the way software and systems were developed back 5 or 10 years ago, and it's much more about setting quick deadlines, getting little pieces bit of done and then combining them, instead of what used to happen is you do a major release in here. The goal here is to set time frames like for six weeks for those small pieces.
And extending that point further, the BI platform should be agile enough to adapt to changing data sources and structures. I think we all have seen with social networking and e-mail and all the new marketing channels, there’s a lot more data types coming that weren’t there a few years ago. Being able to adapt to that, especially in a BI setting, is a kind of useful information.
Agility and speed are really important. This means people get answer in days not months. This is key to Agile BI. This is in contrast with a traditional ETL and data warehouse only model where responding to new data requirements takes months to put in place. This gets into the technical side. The next few minutes build on this.
So let’s look at our survey results. It looks like the majority of people are not currently implementing an Agile BI program in their current organization. So I find that quite interesting. That is really helpful because we’re going to kind of move forward and talk about what that means.
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This is taken from the TDWI World Conference website. This gives you a context about how they see this, and their whole world conference coming up in a few weeks is about this. So the first paragraph says, agile business intelligence addresses a broad need to enable flexibility by accelerating the time it takes to deliver a value. So a key theme that connotes is flexible and fast.
That's again like how using somebody’s scrum and extreme programming techniques can get you there. It can include technology deployment options such as self-service, cloud based data discovery dashboards that allow users to begin working with data more rapidly and adjusting to changing needs. So there are varied end user options, and there are new technologies that have come in the last few years such as in memory data management, some of the new interactive visualization technologies, some of the new ETL technologies that enable this.
Case Study: Harmonix Records' Transformation with Agile Dashboards
Harmonix Records, a mid-sized independent music label, faced significant challenges in managing their diverse portfolio of artists, releases, and marketing campaigns. With the rapid evolution of the music industry and the increasing importance of data-driven decision-making, the label sought to improve its operations by adopting agile dashboards. This case study explores how Harmonix Records leveraged agile dashboards to streamline its processes, enhance collaboration, and drive growth.
Background
Harmonix Records was founded in 2005 and has grown to represent over 50 artists across various genres. The label's key challenges included:
- Fragmented Data: Data related to sales, streaming, marketing, and artist performance were scattered across multiple platforms, making it difficult to gain actionable insights.
- Inefficient Communication: Teams working on different projects often faced communication barriers, leading to delays and inefficiencies.
- Dynamic Industry: The music industry's fast-paced nature required the label to quickly adapt to trends and consumer preferences.
- Resource Allocation: Managing budgets and resources for marketing campaigns and production was complex, often resulting in suboptimal allocation.
Implementation of Agile Dashboards
To address these challenges, Harmonix Records partnered with a technology provider specializing in agile project management solutions. The label implemented a suite of agile dashboards tailored to their needs. Key features of the implementation included:
- Centralized Data Integration: The dashboards integrated data from various sources, including streaming platforms, social media, sales reports, and marketing analytics.
- Real-Time Analytics: Real-time data visualization allowed teams to monitor performance metrics such as streaming numbers, social media engagement, and sales figures.
- Kanban Boards and Sprint Planning: Agile methodologies were introduced, with Kanban boards and sprint planning tools enabling better project management and workflow optimization.
- Collaboration Tools: Built-in collaboration features facilitated communication and coordination among teams, including marketing, A&R (Artists and Repertoire), and finance.
- Customizable Reports: The ability to generate customizable reports provided stakeholders with clear and relevant insights into various aspects of the label's operations.
Results
The implementation of agile dashboards led to significant improvements across multiple areas of Harmonix Records' operations:
- Enhanced Data Visibility: Centralized data integration provided a holistic view of the label's performance, enabling more informed decision-making. The ability to track real-time streaming data, for instance, allowed the label to quickly identify and capitalize on emerging trends.
- Improved Collaboration: The collaboration tools and agile methodologies reduced communication barriers and streamlined workflows. Teams were able to work more cohesively, leading to faster project completion and improved outcomes.
- Efficient Resource Allocation: Real-time analytics and customizable reports helped the label optimize its marketing budgets and production resources. This led to a 20% reduction in marketing costs and a 15% increase in campaign effectiveness.
- Agile Adaptation: The agile approach allowed Harmonix Records to be more responsive to industry changes. They could quickly pivot strategies based on real-time data, ensuring they stayed ahead of competitors.
- Artist Performance Management: The dashboards provided detailed insights into individual artist performance, helping the A&R team to better support artists and make strategic decisions regarding promotions and releases.
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