Data leaders and their teams historically emphasized “getting the right tools” in place and then judging whether business intelligence (BI) tools work well for their organizations. Although tool choice matters, data leaders increasingly realize more important factors also contribute to enabling BI success. Organizations that stick with their chosen tools and focus on growing skills and experience with them tend to be more successful than those that are impatient, blame the tools for lack of success, and constantly seek tools that are a “better fit.”
Incumbent BI tools on average have been in an organization for at least three to five years, with longevity of in-place tools increasing over time. Since 2020, more organizations report tools in place for more than three years, and fewer of them indicate tools in place for less than three years. These data indicate that more data leaders and their teams realize that BI success does not come from tools alone. They retain tools longer while spending more time and resources on the “softer” drivers of BI success—including skills, experience, and data literacy.
Data leaders and their teams regularly should assess the age of tools and success levels achieved in BI initiatives using those tools. They can then identify weaknesses in areas in which success levels sit below expectations. Although using an improper tool can create major challenges, other tool-related issues also can exist, such as inadequate training and skills, limited experience applying the tools to the context of the BI initiative, and general attitude and acceptance of the tools by users. Successful data leaders consider these factors when strategizing and prioritizing their tools portfolios.
The roadmap for BI tools in an organization, and specific decisions to add, replace, or consolidate tools, increasingly will stem from these non-functional considerations that focus on people and their ability to derive maximum value from the tools. Reorienting the thinking of business leaders away from identifying issues with specific tools and toward identifying opportunities to grow skills, experience, and data literacy will accelerate the creation of business value and achievement of success with BI.
This does not mean the tools portfolio should be stagnant. Longevity and functional fit will continue to drive most replacement and consolidation decisions—just not with the overriding weight that many organizations traditionally placed on those factors.
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