Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/447632
34 FEDA News & Views Big Data continued tion and put it into a meaningful format. If you are ready to take on the chal- lenge, there are several more sophis- ticated reporting packages out there. They are often referred to as "business intelligence" software. Again, many of your ERP providers offer these pack- ages as an optional module. This really isn't a bad option. If the ERP owns the package, they will generally be able to support it and you will experience less arguing between two different software providers. Beyond this, there are many tried and true third-party packages like MITS. These packages often provide sophisticated visual elements like dash- boards or executive indicators. Could you build these yourself? Probably, but why reinvent the wheel? These compa- nies have several users that contribute to the development of the product. As of late, I have seen a new hybrid package hit the market. Although they bill themselves as CRM packages, many of the stronger offerings provide a dual function. Not only are they robust CRM systems, they also offer very solid busi- ness intelligence tools. I have been most exposed to Microsoft Dynamics CRM, but I believe that both Tour De Force and Salesforce have similar capa- bility. I watched a consulting firm put on a demonstration of the Microsoft capa- bility and was thoroughly impressed. This firm was made up of old distribu- tion software people, so I have a little more faith in their capabilities. If you need a reference, just ask. Behind every good data extraction program is someone who can manipu- late the data. It is time to invest in a report writing guru. Rather than add one more purchasing agent to the staff as business increases, consider investing in a data analyst. This person can be invalu- able to your organization. Not only can they create impressive reporting, they can actually make business recommen- dations based on what they see. No longer do you have to pour through reports for criti- cal information. A good analyst can alert you to trends or anomalies so that you can shift gears faster. I have seen several clients make this mental shift to data analytics versus gut feel and intuition. The Practicalities Behind the Why Now that we have covered the how, equally important is the why. What is the purpose behind investing in data analysis? Getting a better return on your technology investment is one really good justification. Most distributors use less than 20 percent of the capability of their ERP. Compared to the percentage of that package you paid for, the math isn't really working out in their favor. Ultimately, I want distributors to use data analysis to make better investment There is a strong correlation between the success of any margin enhancement program and the access to solid reporting.