Business Analytics vs. Business Intelligence

What most BI Vendors don't want you to know

A lot of people tend to misuse the term "BI", and even the industry itself has developed a common meaning for the term which is a bit of a misnomer. Traditionally BI has referred mostly to the front-end -- and I think most people when they talk about it would generally think about BI as the front-end.

Many prefer the broader term Business Analytics, because it's a lot more than just BI or presentation layer. The implication is that you're going to have to be moving data from possibly multiple raw operational sources in order to create higher quality business information on the other side - and to accomplish that, there's a little more to it than just front-end work.

So for anyone evaluating a "BI" vendor or rather a Business Analytics vendor, its more about what that vendor can actually do with the data-sets that they're presented with - because there really are a couple of distinct strategies that more specialized Business Analytics vendors can take to provide quick workable solutions - efficiently and inexpensively.

For instance, if you're integrating data from applications like NetSuite, Salesforce or homegrown applications, you have data in its raw natural state which is not something that you can just drop into a visualization tool like a MicroStrategy or Tableau and make sense of it. In most cases transformation and manipulation are required - so the real challenge becomes: How do I automate the whole process?

read more on the SQL Power blog

XBRL: All Over The Map

"All over the map"
1. pervasive, as in "XBRL is experiencing wide-spread global adoption - its all over the map."
2. varied, as in "Mixed reactions to XBRL's usefulness are all over the map."

Seems like we still can't decide whether or not XBRL is worth the trouble... some interesting recent articles include:

Time to throw XBRL in the trash bin? - alludes to XBRL being a government mandated failed technology

XBRL System Showing Progress - speaks to currently realized as well as future potential benefits of XBRL adoption by the SEC

Integrated reporting process has its challenges - feels a lot like an ad for Vizor or SQL Power although it stops short of actually mentioning a solution for the outlined challenges.

XBRL Data Collection & Analytics in the Cloud

Free Webinar:
Secure XBRL Data Collection & Analytics in the Cloud

October 11, 2012


Whether it's for 20 filers or 200,000 filers, a cloud-based XBRL Data Collection and Analytics platform can provide fully-integrated supervisory reporting for any Financial Regulator - in a maintenance-free, pay-per-use hosted service.

This free webinar will explore the benefits and challenges of cloud-based XBRL solutions how implementing a hosted platform can help insulate Regulators and Filers from the complexities of XBRL to pave the way for 100% compliance.

read more and/or register at http://www.sqlpower.ca/xbrlpower/page/webinar

Who's using XBRL today?

Trillions of dollars, in fact over two-thirds of global market capitalization is essentially being reported in XBRL format. Hundreds of XBRL initiatives in a dozen countries or more are currently being deployed - it's safe to say that XBRL is establishing the standard for disclosure in the 21st century. Application of XBRL towards capturing and reporting against corporate contribution to social justice, environmental protection and human rights is also now emerging, and is without a doubt merely the tip of a much more significant iceberg.


COREP/FINREP
The COREP/FINREP Taxonomy provides an XBRL representation of the Committee of European Banking Supervisors (CEBS) Common Reporting Framework. FINREP (FINancial REPorting) is designed for credit institutions that use IAS/IFRS for their published financial statements.

SEC
Recently, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) officially announced the adoption of XBRL for U.S. listed issuers' financial statement filings.

IFRS
By providing the IFRS Taxonomy, the IFRS Foundation seeks to address the demand for an electronic standard to transmit IFRS financial information.

India
The Ministry of Corporate Affairs in India has decided to mandate select class of companies to file their balance sheets and Profit & Loss Accounts in XBRL mode for the fiscal starting on or after April 1, 2011.


read more:
• http://www.sqlpower.ca/xbrlpower/page/what-is-xbrl
• https://sites.google.com/site/multiaccesssystems/using-xbrl-to-define-information-containers/who-and-what-uses-xbrl
• http://www.xbrlplanet.org

Solvency II and XBRL

Coined as the "Basel II of insurance reporting", Solvency II is the new European insurance directive slated to come into effect on January 1, 2013. As determined by the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA), this risk-based standard for capital adequacy requirements and governance will use XBRL as the uniform format for prudential reporting across Europe.

XBRL is an open-source computer language that allows companies to precisely tag the thousands of pieces of financial data included in typical financial statements and footnotes. These XBRL tags make the financial data computer-readable and allow users of financial statements to electronically search for, assemble, and process data - so that analysts, investors, journalists, and regulators can readily access and analyze it. This will enable insurance regulators to make like-for-like comparisons of financial data from insurers across Europe.

The Journal of Financial Regulation and Compliance, in examining the suitability of XBRL for Solvency II, explains "Once a taxonomy has been created at the European level, extensions can be added to cover the particular features of national regulatory frameworks, thus ensuring the homogeneity of the system of information while giving it the flexibility that the framework requires."

Anthony Fragnito, CPA, CEO of XBRL International, on EIOPA's decision to use XBRL commented, "The EIOPA mandate for XBRL in the pension and insurance sector is a critical step toward the transparency and process improvement benefits of XBRL to insurance and risk management, and expands the XBRL footprint across the financial services and capital markets sectors."

read more:
• http://www.sqlpower.ca/xbrlpower/page/solvency2
• http://solvencyiiwire.com/eiopa-aligns-solvency-ii-xbrl-taxonomy-with-eba/9555

Pre-Built vs. Custom-Built XBRL Solutions

To Build or Not to Build? That is the question...

The key to avoiding reputation risk concerns is to create a secure, integrated platform for data collection, return management and analytics. Building a customized solution has its advantages in terms of customizing for specific market needs, but the cost of building and maintaining these custom systems can prove to be astronomical and they are usually less flexible in terms of adopting new and ever-evolving financial reporting standards.

One could also argue that in this global economy, customizing a solution for a specific market need is fairly shortsighted. Standard and Globally-approved Taxonomies have evolved over the past decade with the primary intention of leveling the playing field and ensuring that the financial health of an organization is measured and assessed against these global standards. Commercially available off-the-shelf software (COTS) solutions are also more dynamic, usually Taxonomy and/or metadata driven, easily cascading any changes to the taxonomy throughout the system.

Custom solutions are not only more expensive but are also riskier to develop/deploy than COTS solutions that have been proven across many deployments around the world. Solutions based on COTS software have been proven to be more flexible, dynamic, cost effective and can often be deployed in less than 90 days, avoiding lengthy delays and exponentially increasing the likelihood of success.

read more: 
• http://www.sqlpower.ca/xbrlpower/page/stock-exchanges

Why is XBRL important for Market Regulators?

Stock Exchanges that collect standard electronic financials and that have automated the analysis and mining of this data have a fundamental advantage over other Exchanges: they are much more attractive to investors.

Investors as well as Portfolio Managers and Analysts all share the same insatiable thirst for the most current reported investment data. Their livelihood relies on the steady flow of timely, comprehensive, and accurate market information - which is exactly what XBRL can deliver.

With XBRL-compliant data, Stock Markets can offer increased value and provide competitive advantages to institutions and private investors. Financial data verified in real-time, converted to XBRL and posted directly to an Issuer's website improves worldwide exposure and provides rapid analysis capabilities to the investment and analyst community.

XBRL adoption drives international confidence in the Exchange and improves perceived market stability - ultimately attracting new capital investments from domestic and international investors.

read more: http://www.sqlpower.ca/xbrlpower/page/stock-exchanges