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Embedded Business Intelligence (Embedded BI)

Embedded business intelligence—or embedded BI—refers to the integration of business intelligence solutions within business process applications or portals. Embedded BI puts capabilities such as interactive dashboards, reporting, predictive analytics, data analysis, and more within existing business applications. This differs from traditional BI because, rather than a standalone application, it puts all the capabilities of business intelligence directly within the applications on which users already rely.

Embedded BI vs. Traditional BI – A Comparison

Business intelligence (BI) has come a long way from a traditional standalone application used to complete repetitive reporting tasks. Now, application teams are embedding insights into the software products people use on a daily basis. When BI lives in a standalone application, users are forced to switch from their preferred business applications to a separate analytics tool in order to analyze their data. This causes frustration, decreases efficiency, and can make it difficult to gain user adoption.

Embedded BI solves this problem by putting dashboards and analytics in the applications users are already working within and ensures customer workflows are not interrupted. This is the main reason why embedded BI has higher user adoption than standalone analytics tools. Simply put, using one application is easier—and results in greater productivity—than using several simultaneously.

Embedded BI offers value to users by allowing them to glean critical data insights and actionable information inside tools they use every day to perform their jobs. Embedding analytics inside applications prevents users from wasting valuable time toggling back and forth between the business process application and other standalone analytics applications.

Some of the top reasons application teams  are choosing to embed BI in their software applications include:

  • Higher user adoption rates
  • Increases time spent within the application
  • Adds value to the application
  • Improves the user experience and customer satisfaction
  • Contributes to revenue growth

Related: Download the 2018 State of Embedded Analytics Report

Better Reporting With Embedded BI

Embedded BI solutions offer modern ways to present data, which ultimately increases user engagement and satisfaction. Some of the features embedded BI can offer within an application include custom dashboards, data visualizations, self-service BI, workflow, and write-back.

Embedded BI eliminates the need for end users to jump from the application they are working into a separate analytics application. This increases efficiency and makes analyzing data to make business decisions much more efficient. If you’re interested in learning how embedded business intelligence works within an application, watch a demo of the insightsoftware platform here.