Virtual Analytics Forum 2021: European Business Intelligence Experts Gather to Share Data Processing and Analysis News
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Virtual Analytics Forum 2021: European Business Intelligence Experts Gather to Share Data Processing and Analysis News

6 min read Mar 24, 2021

More than a hundred participants from five European countries participated in the online edition of BE-terna’s annual Virtual Analytics Forum 2021. The conference brought together decision-makers responsible for the processes that drive the optimization and the accelerating digital transformation of businesses. The event focus was on data processing and business intelligence trends and priorities, as well as Artificial Intelligence (AI) that has become vital across almost all industries - from supply chains to finance, marketing, and human resources.

The variety of data generated by daily business operations is increasing with record speed, forcing companies that want to survive in the market to rapidly process and deliver the received data to business decision-makers. This shows the immeasurable potential value locked in data. By developing their data processing capabilities, companies can better understand the market as well as internal business processes, which means properly analyzed data will lead to better decision-making. Through the application of AI and faster database processing, companies can recognize new revenue generation opportunities in time, improve operational efficiency, deliver self-service data analytics to their employees and eliminate the need for manual report preparation, and implement improved budget planning to ultimately generate higher revenues.  

Customer behavior analytics is the next big milestone for companies that have set off on their digital transformation journey

The experience of implementing digital data transformation processes within their companies was the topic of discussion among BI and data analysis experts from the largest Croatian insurance company Croatia osiguranje, the largest energy supplier in the world, NIS Gazprom Neft, one of the largest producers of construction materials in Europe, Austrian holding Alpacem, and the renowned Slovenian manufacturer NiceLabel. These guests spoke at a panel discussion entitled "How to successfully carry out data transformation?", moderated by Milan Listeš from BE-terna, a leading regional Microsoft and Qlik partner for the implementation of business solutions. 

According to Matej Košmrlj, Vice President of Technical Services at NiceLabel, data transformation is a process in which there is always room for improvement. His company has successfully launched the transformation initiative and their clients are increasingly asking for their help to do the same. "You can always do more, but I think we have already done a lot with our advanced analytics. We deployed business intelligence capabilities which are used by more than half of our employees. Our greatest achievement and what counts when it comes to data digitalization is that data is up-to-date at all times and open to all our employees. Now, everyone can always see the trends in every industry we work in. We can keep an eye on our progress as well as how our competition is doing", said Košmrlj. 

Jerneja Potočnik, Director of the Controlling Department at Alpacem Holding, concluded that business intelligence makes it much easier to control revenues. “We see the details we need to understand the company and the markets in which we operate, and all this is important for our operations and efficiency."  

According to Davor Jambrešić, Director of Business Intelligence and Data Management Department at Croatia osiguranje, experts in modern business intelligence, which means using artificial intelligence in business operations, have become key to the efficient functioning of companies. "I see business intelligence as a bridge between IT and business. The BI team must know how management works and must be able to turn ideas that might not be fully realized into finished BI projects. These are experts who know how to distinguish between insignificant and important data, react to a large number of challenges from various fields and thus significantly speed up the decision-making process," he said. 

Data visualization makes it possible to have that "Eureka moment"

In addition to easier and more accurate data processing, the panelists also discussed how to visualize the data generated by artificial intelligence. Srećko Vasović, BI Expert at NIS Gazprom Neft, proved to be its biggest advocate. "Data visualization makes it possible to have that Eureka moment and bring bland numbers into life. The Excel spreadsheet is still the most used tool and a cultural shift must take place. We must teach people to read data visually and promote data literacy. The best thing would be to organize training that provides people with that knowledge and drives gradual change", suggested Vasović, whose team is currently designing just such type of training for his company's employees.  

Jerneja Potočnik agreed with him as Alpacem Holding already uses this method of data visualization today. By implementing BI tools, all official reports can be generated with a simple click, she said. She emphasized that three different people in a meeting shouldn’t have three different versions of information. This makes BI the primary source of accurate information, from which later figures can be interpreted. However, the key is to have a single source for data. 

Global experts from BE-terna also gave interesting talks, especially in the field of sales forecasting and inventory optimization in manufacturing, distribution, and retail industries. BE-terna's expert Milan Listeš concluded the conference by talking about innovations in the field of data analytics and pointed out that customer behavior analytics software along with the implementation of AI technology is the next important step for most digital companies.  

“Behavioral analytics powers smart customer segmentation, which is the basis for personalized marketing, personalized communication, and churn detection (potential customer loss) in organizations such as banks, insurance companies, or telecommunications companies. Companies can leverage this technology to improve customer satisfaction by providing personalized and relevant content”, commented Listeš

Agenda: 

  • [00:00:00 - 00:09:14] What's new in the world of BE-terna?
  • [00:09:15 - 00:42:59] How to do data-driven transformation successfully?
  • [00:43:00 - 01:13:59] Want to optimize your inventory - Here's how AI does it!
  • [01:14:00 - 01:45:00] The Whole Power Platform - A Look Beyond Analytics!
  • [01:45:01 - 02:10:00] Qlik Data Integration & Synapse for SAP clients!
  • [02:10:01 - 02:16:39] What's hot now and what's ahead in BI and Analytics?

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