QlikView SQL Server Business Intelligence Summary:
- Native connection support for SQL Server 2000 and 2005
- Seamless integration with Microsoft platform
- Comfortable, recognizable Microsfot-esque interfaces
- Unintrusive server-less installation (Server for production)
- Provides aggressive, typically impossible, integration schedule
We had business specific, customized QlikView Sales and Financial analysis applications implemented and rolled out in a few days, as opposed to the weeks or months competing vendors told us it would take with their products," said Travis Pierce, IT Operations Manager at Warn Industries, Inc in Clackamas, Oregon.
QlikView is not as complex as many network-based competitors, in that it avoids the need for an IT shop to adopt and understand an extended platform such as J2EE (Java 2 Platform, Enterprise Edition). Starting up Informaticas PowerAnalyzer, for example, feels like launching a space shuttle, while QlikView feels more like a Learjet.
QlikView Magic
- To achieve the goal of associative analysis, QlikView loads all data into memory and calculates metrics as the user clicks. We call this In-Memory Analysis.
- Operating in memory provides the speed, flexibility, ease-of-use, and visually interactive user interface that associative analysis requires.
- QlikView's Associative database can ingest, aggregate and relate any ODBC data store.
- Developers load disparate data sources for access in a single application. Over 150 data loading functions are available for data cleansing, manipulation and aggregation
SQL Server Business Intelligence
Although QlikView is a platform for building analytics applications from just about any data source it is uniquely compatible with SQL Server and Microsoft Data Warehouses including SQL Server 2005 and SQL Server 2000. In fact it natively supports Microsoft's database technologies so there are no plugins, conduits or connectors required.
With QlikView reading data from your SQL Server databases you have the capability to fast track your business intelligence installation.
How is the Business Intelligence Installation Accelerated?
QlikView is built with Microsoft technologies and uses the same semantics, tools and interfaces for configuring and retrieving data from SQL Server or any Microsoft Warehouse. Thus the learning curve for performing data extraction, transformation and loading (the 3 main steps required in any business intelligence installation) is drastically reduced. In many instances your data can be imported and transformed into a usable solution in less than 5 days! The same cannot even be said when using SQL Server Analysis Services 2005.
Additionally, QlikView's native support for SQL Server and its rich scripting tools enable data to be imported without using SQL Server Integration Services or any similar data formatting or shaping technology.
Enabling Installation Process:
After installing QlikView (which is no more dramatic or intensive then installing Microsoft Office) all you need to do to start realizing and exploring the benefits is to:
1) Connect to a SQL Server Database or other data source.
2) Identify the data you want to ingest (Using a wizard, SQL or script)
3) Click the "Execute" button.
4) Review and correct any data duplication or naming mistakes
That is it. In about 5-10 minutes (~1 million rows) you will be able to explore any analytical tools your organization needs:
- Reports, Business Intelligence Dashboards
- Slice-Dice Analytical Tools
- User-defined, Ad-hoc Reports
For a more detailed walk-through try this pdf how-to:
Tutorial for importing SQL Server Data into QlikView
Risk Free Implementations
If you are willing to dedicate some time us and our partners are willing to prove to you how easy QlikView is to Install, Implement and Deploy. Full featured trials and no-risk implementations are available. Just give us a ring to see if you qualify.
Less Time Importing, More Time Analyzing
Of course for a truly usable, multi-person implementation more time is required to define, adjust and research the best visuals and reports needed. However, since the process for connecting QlikView to your data is so streamlined those additional steps can take place almost immediately.
By reducing the time it takes to import data you are able to start the iterative process of creating a game-changing analysis solution.
Your organization will realize new levels of knowledge and agility and be able to plan strategically and tactically.
Can It Leverage Excel Data?
So it works well with SQL Server. Does it support other sources of data like Excel, Access or Word? Yes. Microsoft Office documents specifically Excel, are all ingested with almost no technical know-how.