Data Warehousing, Data Mining One

Data Warehousing, Data Mining

One of the most promising developments in the field of computing and computer memory over the past few decades has been the ability to bring tremendous complex and large data sets into database management that are both affordable and workable for many organizations. Improvement in computer power has also allowed for the field of artificial intelligence to evolve which also improves the sifting of massive amounts of information for appropriate use in business, military, governmental, and academic venues. Essentially, data mining is taking as much information as possible for a variety of databases, sifting it intelligently and coming up with usable information that will help with data prediction, customer service, what if scenarios, and extrapolating trends for population groups (Ye, 2003; Therling, 2009).

SAP Business objects produces a wide variety of solutions that work to help end users make database information available in ways as divergent as an Arts Center and the United States Airforce. For the Arts Center in Vancouver, British Columbia, the SAP Crystal Reporting structure, part of SAP Business Objects, was used to produce accurate and customizable reports quickly that had a high degree of accuracy. This limited or eliminated data entry and enhanced the accuracy of fund-raising projections, client trends, and effective work processes (Arts Umbrella, 2009). There are a number of complex issues that the United States Air Force manages using information systems. One is the financial and logistical operations side of the weapon's systems. This is tremendously complex; numerous vendors, engineering systems, storage facilities, usage statistics, and locations. SAP Business Objects software was able to meet or exceed budgetary and output goals by using the exisiting staff and information systems, but enhancing them with greater computing and analysis power (Air Force Material Command, 2009).

Essentially, in both cases, the SAP tools allow for a more robust and efficient use of materials and information already collected. The power of these tools is their ability to use data in a new way. For instance, in the Arts field, "three or four characteristics that, when tracked, are great indicators of the likelihood that a pledge will or will not actually close….. helping with a high degree of accuracy -- [tell] who's going to eventually give and who isn't (Arts).

Similarly, the Air Force needed no only some intelligent reporting capabilities, but a way that Air Force personnel, government employees, and civilian IT contractors would work together in the evaluation of applications and reports in a more robust and real-time manner. "The intent was to provide the Keystone user community the ability to do more complex financial analysis and reporting on a "self-service" basis to reduce overall system maintenance and development costs' (Air Force).

The SAP Business Object tools are useful for management and organizations that already have a decent set of data, but need access to it in ways that are more meaningful to the organization. For example, in the new social-media paradigm there are literally hundreds of different demographic and psychographic modifiers that might assist firms in moving from an older marketing paradigm to a new, service to the client model, all by using data mining and warehousing tools (Badroliwalla, 2009). Data mining can also be used to reduce losses within organizations by keeping a better track of inventory and waste, examining trends of usage in a way that a human could never do efficiently (Hadfield, 2009).