BIPM Encyclopedia-core knowledge base

BIPM Encyclopedia is a dynamic organically growing book of practical knowledge, initiated by me but gradually users have started contributing.

It is divided into four domains:

• Business Intelligence Domain: Subject-Wise knowledge base covering all subjects linked to Business Intelligence.
• Performance Management Domain: Subject-Wise knowledge base covering all subjects linked to Performance Management.
• Functional Domain: This is function-wise knowledge-base detailed on how do we implement all the subjects covered in the subject domain on individual functions.
• Tools & Vendor Domain: This provides all what you need to know to evaluate, implement and maximize the potential of different category of software tools like business intelligence tools, enterprise reporting tools, data quality and monitoring tools..

  
  Each ot the above domains have a following standard structure of content:

  Domain: Like a volume of a knowledge-base. BIPMInstitute.com has three domains, and thus it has three volumes.

  Section: This is a subject-area within a domain. For example you have sections like Data Quality, offline data integration in the subject domain. In the functional domain, you have sections like IT management, financial management.

  Chapters: This is the next level break-up within a section. A chapter further splits the section into content groups. For example Data Quality will have chapters like data quality overview, data quality program etc. Similarly the IT management section in functional domain will have chapters like infrastructure management, applications management etc..

  Topics: This is the last level in the content hierarchy, and contains the actual content in terms of individual pages. For example in data quality overview chapter, you can have topics of "What is Data Quality", "Data Quality impacts", "Reasons for bad data quality".

Here is the list of Domains and Sections in the BIPM Encyclopedia

Business Intelligence Domain

The Business Intelligence Domain is core knowledge-base on the subjects linked to Business Intelligence. It will be providing a generic & practical knowledge irrespective of an industry or a function. When you want to see on how do we apply this knowledge to specific functions, you would be referring to Functional Domain.

BI Architecture
Take this as the Introduction/Big picture part of the BIPM Encyclopedia. Before you get onto individual topics, its important to understand on what are the building blocks to enable BI and how they interact with each other.

Data Quality
Any dashboard, scorecard or a report will be reduced to a NIL value, if the audience don't trust the data contained therein. In today's world, data is going exponentially complex and the maze of system & interfaces is reaching "beyond visual range". With supply chain management, CRM and other practices, the enterprise boundaries of data are blurring. The regulaotry & disclosure pressures are mounting. Its time that organizations re-inforce their focus on Data Quality. Data quality has different connotations and follow the conventional principles of prevention, monitoring and remedy. Data Quality does not seek perfection, but business-case driven sponsorship.

Data Warehousing/Marting
This is one of the largest sections in this knowledge-base. It covers on how you extract the information from various sources , put it all together, link it, clean it, transform it and then load it in a place and form so that one can fulfill all the Data & Information requirements of an organization. Data Warehousing can also be named as "offline Integration" of data. This section talks about a full-fledge Data Warehouse Initiative. However can can start small, while keeping in mind the long term road-map.

Data Analysis/OLAP
Data Analysis/OLAP is most fundamental way to make sense out of your data. It involves looking at the data from all possible angles, slicing & dicing on various dimensions, drilling up/down, applying filters, exception highlighting, graphs and other presentation tools, doing time trending analysis. Whether you are doing a pivot on excel or creating advanced views in a upmarket OLAP tool, most of the usage of data in today’s world falls within the realm of Data Analysis/OLAP. It is essentially a post graduate course before you go for fellowship in Data Mining.

Metadata Management
This Section holistically covers the subject of Metadata, not only from BI perspective but also from an overall data management perspective. Metadata carries the detailed characterization and information for all data, content and knowledge existing in an organization in all possible forms and locations. We have just started creating pages on this section. We will achieve the first stage of completion by end of April, 2008. Currently we have a single chapter of Metadata Management Overview.

Master-data/Customer Data Integration (CDI) Management
Master Data Management is the set of processes, tools and infrastructure to provide a Single and Authoritative reference point for Master Data like Customer Master, Employee Master and Product Master etc. MDM has many similarities as well as differences vis-a-vis Data Warehouse. MDM, like Metadata is not only limited to BI, but provides foundation capability to wide-ranging applications and processes. MDM is generally spoken along with Customer Data Integration (CDI), as that is the most popular application of this concept.

Performance Management Domain

The Performance Management Domain is core knowledge-base on the subjects linked to building high-performing organization. It will be providing a generic & practical knowledge irrespective of an industry or a function. When you want to see on how do we apply this knowledge to specific functions, you would be referring to Functional Domain.

Strategic Planning
The end use of any information is to drive the business performance. Over the years the focus is getting shifted from strategy formation to strategy execution. The journey starts from a well-laid out strategy blue-print-->short-term strategic business plans.

Execution Management
This section works on translating your strategy into reality. There are many components to execution management like creating dashboards and scorecards, performance review sessions and alignment of organization's resources with the strategy.

Functional Domain

While you get a holistic understanding of the subjects related to Business Intelligence and Performance Management, in the subject Domain, the Functional Domain share on how you can apply the subject knowledge to different functional areas within an organization. Therefore, if you are an HR manager, you can go straight into the HR management section. There is enough inter-linkage provided between the functional domain sections and the relevant pages within subject domain.

Customer Management
This section endeavors to address on how one can apply BIPM in various aspects of CRM. As CRM is a very wide field, this section creates individual domains which collectively make-up a holistic BIPM application in customer management domain.

Sales & Distribution
This section endeavors to address on how one can apply BIPM in Sales and Distriubution. Sales & Distribution management starts from generating leads and ends with making a sale. Sales cost, sales channel, sales compensation, sales processes and sales volumes have to be managed collectively to give an expected sales performance.

Vendor- IT ToolS Domain

This domain covers all what you need to know to evaluate and assess a Vendor or a tool to implement your requirements related Business Intelligence and Performance Management. This knowledge-base does not advocate any specific tool, as we the relevance and fit of a tool is specific to the context of your organization.

BIPM Tool-Software Evaluation
This section focuses on the generic aspects of evaluation a tool/software for your Business Intelligence. While functionality of a tool is an important selection criteria, there are equally important considerations for Vendor profile, Vendor's delivery capability, commercial & contractual terms and technical features.

Enterprise Reporting Tools
This section covers comprehensively the typical features which you can refer for evaluating and using an enterprise reporting tool.

OLAP Server Tools
This section covers comprehensively the typical features which you can refer for evaluating and using an OLAP Server