Using Business Intelligence Systems To Improve Operational Efficiency And Organizational Performance

Abstract: In this global economy .advances in information and communication technologies are happening at a very fast pace. As a result, the amount of data available is exponentially increasing. Also, the business environment is rapidly changing. For organizations to keep pace with all the changes and keep competitive, they need very timely and first rate quality business information and knowledge. To this end, organizations are turning to Business Intelligence and Analytics, a collection of decision support systems and technologies which, if properly implemented, enable the managers and the executives of the firm to make faster and better decisions. Moreover, Business intelligence systems go well beyond what is offered by the regular decision support systems and provide the ability to build and use predictive models and analyze large amounts of text data. In this paper, a brief overview of by Business Intelligence technologies along with benefits, challenges and future, is presented. This paper is intended as a short introduction to business Intelligence and Analytics systems. The main aim of the paper is to raise awareness of organizations in the developing world and in Africa in particular, about the benefits of these technologies and the crucial role they play in the survival of the firm in the complex and turbulent global market.