Why You Need Self-Service Analytics

As the amount of data available explodes, so does the market for applications to make sense of it all. Market research firm IDC predicts the $122 billion big data and business analytics market will increase more than 50% from 2015 to 2019. Big data analytics provide tremendous value to companies, enabling better decision making and improving profits. However, the advantages of analyzing real-time information are lost if users have to wait days or weeks for IT to have time to create analytics.

Benefits of Self-Service Analytics

In today’s rapidly changing world, companies need to analyze real-time market information to make smart decisions. This is particularly true in data-intensive commodity markets, where prices are volatile and market conditions constantly changing. Self-service analytics help traders realize the benefits of real time data.

• Answer questions in seconds, not hours or days. Users can get the answers they need immediately by creating the analytics they need to answer their specific questions without the help of IT personnel. This enables them to make better decisions quickly and gain a competitive edge.
• Answer critical questions without diverting resources from IT departments. With self-service analytics users can create new analytics by themselves, gaining critical insights without taking resources from IT projects.
• Create new analytics anytime, anywhere. Self-service analytics allow users to create reports when and where they need them, not when they are in the office and have access to IT professionals.
• Reduce time spent manipulating spreadsheets. With self-service analytics, users can create analytics designed to answer their questions without resorting to importing data to spreadsheets – which are easy to use but also time-consuming, cumbersome and prone to errors.

What commodity traders need are self-service analytics that are easy to use. Eka’s Commodity Analytics Cloud uses an intuitive, visual interface, enabling users to create customized analytics and reporting without relying on IT specialists. Commodity Analytics Cloud brings together all available data - including CTRM, ETRM, ERP, CRM, treasury, and spreadsheets - using a series of apps specifically designed for commodity markets. These apps address high-value business issues, including positions, P&L, trading, procurement, risk, credit, finance, supply chain, reconciliation, counterparties, and more.

IT departments are streamlined and overburdened. Adopting self-service analytics enables users to get the answers they need without delay, freeing IT professionals to focus on innovation and value creation instead of developing custom analytics.