KorusConsulting modernizes BNS Group analytical reporting system

2021: Creating a Data Warehouse

On December 3, 2021, Korus Consulting Group announced the creation of a data warehouse based on MS SQL Server and a data showcase based on MS Analysis Services for BNS Group. These tools have accelerated reporting and business analysis processes. The time taken to prepare sales and balance data has been reduced from eight hours to one hour.

BNS Group operates a retail chain of clothing and footwear stores, consisting of more than 100 of its own sales outlets in three countries as of December 2021. For several years, the company has been using the analytical reporting system to analyze business indicators. But the solution had a number of limitations: for example, due to the low performance of the data collection and preparation processes, users received analytics with delays. In addition, most staff used it not as a tool for obtaining reports and analysis, but only as a "transport mechanism" for uploading data from dashboards to spreadsheets in which they had already carried out the necessary analysis. In this regard, work with data required considerable work, and reporting could not be obtained quickly.

The management of the retailer decided to improve the system. To choose the best solution, BNS Group conducted preliminary tests of various upgrade scenarios. The version of the architecture proposed by the KORUS Consulting Group of Companies at the testing stage showed high calculation speed and convenience for independent analysis by business users.

The main goal of the data warehouse project was to accelerate the current reporting and analysis processes. The download of data from ERP the system to the created data store implemented on the MS SQL Server was accelerated. As a result of the upgrade, the production time for sales and balances was reduced by more than 8 times (from eight hours to one hour).

The use of OLAP-Excel technology significantly accelerated the work of reporting forms on key dimensions and indicators. Users were able to work with Excel data online, without the need to pre-upload it from the analytical system.

By accelerating the loading of up-to-date sales and balance data, processing and analysis, we have been able to improve business unit planning and operations. Other units are interested in this system. In this regard, we plan to expand the functionality of the solution in a number of areas, "said Vladimir Shatalov, Director of IT at BNS Group.

Having a BI tool in your company does not always mean that your organization benefits from its data. If the business intelligence system is slow or does not support user-relevant analysis scenarios, it needs to be upgraded. We are grateful to our colleagues at BNS Group for entrusting us with the implementation of the project to improve the reporting and analysis system. As a result of the joint work, it was possible to provide users with a more effective tool for making managerial decisions, "said Alexei Kuchin, Director of Business Development at BI KORUS Consulting Group of Companies.