Alexey Artemenko: Business Discovery is a business intelligence in DIY style

: Alexey, the term Business Discovery in the circles which are not devoted today, in our opinion, not very famous. Nevertheless, was this QlikTech technology the basis for the product strategy. Tell, please, who introduced this term into circulation and what it implies?

Alexey Artemenko: Yes, it is valid, the term Business Discovery is not so well-known in the Russian market first of all for two reasons. First, QlikView rather new product in the market business of the analysis in Russia though the situation also quickly changes, and, secondly, the term in itself western and if to translate it literally, then it is difficult to understand and estimate its essence comprehensively at once. So, Business Discovery is a Business Opening and quite so the western users of our system speak about the experience with it. They say that using QlikView they not just can receive the static analytical report necessary for them which will answer in advance formulated questions, and can, versatily investigating data of the business, independently, without the aid of IT to make in it discoveries. Opening which they did not even guess earlier and on the basis of which it is possible to make more correct management decisions on different hierarchy levels in any company.

TAdviser: Unlike Business Discovery, the term Business Intelligence or a business intelligence is clear even to the nonprofessional today. So in what the main difference between Business Discovery and BI, in fact, one cannot separately exist from another?

Alexey Artemenko: Correctly, cannot because Business Discovery (BD) is actually new Business Intellegence direction which is focused on final business of the user. In fact, the systems of this class integrate in themselves all functional power of the traditional analytical systems and simplicity of office applications, for example, of Microsoft Excel.

While the traditional business intelligence allows the user to see business his data, the Business Discovery systems give the chance to understand data, to interact with them. The traditional systems profess tough centralization and approach "from top to down" that strongly limits opportunities business of the user, and during the work with the BD systems the user receives freedom necessary for it to investigate data as he finds necessary – "from below-up", "from left to right", "from right to left" and so on.

And it does not need to formulate all the questions in advance, to investigate the data on the predeterminated ways and algorithms – it does everything as it is convenient to it. Still say about the systems of this class that it is DIY (Do It Yourself) of BI, i.e. "make analytics himself". Products of this class are so simple, flexible and convenient in use that make business the analysis available to any department in the organization, and not just for analysts. Though, of course, analysts the first see a difference in approach and become admirers of the systems of the class Business Discovery.

TAdviser: Whether all vendors which carry to market leaders of a business intelligence began to work on Business Discovery development? If I am not mistaken, announcements were done in this regard by Oracle? What other software products which could sustain QlikView competition are available in global market? In what your advantage in relation to these products?

Alexey Artemenko: Excellent question! I will not speak about competitors whom a large number and who try to copy us, and I will tell about the provision QlikView in the market and also about for what we are preferred by customers. Continuing a subject about Business Discovery, I consider it the most perspective direction both on world, and in the Russian market.

Reputable analytical company Gartner in the last report tells about it as it about "Data Discovery", puts us on the first place in this segment, estimating QlikView share at 48%. It also predicts the highest growth of this segment of a business intelligence. The companies which are developed and deliver solutions of this class propose to the customers simpler, convenient in work and fast means of the business analysis that as a result leads to reduction of terms of return of investments, lower total cost of ownership and satisfaction both business, and IT of users. I will mention one fact – according to reports of IDC, 77% of our clients nearly a half - in only 1 month implement the solution QlikView in 3 months, from them. And now compare it to average values on BI of the industry in general.

Our company was a pioneer in "in-memory" or data processing in RAM. Recently our many competitors went on this way to provide the acceptable speed of calculations, and we released already the 11th version of a product this fall. In-memory is not our only advantage. We offer the clients associative or coherent model of search using which an opportunity is provided:

• investigate data "on the fly", receiving answers to the questions formulated "on the course",  
• look for answers to questions somehow, and not just according to in advance registered routes,
• look for information with convenience and speed of Google.

And we also offer all these opportunities on almost any mobile device without additional costs and without installation of the additional software.

TAdviser: Business Discovery relies on a set of the developing advanced technologies, such, for example, as mobile technologies (in relation to corporate environment), means of joint work and others. In Russia mastering of these technologies business goes at the speed, and quite often catching up. How do you consider whether the Russian companies to the systems of the Business Discovery level ripened? Or you expect serious demand in the future?

Alexey Artemenko: Certainly, current trends and business of requirement have a direct impact on development of a product. So in the new version of QV11 we put emphasis on possibilities of joint work for simplification and acceleration of process of collective decision making and also on system operation on any mobile devices and its readiness to process large volumes of data in the organizations of the class Enterprise. By the way, for our achievements in Enterprise a Gartner segment placed us in the list of leaders of BI of the market. In this list we also are the second year in it an exclusive representative of the systems of the class Business Discovery.

But, both for western, and for the Russian users, basic things are main. Nobody will work with tools if they too difficult, too slow or do not provide the user with relevant information. Therefore modern business users wait from BI technologies first of all for ease of use, the high speed of a response and relevance of data.

Solutions on the QlikView platform provide:

• Ease of use due to interactive data visualization, convenience of search and an opportunity for work on almost any mobile devices.
• Response speed due to use of in-memory technology.
• Relevance of data at the expense of an opportunity to quickly add the or necessary data sources as with the help, and it is absolute without the aid of IT.

I urge our potential clients not to take me a word, and to visit the website www.qlikview.com or www.qlikview.ru, free of charge to download the full individual version of our product and to estimate those advantages which were got by more than 24,000 clients of QlikTech worldwide.

TAdviser: If to speak about clients of QlikView in the Russian-speaking countries, then who your typical customer? What companies of scale of business and what vertical industries most often buy your solutions?

Alexey Artemenko: Our product is unique the fact that it is suitable for clients of any amount of business and any industry. To us clients from whom a system business of the analysis is, as a rule, already purchased come, but, or it is not implemented, or for the reasons stated above (slow, difficult and so on.) it is not demanded business by users and analysts.

There are clients with specific tasks and requirements which best of all will suit QlikView – to quickly collect data from diverse sources, to make Ad-hoc to the analyst, to write and implement the analytical application for few days and other. Our product is taken, as a rule, for testing in one department, then when the product proves the efficiency, in another, the third and so on, and even in the organizations where there is a concept "corporate BI standard" and where we see the huge resistance from keepers of this standard. But business is necessary to users not the standard, but the working tool, the truth?

If to speak about the industries, then for today we are best of all provided in those areas where the huge competition where there is large volume of data and the need for operational acceptance the solution is observed is retail, distribution, production of consumer goods, pharmaceutics, insurance. Recently there is a serious interest from the banking sector, transport logistics, the telecommunication sphere.

In terms of geography we focus on Moscow and St. Petersburg. But in the last half a year-years we see the increasing interest from Russian regions, Ukraine, Belarus i.e. where solutions are dictated not by reasons of "corporate standards", and are based first of all on concepts of economic feasibility, efficiency, value for business of users.

TAdviser: Could you tell about one-two recent implementations of QlikView in our region most of which to you were remembered?

Alexey Artemenko: With pleasure! I will mention two recent projects implemented at customers of different level and the industry which in practice show advantages of approach of Business Discovery.

Brilliant Telecom is the young company which is providing services in the field of telecommunications and IT consulting and having the broad customer base including about 500 telecommunication operators worldwide. Problems which were solved within the project: o creation of the data warehouse and reporting system of o providing role access for users of o processing of large volume of o given "on the fly" an intensification of work of staff of sales department

The customer says that not only the main objectives were successfully solved, but also that the project paid for itself in short terms. It is connected with the fact that the solution based on QlikView allowed the company to break the trend characteristic of the VoIP-market. Such trend in work of VoIP-operators is decrease in marginality at increase in number of clients and volume of the named traffic. Implementing solution on the basis of QlikView allowed not only to save the being available margin level, but also to raise it due to more effective search of the working and more marginal directions at suppliers, flexible subsequent management by routing of traffic, application of forecasting methods and contrastive analysis.

The Danone-Yunimilk group is the largest producer of dairy products in Russia (about 30 plants) which basic principle – focus on health and innovations, care of consumers and permanent orientation to high quality of products. Problems which were solved within the project: o Possibility of operational preparation of the reporting of the internal standard o Identification of Effectiveness of Actions for Increase in Efficiency of Equipment O Analysis of Technology Idle Times, planning and optimization of loading of lines

According to the results of the project the customer received a modern BI system which helps to estimate timely efficiency of production lines of the plant and promotes operational acceptance of effective business solutions. A system allows to control efficiency of lines, to trace technology stops and their reasons.

One more feature of the implemented solution – all necessary data can be obtained by means of the browser from any computer or the notebook, the mobile device. Besides, the special client provides an opportunity offline - access: even when access to the server is impossible, data can be analyzed locally using the client application installed on the PC.

The analysis system of production efficiency is easy-to-work also service, it is easily configured: if necessary even the appearance of diagrams, tables and other elements of the application can be finished by the system administrator without participation of developers.

According to the customer instead of a standard set of reports with the fixed "viewing angle" of information now it has a data domain of data which can be "twisted" and considered from the different parties and with different extent of detailing that it facilitates and significantly accelerates acceptance of strategic management decisions.

TAdviser: Tell, please, what plans of QlikTech for business development in Russia? What new solutions will be presented at our market? Whether you are going to develop a partner network, a customer support and so on?

Alexey Artemenko: For last year we practically doubled the number of partners in Russia therefore in the nearest future we plan all our efforts to aim at the development of skills and competences of the existing partners, and new partners to sign only if we lack examination in any separate industries which already remained not so much.

Except point expansion of the sales channel we are going to work as own forces with a segment of large business more actively. So with a segment where we have resounding success in Europe and the USA and where we have a huge potential in Russia. I am convinced that the Russian companies will appreciate functionality of our product and examination of our partners which together will provide our users with simpler and convenient tool allowing to make operational and correct business solutions.