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RFID, Business Intelligence (BI), Mobile Computing, and the Cloud
BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE/BUSINESS ANALYTICS
The combination of technologies such as RFID and mobile computing (described in the
following section) with traditional ERP system data is providing companies with an
exponential growth in business data. While this data plays a fundamental role in the day-
to-day operations of a business, it also provides an opportunity for a company to perform
sophisticated analyses to determine ways to improve its business. Business intelligence (BI),
also referred to as business analytics, is a term used to describe a range of different
applications and technologies used to extract and analyze large amounts of data to aid in
decision making. BI includes data-mining tools and querying tools, which are often
interactive and visual. The growth of data-generating technologies such as RFID,
combined with improvements in BI tools, has led to significant growth in the BI market. Prior 219
to 2008, almost all of SAP’s ERP business came from traditional ERP suite applications.
However, in the period from 2008 to 2011, the percentage of the business that came from BI
rose to 50 percent.
Figure 8-1 shows a framework for how SAP views BI.

Data sources Analytic capabilities Access

Analytic
applications
Social Enterprise
media Business performance
intelligence
management
Collaboration
Enterprise Governance,
information risk, and
management
compliance
Data
warehousing

Source Line: Course Technology/Cengage Learning.

FIGURE 8-1 SAP Business Intelligence (BI) framework

On the left side of the diagram are the potential BI data sources, which are growing
both in number and in the volume of data produced. For example, sources such as
Facebook, Twitter, and other social media applications can provide information on
consumer reaction to new products.
The center section represents the analytical capabilities of BI; it includes items such
as analytic applications and business intelligence, which are similar sets of data analysis
tools. In SAP’s framework, analytic applications are data analysis tools applied to specific

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