Business Intelligence Notes
Subject Overview
The fourth Elective-I option, covering BI concepts, framework and infrastructure, data integration and ETL basics, multidimensional data modeling with star/
Subject at a glance
4
Units
28
Topics
4
Credits
4
Infographics
Unit-wise Syllabus
4 units — open any unit for detailed topic-wise notes, diagrams and important exam questions
- Digital data types (structured, semi-structured, unstructured)
- OLTP and OLAP (MOLAP, ROLAP, HOLAP)
- BI definitions
- framework
- data warehousing's role in BI
- BI infrastructure components
- process
- technology
- roles and responsibilities
- business applications and best practices
Structured
Rows and columns
Databases, spreadsheets
Semi-structured
Tags or keys, flexible
JSON, XML, emails
Unstructured
No predefined model
Images, video, free text
Study guide
This unit covers digital data types, OLTP and OLAP (MOLAP, ROLAP, HOLAP), BI definitions and framework, data warehousing's role, infrastructure, process, technology, roles and applications. Learn the types of data with examples.
- Data integration concepts
- needs and advantages
- common data integration approaches
- metadata types and sources
- data quality and profiling concepts
- introduction to ETL
- 1
Identify sources
- 2
Profile data quality
- 3
Map metadata
- 4
Extract, transform, load
- 5
Validate and reconcile
- 6
Publish to the warehouse
Study guide
You study data integration concepts and approaches, metadata, data quality and profiling and an introduction to ETL. Always profile data quality before analysis.
- Data and dimension modeling
- ER modeling vs multidimensional modeling
- dimensions/facts/cubes/attributes/hierarchies
- star and snowflake schema
- business metrics and KPIs
- creating cubes using Microsoft Excel
Facts
Measures: revenue, units
Dimensions
Time, product, region
Hierarchies
Year → quarter → month
Attributes
Product colour, region manager
KPIs
Targets for measures
Study guide
You study dimension modelling, ER versus multidimensional modelling, dimensions, facts, cubes, hierarchies, star and snowflake schemas, KPIs and creating cubes in Excel. Build a small cube and pivot it.
- The Malcolm Baldrige quality performance framework
- balanced scorecard
- enterprise dashboard
- balanced scorecard vs dashboard
- enterprise reporting using MS Access/Excel
- best practices in dashboard design
Purpose
Track strategy
Monitor operations
Time frame
Periodic (monthly, quarterly)
Real-time or daily
Measures
Four perspectives, KPIs linked to goals
Operational metrics
Users
Executives
Managers and teams
Study guide
You study the Baldrige framework, the balanced scorecard, enterprise dashboards, scorecard versus dashboard, reporting with Access and Excel and dashboard best practices. Design a one-page dashboard for a business.
Why Business Intelligence Matters
BI turns data into decisions and BI developer and analyst roles are common in companies of every size.
How to Prepare for Business Intelligence
- Build a dashboard in Excel or Power BI from real data.
- Learn star schema design.
- Define KPIs for a business case.
Business Intelligence: Frequently Asked Questions
What is a KPI?
A key performance indicator is a measurable value that shows how effectively a business is achieving an objective.