Business Intelligence: The Savvy Manager's Guide (The Savvy Manager's Guides) (Paperback)

by David Loshin (Author) "Imagine that you are the sales manager for a large retail organization and that you were able, within some probability, to predict how much money..." (more)
Key Phrases: productivity analytics, business rules system, business rules approach, Postal Service, Data Warehousing Institute, United States (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Book Description
Interesting, timely, and above all, useful, Savvy Guides give IT managers the information they need to effectively manage their technologists, as well as conscientiously inform business decision makers, in the midst of technological revolution.

Product Description
Business Intelligence describes the basic architectural components of a business intelligence environment, ranging from traditional topics such as business process modeling, data modeling, and more modern topics such as business rule systems, data profiling, information compliance and data quality, data warehousing, and data mining. This book progresses through a logical sequence, starting with data model infrastructure, then data preparation, followed by data analysis, integration, knowledge discovery, and finally the actual use of discovered knowledge. The book contains a quick reference guide for business intelligence terminology. Business Intelligence is part of Morgan Kaufmann's Savvy Manager's Guide series.

* Provides clear explanations without technical jargon, followed by in-depth descriptions.
* Articulates the business value of new technology, while providing relevant introductory technical background.
* Contains a handy quick-reference to technologies and terminologies.
* Guides managers through developing, administering, or simply understanding business intelligence technology.
* Bridges the business-technical gap.
* Is Web enhanced. Companion sites to the book and series provide value-added information, links, discussions, and more.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 200 pages
• Publisher: Morgan Kaufmann; 1 edition (June 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1558609164
• ISBN-13: 978-1558609167
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #266,111 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential Reading for BI Professionals, November 12, 2003

By	David Wells (Seattle, WA) - See all my reviews

This book is a must read for any business or information technology (IT) professional who is involved in data warehousing and business intelligence (BI) projects. As Director of Education for The Data Warehousing Institute (TDWI) I'm intimately involved in the learning needs and processes of BI professionals. I firmly believe that the future of BI depends on better integration of technology with business at a human level. Business leaders must become more IT-savvy, and IT leaders must become more business-savvy. David Loshin's book is a fine start for both groups. You'll gain an understanding of business intelligence, business management disciplines, data warehousing, and how all of the pieces work together.

As a speaker at conferences and seminars I frequently challenge IT people to become more business savvy. My recommendation -- read David Loshin's "Business Intelligence: The Savvy Manager's Guide" first. Then read a BPM book, a CRM book, a supply chain book, and so on. If you're working in IT and have data warehouse or BI responsibilities, I make the same recommendation to you.

The proof, however, is in the practice. At a recent TDWI conference (San Diego, November 2003) this book sold out within the first few days of the event -- before Loshin had even arrived at the conference to teach a class. The Savvy Manager's Guide was among the top-selling books at this event and the first the be sold out.

Read this book. You'll be glad that you did!

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent structured and indepth presentation of topic, November 1, 2005

By	climbhigh - See all my reviews

The book does a fantastic job of providing a managerial level overview of the business intelligence area and the various topics it includes (ETL, Data Cleansing, Metadata, Data Werehousing, ....).

To me its easily the first book one should start with in understanding these areas. After which you can choose to dig into areas of interest - data mining, ....

I direct a group of product managers in one of the leading business intelligence/ETL companies in this arena and I have made this required reading for all my product managers.

I highly recommend this book. Simply buy it - read it.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good Overview for Business Manager, October 12, 2005

By	ZJS (California) - See all my reviews

This book does a very good job of providing an overview and insight into the concepts of business intelligence without getting bogged down in the details of technology. The book covers a wide range of topics from the value of business intellligence (BI) to the issues of data quality and information compliance. Additionally, the book includes a quick reference guide at the end of the book which is an executive summary of the topics presented and at the end of many chapters includes a section titled "To Learn More" which provides links and references to further explore the topic.

I am an IT professional familiar with BI, charged with designing and implementing a BI stretgy for my organization. This book did not add significantly to my knowledge, however as a tool for those unfamiliar with the concepts and challenges of BI this is a very good read and reference tool.