Business Intelligence and Analytics Assisted by Free Software Tools

Abstract

At present, companies face new economic models and to be dedicated a lot of time and resources to get, process, apply, and project information. If they do not collect the appropriate data, the information generated will not be accurate, the results will likely be wrong, and any decision made will not be the most appropriate. Business Intelligence (BI) and Business Analytics (BA), used properly, can present competitive advantages, allowing organizations to know their current status and forecast future market behaviour, carrying out proactive actions based on predictive and prescriptive analysis. In this work, it is proposed to assist small and medium businesses (PyMEs) by integrating BI and BA into their information systems. The case of a local transport PyME is presented where the benefits of applying free software tools, such as PowerBI Desktop, Orange, KNime, and Knowage, were analysed and evidenced.