Description
Accurately, clearly and efficiently assist the university community, including but not limited to, senior leadership, functional areas, and academic departments, by providing the best possible service and promoting effective operations analysis and long and short‐term planning through dynamic, data‐driven decision making.
Revised: December 11, 2013 Page 1
Tactical Plan for Business Intelligence at WMU
Three?Year Status Report: October 2013
Business Intelligence Mission Statement
Accurately, clearly and efficiently assist the university community, including but not limited to, senior
leadership, functional areas, and academic departments, by providing the best possible service and
promoting effective operations analysis and long and short?term planning through dynamic, data?driven
decision making.
Five?Year Vision Statement: November 2010
Led by the Office of Institutional Research, business intelligence at Western Michigan University will:
? Respond quickly to the majority of information requests, due to:
o Better data management and the increased availability of historical data
o Clearly defined reporting processes
o Clearly defined roles of BI staff
o Better task management, resulting in less task redundancy
o Anticipating and meeting the needs of information consumers
? Provide a variety of resources currently unavailable to information consumers, including training
sessions; comprehensive documentation for report development, report usage, and data usage;
a knowledge base; and a user forum
? Provide comprehensive dashboards for evaluation and planning at both the university and
department levels
? Provide a more dynamic environment for information consumers
? Foster an environment that promotes engagement in business intelligence at every level of
decision making
Guiding Principles
1. Information is a university asset.
2. Consumers should be able to easily aggregate, manipulate and display data as actionable
information
i
.
3. BI should be built from the bottom?up, easily able to satisfy the needs of non?technical users
ii
.
4. The BI team should remain objective and unbiased when delivering information.
5. The BI team should make every effort possible to ensure that information consumers
understand the information they receive and analyze it within the proper context.
6. The Office of Institutional Research is a service unit to support the university community and the
achievement of the university’s teaching, research, and service missions.
Revised: December 11, 2013 Page 2
Goals and Strategies
I. Data Organization
Current situation:
Data are located in multiple systems in many different formats. Some data are easy to access
and integrate while other data are in the form of Excel spreadsheets, text files, and Access
databases , which make them difficult to use.
The current practice is to use the reporting views provided by Ellucian within Cognos Framework
Manager model. Some of these views are inefficient. There is also data redundancy within
models, and there are too many models to maintain well. There is a lack of documentation and a
lack of comprehensive knowledge of the underlying tables, their structure, and the flow of data
from Banner into the ODS.
Goals: To reorganize data in a way that improves report performance and data usability/flexibility,
reduces redundancy, and makes it easier for report authors to write effective reports.
Steps to goal achievement:
1. Import historical data into the ODS
In order to make census data available for long?term trend reporting, census snapshots
should be imported into an Oracle database. This solution will also allow us to maintain
data in a central repository and minimize the risk of differences between distributed
user databases.
Progress: First phase nearly completed. We have imported into the ODS at least five
years of census snapshots. We are currently in the process of auditing these snapshots
and incorporating them into data models.
2. Create freeze tables that match our business practice
The ODS tables and views were built by Ellucian, and as such, they are general purpose
views of the data and reflect Ellucian’s vision of how each school would use the data.
While a large majority of WMU’s data needs can be met with the out?of?box data,
several reports would benefit from the creation of tables and/or views that more closely
align with WMU business practices. Some potential uses for customized freeze tables
are comprehensive transfer and advisor reports.
Additionally, we need to develop and document standards and practices for identifying
data, establishing stewardship, and incorporating the data into the data store and/or
data warehouse.
Revised: December 11, 2013 Page 3
Progress: First phase completed. All known business needs have been met, but we
would like to explore additional ways in which data may be frozen to support decision
making.
3. Increase knowledge of the data in the ODS and the EDW amongst the BI team
There are several data models used for reporting, however many of the people who are
responsible for writing and maintaining reports are not familiar enough with data
location or context. The documentation provided by the vendor can be cryptic, and it
does not document WMU business practices. Through the creation of a knowledge
base, WMU produced documentation, and an in?house instructor led training program,
we should be able to address the current knowledge deficit. These topics will be
addressed further with documentation (§IV) and training (§VI).
Progress: Ongoing. Documentation is created for specific topics as needed, and
information is delivered electronically and through regular face?to?face meetings with
report developers. Additional formal documentation is needed.
4. Create and document best practices for table and view use
Ellucian suggests that customers use the provided reporting views for their reporting
needs. Whenever possible, we follow this suggested model; however, some views
perform poorly. They contain several function calls and fields that are not relevant to
our needs. These views need to be examined. When we determine that a view is to slow
for our reporting needs, alternative tables or views should be created and used. The
number of views joined within models needs to be examined to increase performance.
In addition, Oracle best practices should be considered.
Progress: Ongoing. Views have been evaluated as needed, but a more formal
evaluation process needs to be completed.
5. Add indexes to tables and modify views where appropriate
When data are frozen in the ODS, Banner automatically creates indexes on the event
and the event data. However, it does not create indexes on key fields. Freeze tables
should be examined and indexes added where appropriate.
Progress: Completed for known issues. We will continue to monitor performance and
make changes as needed.
6. Standardize model naming conventions and design
The current data models use the names that were delivered with the ODS. Sometimes
these names do not convey the WMU business concepts adequately. This includes the
names of the packages (folders) and the names of the tables and fields.
Revised: December 11, 2013 Page 4
Progress: Ongoing. We have begun model redesign and consolidation. This will make
renaming and standardization easier to manage. Business names have been determined
and used in the newer census?based models.
7. GAP analysis on the EDW
When the EDW was initially installed, we determined that the EDW did not fully meet
the needs of WMU. However, with the subsequent upgrades, Ellucian made changes to
the EDW that would allow us to include more information and implement WMU
business practices. Before we can utilize the new functionality, we need to define data
and reporting needs and compare them to EDW functionality.
Progress: Ongoing. A gap analysis has been done, and we are still unable to use most
of the operational stars that are provided by Ellucian. We have looked at editing the
mappings to match our business practices but it will take a lot of effort to make them
more usable.
II. Report Organization
Current situation: Reports are loosely organized within top?level categories based on suspected
frequency of use. Folder subcategories are based around Cognos packages (e.g. Academic Outcome,
Enrollment) or report functions (e.g. Sport, Institutional Research). The arbitrary top?level categories,
the fact that package names may not be intuitive to users, and the sheer volume of reports makes this
system hard to navigate.
Goal: To improve the user experience by organizing reports in such a way as to make Cognos easier to
navigate.
Steps to goal achievement:
1. Evaluate current report use
Determine which reports are being used and by whom. Generally, try to discern how
people are using information delivered through Cognos at the University. Based on this
evaluation, determine which reports can be disabled or removed and reduce or
eliminate report dependency. In addition, address ways in which we can guide users
toward optimal information usage.
Progress: Ongoing. We have evaluated all of the major reporting areas and identified
candidates for modification or deletion. Evaluation of lesser used and single?purpose
reports is ongoing.
2. Eliminate report redundancy
Revised: December 11, 2013 Page 5
Minimize the number of reports available by eliminating redundancies and combining
like reports. This will aid in the overall ease of navigation and simplify the task of
improving the directory structure (3).
Progress: Ongoing. Based on the report use evaluation, we have rewritten the most
commonly accessed reports. In many cases, this resulted in significant report
consolidation or deletion. To date, this has resulted in the removal of over 600 legacy
reports, making the reporting portal much more navigable and user?friendly.
3. Improve the directory structure by making it more intuitive to the user
Based on the report usage evaluation, devise a directory structure that will allow users
the most intuitive navigation of Cognos directories. Attempt to increase Cognos usage
in part by minimizing user frustration with navigation.
Progress: Completed. We have implemented a new directory structure that more
closely aligns with the organization of the university. All informally collected user
feedback has been positive with the most frequent comment being that the new
structure is much more logical. The new structure will coexist with the old directory
structure while we continue to audit and rewrite legacy reports.
4. Standardize report naming conventions
Develop a standard naming convention for Cognos reports. The new convention should
allow users to easily determine, at least at a broad level, the purpose of a given report
based on the report name and should lend itself to easy report classification and
grouping.
Progress: Completed. The new directory structure and all new reports are based on a
numeric prefix that uniquely identifies the report and the path.
5. Improve report performance
Evaluate reports to address performance concerns. Attempt to minimize report run
time and thereby ease user frustration. This task will be closely tied with data
organization (§I).
Progress: Ongoing. This task closely aligns with the steps 1 and 2. Each time we audit
and modify a report, we test performance. As such, all of the most commonly used
reports have been optimized.
6. Standardize report design
Develop report design specifications for the report developer community. These
specifications should create a common look and feel, making use of WMU colors and
branding; include information that will assist in identification of report locations and
Revised: December 11, 2013 Page 6
report ownership; create reports that are aesthetically pleasing and use established
data visualization techniques.
Progress: Completed. We have developed report design standards and delivered the
new standards to the university report authors. All reports being placed in the publicly
accessible areas of the new directory structure must adhere to the new design
standards.
7. Establish report ownership/stewardship
Assign each report to a functional office that will manage report maintenance.
Progress: Ongoing. This task closely aligns with steps 1 and 2. As reports are audited
and modified, ownership is also determined.
III. Business Intelligence Solutions
Current situation: We own the Cognos Business Intelligence suite. This suite of tools consists of a
reporting tool (Report Studio), a performance management tool (Metrics Manager), an ad?hoc query
tool (Query Studio), a personal analytics tool (Cognos Insight), and a data analysis tool (Analysis Studio).
Goal: To improve the user experience by implementing tools that will provide more variety and
flexibility for information delivery and analysis.
Steps to goal achievement:
1. Train super users to use Report Studio
Train super users or BI ambassadors (more in §VI 3.) in functional areas and
departments who will be able to consolidate requests and create and maintain
departmental reports.
Progress: No progress.
2. Implement Query Studio models and provide documentation and training
Roll out Query Studio to allow functional areas and departments to run advanced ad?
hoc queries, bypassing involvement of the BI team.
Progress: Ongoing. Preliminary models have been built and tested with the
Admissions office, but we were not able to successfully remove the BI team’s
involvement in the creation and running of the ad?hoc reports. This item may be
supplemented or replaced by the implementation of Cognos Business Insight.
3. Implement Metrics Manager and provide documentation and training
Roll out Metrics Manager, allowing senior leadership to monitor performance at a
glance with university?level scorecards.
Revised: December 11, 2013 Page 7
Progress: Ongoing. Metrics Manager was implemented with usable data. Institutional
Effectiveness has used information from Metrics Manager to construct its Measures of
Institutional Effectiveness Web site. Further evaluation is needed but will be guided by
the needs of senior leadership.
4. Implement Analysis Studio and provide documentation and training
When there is a need for a more robust analysis tool to aid in decision support, we can
implement this tool. This is part of a long term plan.
Progress: No progress. This item may be supplemented or replaced by the
implementation of Cognos Business Insight.
5. Evaluate Transformer for potential implementation
This is a powerful tool; however, we own an older version of the tool and at the time of
this printing it is unknown how long IBM will continue to support it. Further evaluation
is required.
Progress: We have determined that the cost of ownership for this tool is not justified
for the small user base. In addition, much of the OLAP functionality can be found in new
tools such as Business Insight.
6. Implement Cognos Business Insight
Roll out Cognos Business Insight to allow users to build customized dashboards and
reports using predesigned content. We will start by producing content based on the
provost’s identified academic operational indicators. Interviews with other
administrators, primarily deans and chairs, will be conducted to determine additional
needs.
Progress: We have begun construction of dimensional models, and some content has
been produced. Workspace templates and content are currently being reviewed.
IV. Documentation
Current situation: Aside from a small number of documents housed within Cognos itself that address
specific technical issues, very little documentation for the Cognos system currently exists.
Goal: To assist users and the BI team by creating documentation about data organization, report
organization, report creation, reporting procedures, policies and governance.
Steps to goal achievement:
1. Define BI roles and methods of governance
Revised: December 11, 2013 Page 8
Establish clearly defined roles for individuals involved in BI administration, development
and analysis. Defined roles should encompass data updates, security, information
delivery, communication, and the administration of the BI environment.
Progress: Partially complete. Roles have been defined within the Office of
Institutional Research, but a more comprehensive document delineating roles needs to
be created. Further efforts will be led by and coordinated with the university’s data
governance body and the Director of Data Management.
2. Define a communication plan
Establish a clearly defined plan for communicating with report developers, Cognos
ambassadors, and the broader user community. The plan should include both active
(i.e. e?mail correspondence, newsletters) and passive (i.e. knowledge base, Web site)
types of communication to maximize audience engagement.
Progress: Partially complete. Methods and standards of communication have been
established for communicating actively with the reporting community and users, but we
still need to develop a formalized communication plan.
3. Develop policy for the appropriate use of data
Work in conjunction with other individuals and functional areas (e.g. the university
FERPA officer, OIT, Financial Aid, HR) to develop policies that outline restrictions on
confidential data use and that identify the roles of data stewards in managing that use.
In addition, these policies should address data that may not be strictly confidential but
may still be considered sensitive. Ideally, these policies will create a framework for
using the minimum effective data in reporting.
Progress: Ongoing. This work will tie closely to the work of the data governance body
at the university.
4. Create data dictionaries for the ODS, EDW and report packages
Data dictionaries and ERDs should be created and shared with report developers and
users. Regular review should be completed to ensure dictionaries and diagrams are up
to date.
Progress: No progress.
5. Centralize report scheduling/procedures
Create and share a master list of scheduled reports to assist in distributing server load.
Additionally, formalize procedures to assist report developers in scheduling new
reports.
Revised: December 11, 2013 Page 9
Progress: Partially complete. We monitor report scheduling to distribute load and
ensure reports are not scheduled during database refresh or maintenance windows.
6. Create documentation for report organization/directory structure/naming conventions
Progress: Partially complete. This task aligns closely with task II 6.
7. Customize ODS documentation to match WMU business practices
Adapt out?of?the?box documentation to more accurately reflect WMU business
practices and share updated documents with report developers and consumers.
Progress: No progress.
V. Maintenance
Current situation: No formal procedures have been defined for maintaining the ODS, EDW, or
Cognos. In the past, we did not apply patches, fixes and updates. Our system crashed several times
throughout the day. Although we are monitoring this more consistently, we have still lapsed in applying
the latest fixes.
Goal: To develop a formalized plan for monitoring updates and report usage, applying fixes and
upgrading the system.
Steps to goal achievement:
1. Implement auditing software
Cognos provides a database that will allow the BI team to track report usage and
monitor system performance.
Progress: Completed. We have implemented the Cognos auditing capabilities and
now have two years of audit history.
2. Auditing data practices and procedures
As soon as the auditing system is online, reports will be written in order to determine
how to best use the available information.
Progress: Completed. We regularly use Cognos auditing capabilities to determine the
audience for and frequency of report use.
3. Investigation of a change management system and version control software
Change management and version control software helps to maintain control over
updates to the system. This will make it easier to manage report requests, reports, and
data.
Revised: December 11, 2013 Page 10
Progress: Partially complete. We are using built?in versioning functionality within
Cognos at this time and Footprints for change management. Further evaluation of
processes and tools may be required.
4. Study current groups, roles, reports, and data to implement a more robust security system
Group?level security is the responsibility of OIT; however, the BI team should be
involved in the development of these groups and roles to help minimize the amount of
maintenance.
Progress: Ongoing. Preliminary investigation showed the difficulty in implementing
security changes. Cognos implemented security changes in the Cognos development
area, but we are unable to implement them in production until we get a consensus on
which data need to be secured.
5. Minimize manual maintenance for term specific reports and all other reports that contain
term/year based prompts (i.e. Cohorts, Attributes)
This will require working with functional areas to determine the best way to use cohorts
and attributes and prompts.
Progress: Ongoing. This task closely aligns with II 1 and 2. As reports are audited and
revised, we take steps to eliminate or reduce maintenance where possible.
6. Cognos license auditing for compliance
As we implement more BI tools, there will be a greater need to work with OIT and
security officers to ensure we stay in compliance with the IBM contract.
Progress: Current audit complete. This will be an ongoing audit done every two to
three years when renewing our Cognos License.
7. Create policies, procedure, and communication plans in conjunction with OIT to:
a. Track ODS/EDW/Cognos modifications in future upgrades
b. Monitor Patch/RPEs and their affects on WMU
c. Plan upgrades
Progress: Complete. We worked closely with OIT to develop the procedures and plans
for these items, and ongoing maintenance has been improved.
VI. Training
Current situation: No formal training procedures have been defined. In the past, Cognos training
sessions were held at the start of the fall semester, and individuals were allowed to schedule one?on?
one training with the Data Architect.
Revised: December 11, 2013 Page 11
Goal: To develop formalized training procedures that will maximize the benefit to trainees while most
effectively using available resources. To empower users and functional areas to find answers to their
reporting questions by using a variety of resources, including in?house documentation, public Web
resources, and the campus reporting community.
Steps to goal achievement:
1. Create a knowledge base for IR practices, data changes, notes
Create a centralized electronic knowledge base, accessible to report developers and
consumers, that houses documentation for BI standards and practices, notes about data
changes (e.g. freeze data changes, structural changes to databases, or data usage
changes), and other BI policies.
Progress: Ongoing. Currently, information is shared with report developers via access
to a network share. Evaluation of additional tools is ongoing.
2. Create a formal training plan involving instructor?led sessions
Develop a training plan that defines the frequency, topics, and audiences for instructor?
led sessions. The plan should encompass training for report developers, BI
ambassadors, and various levels of report consumers.
Progress: Ongoing. End?user training sessions have been developed and used
throughout the year. The sessions are continually refined based on attendee feedback.
Report developer training is ongoing and is based on the needs and interests of the
Cognos Report Writers Group.
3. Identify and cultivate BI reporting ambassadors in each of the functional areas/departments
Identify report developers or superusers in each functional area or department who
serve as “ambassadors” for IR and will be able to assist others in their area in report
development or use.
Progress: No progress.
4. Create and host Train the Trainer sessions for ambassadors
Ambassadors should be trained in report development techniques, data identification
for different reporting needs, university policies regarding data use, and basic analysis.
Progress: No progress.
5. Create an electronic forum for the campus reporting community to share knowledge and
resources
Create a forum, similar to a newsgroup in format, which will allow report developers
and consumers to share knowledge with each other. The forum could be hosted
Revised: December 11, 2013 Page 12
internally or externally but should be moderated by a member of IR to answer
questions, prevent the spread of misinformation, and prevent security risks.
Progress: Research is ongoing.
6. Develop a strategy for communicating reporting solution developments (report/package
modifications, changes in best practices, etc.) to the user community
Evaluate and select the best format, delivery method (e.g. newsletter, e?mail, Web site,
etc.), and schedule to distribute useful information to report developers and consumers.
Progress: Completed. We use a combination of organizational knowledge and the
Cognos auditing capabilities to target the affected users for direct e?mail
communication.
VII. Strategic Planning
Current situation: Currently, WMU does not take advantage of its size and status as a large Ellucian
Banner, ODS, and EDW customer. We do not participate in the Large School Consortium and only
recently started sending a BI representative to the Ellucian Summit.
Goal: To develop the skill sets of the BI team members and to use those skills to set goals, develop and
implement plans to meet goals, and evaluate outcomes.
Steps to goal achievement:
1. Develop relationships with other large public universities who also use Banner (ODS/EDW)
and Cognos
Progress: Ongoing.
2. Develop relationship with Ellucian to drive future development of software. Join the large
school consortium
Progress: Ongoing. We have joined the large school consortium.
3. Study Summit presentations and documentation to identify potential improvements to our
BI architecture and processes, as well as which of our currently practices should be modified
or discontinued.
Progress: Ongoing. This happens bi?annually.
4. Disaster recovery
Revised: December 11, 2013 Page 13
Develop a comprehensive disaster recovery plan. This will require working with OIT to
test backup software and verify its usability.
Progress: Completed. OIT has a comprehensive disaster recovery plan and IR has
tested and verified the usability of the data.
5. Evaluate how information delivery in the Cognos environment ties back to university
mission and goals.
Progress: Ongoing.
6. Integrate multiple data sources in a single reporting tool
The IR office will need to work with other university offices to determine the feasibility
and best methods of incorporating data from satellite information systems into the
operational data store.
Progress: We are currently using student data from Banner and HR data from
PeopleSoft. We are working with the Office of Admissions to get access to student
recruitment data (e.g. EMAS and ACT data). Exploration of the possibility of integrating
the DegreeWorks system is also underway.
7. Develop a greater presence with professional societies
Progress: Ongoing. We are active within the Higher Education Data Warehousing
Forum and keep current with the Association of Institutional Research. In addition, we
are regularly represented at the regional IBM Cognos Users Group.
8. Develop leadership and project management skills of the BI Team
Progress: Ongoing. Members of the BI team have participated in the Academic
Leadership Academy and have taken courses related to project management.
9. Establish more formal interaction with various change management teams
Progress: Ongoing. We participate in both the PeopleSoft Change Committee and the
Student Systems Integration Team.
VIII. Evaluation
Current situation: No formal mechanism for evaluation of the BI initiative has yet been established.
Goal: To accurately and meaningfully measure the effectiveness of the BI initiative and related
achievement of goals.
Revised: December 11, 2013 Page 14
Steps to goal achievement:
1. Develop performance metrics. As new information becomes available, we will be able to
create metrics to evaluate the goals in this strategic plan. This will allow us to more
accurately determine which areas need improvement.
Progress: No progress.
i
Quinn, Kevin; “Five Rules for BI Success”; Information Management Newsletters; September 21, 2010
ii
Quinn, Kevin; “Five Rules for BI Success”; Information Management Newsletters; September 21, 2010
doc_348933834.pdf
Accurately, clearly and efficiently assist the university community, including but not limited to, senior leadership, functional areas, and academic departments, by providing the best possible service and promoting effective operations analysis and long and short‐term planning through dynamic, data‐driven decision making.
Revised: December 11, 2013 Page 1
Tactical Plan for Business Intelligence at WMU
Three?Year Status Report: October 2013
Business Intelligence Mission Statement
Accurately, clearly and efficiently assist the university community, including but not limited to, senior
leadership, functional areas, and academic departments, by providing the best possible service and
promoting effective operations analysis and long and short?term planning through dynamic, data?driven
decision making.
Five?Year Vision Statement: November 2010
Led by the Office of Institutional Research, business intelligence at Western Michigan University will:
? Respond quickly to the majority of information requests, due to:
o Better data management and the increased availability of historical data
o Clearly defined reporting processes
o Clearly defined roles of BI staff
o Better task management, resulting in less task redundancy
o Anticipating and meeting the needs of information consumers
? Provide a variety of resources currently unavailable to information consumers, including training
sessions; comprehensive documentation for report development, report usage, and data usage;
a knowledge base; and a user forum
? Provide comprehensive dashboards for evaluation and planning at both the university and
department levels
? Provide a more dynamic environment for information consumers
? Foster an environment that promotes engagement in business intelligence at every level of
decision making
Guiding Principles
1. Information is a university asset.
2. Consumers should be able to easily aggregate, manipulate and display data as actionable
information
i
.
3. BI should be built from the bottom?up, easily able to satisfy the needs of non?technical users
ii
.
4. The BI team should remain objective and unbiased when delivering information.
5. The BI team should make every effort possible to ensure that information consumers
understand the information they receive and analyze it within the proper context.
6. The Office of Institutional Research is a service unit to support the university community and the
achievement of the university’s teaching, research, and service missions.
Revised: December 11, 2013 Page 2
Goals and Strategies
I. Data Organization
Current situation:
Data are located in multiple systems in many different formats. Some data are easy to access
and integrate while other data are in the form of Excel spreadsheets, text files, and Access
databases , which make them difficult to use.
The current practice is to use the reporting views provided by Ellucian within Cognos Framework
Manager model. Some of these views are inefficient. There is also data redundancy within
models, and there are too many models to maintain well. There is a lack of documentation and a
lack of comprehensive knowledge of the underlying tables, their structure, and the flow of data
from Banner into the ODS.
Goals: To reorganize data in a way that improves report performance and data usability/flexibility,
reduces redundancy, and makes it easier for report authors to write effective reports.
Steps to goal achievement:
1. Import historical data into the ODS
In order to make census data available for long?term trend reporting, census snapshots
should be imported into an Oracle database. This solution will also allow us to maintain
data in a central repository and minimize the risk of differences between distributed
user databases.
Progress: First phase nearly completed. We have imported into the ODS at least five
years of census snapshots. We are currently in the process of auditing these snapshots
and incorporating them into data models.
2. Create freeze tables that match our business practice
The ODS tables and views were built by Ellucian, and as such, they are general purpose
views of the data and reflect Ellucian’s vision of how each school would use the data.
While a large majority of WMU’s data needs can be met with the out?of?box data,
several reports would benefit from the creation of tables and/or views that more closely
align with WMU business practices. Some potential uses for customized freeze tables
are comprehensive transfer and advisor reports.
Additionally, we need to develop and document standards and practices for identifying
data, establishing stewardship, and incorporating the data into the data store and/or
data warehouse.
Revised: December 11, 2013 Page 3
Progress: First phase completed. All known business needs have been met, but we
would like to explore additional ways in which data may be frozen to support decision
making.
3. Increase knowledge of the data in the ODS and the EDW amongst the BI team
There are several data models used for reporting, however many of the people who are
responsible for writing and maintaining reports are not familiar enough with data
location or context. The documentation provided by the vendor can be cryptic, and it
does not document WMU business practices. Through the creation of a knowledge
base, WMU produced documentation, and an in?house instructor led training program,
we should be able to address the current knowledge deficit. These topics will be
addressed further with documentation (§IV) and training (§VI).
Progress: Ongoing. Documentation is created for specific topics as needed, and
information is delivered electronically and through regular face?to?face meetings with
report developers. Additional formal documentation is needed.
4. Create and document best practices for table and view use
Ellucian suggests that customers use the provided reporting views for their reporting
needs. Whenever possible, we follow this suggested model; however, some views
perform poorly. They contain several function calls and fields that are not relevant to
our needs. These views need to be examined. When we determine that a view is to slow
for our reporting needs, alternative tables or views should be created and used. The
number of views joined within models needs to be examined to increase performance.
In addition, Oracle best practices should be considered.
Progress: Ongoing. Views have been evaluated as needed, but a more formal
evaluation process needs to be completed.
5. Add indexes to tables and modify views where appropriate
When data are frozen in the ODS, Banner automatically creates indexes on the event
and the event data. However, it does not create indexes on key fields. Freeze tables
should be examined and indexes added where appropriate.
Progress: Completed for known issues. We will continue to monitor performance and
make changes as needed.
6. Standardize model naming conventions and design
The current data models use the names that were delivered with the ODS. Sometimes
these names do not convey the WMU business concepts adequately. This includes the
names of the packages (folders) and the names of the tables and fields.
Revised: December 11, 2013 Page 4
Progress: Ongoing. We have begun model redesign and consolidation. This will make
renaming and standardization easier to manage. Business names have been determined
and used in the newer census?based models.
7. GAP analysis on the EDW
When the EDW was initially installed, we determined that the EDW did not fully meet
the needs of WMU. However, with the subsequent upgrades, Ellucian made changes to
the EDW that would allow us to include more information and implement WMU
business practices. Before we can utilize the new functionality, we need to define data
and reporting needs and compare them to EDW functionality.
Progress: Ongoing. A gap analysis has been done, and we are still unable to use most
of the operational stars that are provided by Ellucian. We have looked at editing the
mappings to match our business practices but it will take a lot of effort to make them
more usable.
II. Report Organization
Current situation: Reports are loosely organized within top?level categories based on suspected
frequency of use. Folder subcategories are based around Cognos packages (e.g. Academic Outcome,
Enrollment) or report functions (e.g. Sport, Institutional Research). The arbitrary top?level categories,
the fact that package names may not be intuitive to users, and the sheer volume of reports makes this
system hard to navigate.
Goal: To improve the user experience by organizing reports in such a way as to make Cognos easier to
navigate.
Steps to goal achievement:
1. Evaluate current report use
Determine which reports are being used and by whom. Generally, try to discern how
people are using information delivered through Cognos at the University. Based on this
evaluation, determine which reports can be disabled or removed and reduce or
eliminate report dependency. In addition, address ways in which we can guide users
toward optimal information usage.
Progress: Ongoing. We have evaluated all of the major reporting areas and identified
candidates for modification or deletion. Evaluation of lesser used and single?purpose
reports is ongoing.
2. Eliminate report redundancy
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Minimize the number of reports available by eliminating redundancies and combining
like reports. This will aid in the overall ease of navigation and simplify the task of
improving the directory structure (3).
Progress: Ongoing. Based on the report use evaluation, we have rewritten the most
commonly accessed reports. In many cases, this resulted in significant report
consolidation or deletion. To date, this has resulted in the removal of over 600 legacy
reports, making the reporting portal much more navigable and user?friendly.
3. Improve the directory structure by making it more intuitive to the user
Based on the report usage evaluation, devise a directory structure that will allow users
the most intuitive navigation of Cognos directories. Attempt to increase Cognos usage
in part by minimizing user frustration with navigation.
Progress: Completed. We have implemented a new directory structure that more
closely aligns with the organization of the university. All informally collected user
feedback has been positive with the most frequent comment being that the new
structure is much more logical. The new structure will coexist with the old directory
structure while we continue to audit and rewrite legacy reports.
4. Standardize report naming conventions
Develop a standard naming convention for Cognos reports. The new convention should
allow users to easily determine, at least at a broad level, the purpose of a given report
based on the report name and should lend itself to easy report classification and
grouping.
Progress: Completed. The new directory structure and all new reports are based on a
numeric prefix that uniquely identifies the report and the path.
5. Improve report performance
Evaluate reports to address performance concerns. Attempt to minimize report run
time and thereby ease user frustration. This task will be closely tied with data
organization (§I).
Progress: Ongoing. This task closely aligns with the steps 1 and 2. Each time we audit
and modify a report, we test performance. As such, all of the most commonly used
reports have been optimized.
6. Standardize report design
Develop report design specifications for the report developer community. These
specifications should create a common look and feel, making use of WMU colors and
branding; include information that will assist in identification of report locations and
Revised: December 11, 2013 Page 6
report ownership; create reports that are aesthetically pleasing and use established
data visualization techniques.
Progress: Completed. We have developed report design standards and delivered the
new standards to the university report authors. All reports being placed in the publicly
accessible areas of the new directory structure must adhere to the new design
standards.
7. Establish report ownership/stewardship
Assign each report to a functional office that will manage report maintenance.
Progress: Ongoing. This task closely aligns with steps 1 and 2. As reports are audited
and modified, ownership is also determined.
III. Business Intelligence Solutions
Current situation: We own the Cognos Business Intelligence suite. This suite of tools consists of a
reporting tool (Report Studio), a performance management tool (Metrics Manager), an ad?hoc query
tool (Query Studio), a personal analytics tool (Cognos Insight), and a data analysis tool (Analysis Studio).
Goal: To improve the user experience by implementing tools that will provide more variety and
flexibility for information delivery and analysis.
Steps to goal achievement:
1. Train super users to use Report Studio
Train super users or BI ambassadors (more in §VI 3.) in functional areas and
departments who will be able to consolidate requests and create and maintain
departmental reports.
Progress: No progress.
2. Implement Query Studio models and provide documentation and training
Roll out Query Studio to allow functional areas and departments to run advanced ad?
hoc queries, bypassing involvement of the BI team.
Progress: Ongoing. Preliminary models have been built and tested with the
Admissions office, but we were not able to successfully remove the BI team’s
involvement in the creation and running of the ad?hoc reports. This item may be
supplemented or replaced by the implementation of Cognos Business Insight.
3. Implement Metrics Manager and provide documentation and training
Roll out Metrics Manager, allowing senior leadership to monitor performance at a
glance with university?level scorecards.
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Progress: Ongoing. Metrics Manager was implemented with usable data. Institutional
Effectiveness has used information from Metrics Manager to construct its Measures of
Institutional Effectiveness Web site. Further evaluation is needed but will be guided by
the needs of senior leadership.
4. Implement Analysis Studio and provide documentation and training
When there is a need for a more robust analysis tool to aid in decision support, we can
implement this tool. This is part of a long term plan.
Progress: No progress. This item may be supplemented or replaced by the
implementation of Cognos Business Insight.
5. Evaluate Transformer for potential implementation
This is a powerful tool; however, we own an older version of the tool and at the time of
this printing it is unknown how long IBM will continue to support it. Further evaluation
is required.
Progress: We have determined that the cost of ownership for this tool is not justified
for the small user base. In addition, much of the OLAP functionality can be found in new
tools such as Business Insight.
6. Implement Cognos Business Insight
Roll out Cognos Business Insight to allow users to build customized dashboards and
reports using predesigned content. We will start by producing content based on the
provost’s identified academic operational indicators. Interviews with other
administrators, primarily deans and chairs, will be conducted to determine additional
needs.
Progress: We have begun construction of dimensional models, and some content has
been produced. Workspace templates and content are currently being reviewed.
IV. Documentation
Current situation: Aside from a small number of documents housed within Cognos itself that address
specific technical issues, very little documentation for the Cognos system currently exists.
Goal: To assist users and the BI team by creating documentation about data organization, report
organization, report creation, reporting procedures, policies and governance.
Steps to goal achievement:
1. Define BI roles and methods of governance
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Establish clearly defined roles for individuals involved in BI administration, development
and analysis. Defined roles should encompass data updates, security, information
delivery, communication, and the administration of the BI environment.
Progress: Partially complete. Roles have been defined within the Office of
Institutional Research, but a more comprehensive document delineating roles needs to
be created. Further efforts will be led by and coordinated with the university’s data
governance body and the Director of Data Management.
2. Define a communication plan
Establish a clearly defined plan for communicating with report developers, Cognos
ambassadors, and the broader user community. The plan should include both active
(i.e. e?mail correspondence, newsletters) and passive (i.e. knowledge base, Web site)
types of communication to maximize audience engagement.
Progress: Partially complete. Methods and standards of communication have been
established for communicating actively with the reporting community and users, but we
still need to develop a formalized communication plan.
3. Develop policy for the appropriate use of data
Work in conjunction with other individuals and functional areas (e.g. the university
FERPA officer, OIT, Financial Aid, HR) to develop policies that outline restrictions on
confidential data use and that identify the roles of data stewards in managing that use.
In addition, these policies should address data that may not be strictly confidential but
may still be considered sensitive. Ideally, these policies will create a framework for
using the minimum effective data in reporting.
Progress: Ongoing. This work will tie closely to the work of the data governance body
at the university.
4. Create data dictionaries for the ODS, EDW and report packages
Data dictionaries and ERDs should be created and shared with report developers and
users. Regular review should be completed to ensure dictionaries and diagrams are up
to date.
Progress: No progress.
5. Centralize report scheduling/procedures
Create and share a master list of scheduled reports to assist in distributing server load.
Additionally, formalize procedures to assist report developers in scheduling new
reports.
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Progress: Partially complete. We monitor report scheduling to distribute load and
ensure reports are not scheduled during database refresh or maintenance windows.
6. Create documentation for report organization/directory structure/naming conventions
Progress: Partially complete. This task aligns closely with task II 6.
7. Customize ODS documentation to match WMU business practices
Adapt out?of?the?box documentation to more accurately reflect WMU business
practices and share updated documents with report developers and consumers.
Progress: No progress.
V. Maintenance
Current situation: No formal procedures have been defined for maintaining the ODS, EDW, or
Cognos. In the past, we did not apply patches, fixes and updates. Our system crashed several times
throughout the day. Although we are monitoring this more consistently, we have still lapsed in applying
the latest fixes.
Goal: To develop a formalized plan for monitoring updates and report usage, applying fixes and
upgrading the system.
Steps to goal achievement:
1. Implement auditing software
Cognos provides a database that will allow the BI team to track report usage and
monitor system performance.
Progress: Completed. We have implemented the Cognos auditing capabilities and
now have two years of audit history.
2. Auditing data practices and procedures
As soon as the auditing system is online, reports will be written in order to determine
how to best use the available information.
Progress: Completed. We regularly use Cognos auditing capabilities to determine the
audience for and frequency of report use.
3. Investigation of a change management system and version control software
Change management and version control software helps to maintain control over
updates to the system. This will make it easier to manage report requests, reports, and
data.
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Progress: Partially complete. We are using built?in versioning functionality within
Cognos at this time and Footprints for change management. Further evaluation of
processes and tools may be required.
4. Study current groups, roles, reports, and data to implement a more robust security system
Group?level security is the responsibility of OIT; however, the BI team should be
involved in the development of these groups and roles to help minimize the amount of
maintenance.
Progress: Ongoing. Preliminary investigation showed the difficulty in implementing
security changes. Cognos implemented security changes in the Cognos development
area, but we are unable to implement them in production until we get a consensus on
which data need to be secured.
5. Minimize manual maintenance for term specific reports and all other reports that contain
term/year based prompts (i.e. Cohorts, Attributes)
This will require working with functional areas to determine the best way to use cohorts
and attributes and prompts.
Progress: Ongoing. This task closely aligns with II 1 and 2. As reports are audited and
revised, we take steps to eliminate or reduce maintenance where possible.
6. Cognos license auditing for compliance
As we implement more BI tools, there will be a greater need to work with OIT and
security officers to ensure we stay in compliance with the IBM contract.
Progress: Current audit complete. This will be an ongoing audit done every two to
three years when renewing our Cognos License.
7. Create policies, procedure, and communication plans in conjunction with OIT to:
a. Track ODS/EDW/Cognos modifications in future upgrades
b. Monitor Patch/RPEs and their affects on WMU
c. Plan upgrades
Progress: Complete. We worked closely with OIT to develop the procedures and plans
for these items, and ongoing maintenance has been improved.
VI. Training
Current situation: No formal training procedures have been defined. In the past, Cognos training
sessions were held at the start of the fall semester, and individuals were allowed to schedule one?on?
one training with the Data Architect.
Revised: December 11, 2013 Page 11
Goal: To develop formalized training procedures that will maximize the benefit to trainees while most
effectively using available resources. To empower users and functional areas to find answers to their
reporting questions by using a variety of resources, including in?house documentation, public Web
resources, and the campus reporting community.
Steps to goal achievement:
1. Create a knowledge base for IR practices, data changes, notes
Create a centralized electronic knowledge base, accessible to report developers and
consumers, that houses documentation for BI standards and practices, notes about data
changes (e.g. freeze data changes, structural changes to databases, or data usage
changes), and other BI policies.
Progress: Ongoing. Currently, information is shared with report developers via access
to a network share. Evaluation of additional tools is ongoing.
2. Create a formal training plan involving instructor?led sessions
Develop a training plan that defines the frequency, topics, and audiences for instructor?
led sessions. The plan should encompass training for report developers, BI
ambassadors, and various levels of report consumers.
Progress: Ongoing. End?user training sessions have been developed and used
throughout the year. The sessions are continually refined based on attendee feedback.
Report developer training is ongoing and is based on the needs and interests of the
Cognos Report Writers Group.
3. Identify and cultivate BI reporting ambassadors in each of the functional areas/departments
Identify report developers or superusers in each functional area or department who
serve as “ambassadors” for IR and will be able to assist others in their area in report
development or use.
Progress: No progress.
4. Create and host Train the Trainer sessions for ambassadors
Ambassadors should be trained in report development techniques, data identification
for different reporting needs, university policies regarding data use, and basic analysis.
Progress: No progress.
5. Create an electronic forum for the campus reporting community to share knowledge and
resources
Create a forum, similar to a newsgroup in format, which will allow report developers
and consumers to share knowledge with each other. The forum could be hosted
Revised: December 11, 2013 Page 12
internally or externally but should be moderated by a member of IR to answer
questions, prevent the spread of misinformation, and prevent security risks.
Progress: Research is ongoing.
6. Develop a strategy for communicating reporting solution developments (report/package
modifications, changes in best practices, etc.) to the user community
Evaluate and select the best format, delivery method (e.g. newsletter, e?mail, Web site,
etc.), and schedule to distribute useful information to report developers and consumers.
Progress: Completed. We use a combination of organizational knowledge and the
Cognos auditing capabilities to target the affected users for direct e?mail
communication.
VII. Strategic Planning
Current situation: Currently, WMU does not take advantage of its size and status as a large Ellucian
Banner, ODS, and EDW customer. We do not participate in the Large School Consortium and only
recently started sending a BI representative to the Ellucian Summit.
Goal: To develop the skill sets of the BI team members and to use those skills to set goals, develop and
implement plans to meet goals, and evaluate outcomes.
Steps to goal achievement:
1. Develop relationships with other large public universities who also use Banner (ODS/EDW)
and Cognos
Progress: Ongoing.
2. Develop relationship with Ellucian to drive future development of software. Join the large
school consortium
Progress: Ongoing. We have joined the large school consortium.
3. Study Summit presentations and documentation to identify potential improvements to our
BI architecture and processes, as well as which of our currently practices should be modified
or discontinued.
Progress: Ongoing. This happens bi?annually.
4. Disaster recovery
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Develop a comprehensive disaster recovery plan. This will require working with OIT to
test backup software and verify its usability.
Progress: Completed. OIT has a comprehensive disaster recovery plan and IR has
tested and verified the usability of the data.
5. Evaluate how information delivery in the Cognos environment ties back to university
mission and goals.
Progress: Ongoing.
6. Integrate multiple data sources in a single reporting tool
The IR office will need to work with other university offices to determine the feasibility
and best methods of incorporating data from satellite information systems into the
operational data store.
Progress: We are currently using student data from Banner and HR data from
PeopleSoft. We are working with the Office of Admissions to get access to student
recruitment data (e.g. EMAS and ACT data). Exploration of the possibility of integrating
the DegreeWorks system is also underway.
7. Develop a greater presence with professional societies
Progress: Ongoing. We are active within the Higher Education Data Warehousing
Forum and keep current with the Association of Institutional Research. In addition, we
are regularly represented at the regional IBM Cognos Users Group.
8. Develop leadership and project management skills of the BI Team
Progress: Ongoing. Members of the BI team have participated in the Academic
Leadership Academy and have taken courses related to project management.
9. Establish more formal interaction with various change management teams
Progress: Ongoing. We participate in both the PeopleSoft Change Committee and the
Student Systems Integration Team.
VIII. Evaluation
Current situation: No formal mechanism for evaluation of the BI initiative has yet been established.
Goal: To accurately and meaningfully measure the effectiveness of the BI initiative and related
achievement of goals.
Revised: December 11, 2013 Page 14
Steps to goal achievement:
1. Develop performance metrics. As new information becomes available, we will be able to
create metrics to evaluate the goals in this strategic plan. This will allow us to more
accurately determine which areas need improvement.
Progress: No progress.
i
Quinn, Kevin; “Five Rules for BI Success”; Information Management Newsletters; September 21, 2010
ii
Quinn, Kevin; “Five Rules for BI Success”; Information Management Newsletters; September 21, 2010
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