Need
The client needed to get critical information to decision-makers, business partners and consultants more quickly and efficiently.
Solution
After a collaborative envisioning phase, the team designed and deployed a SharePoint 2010 extranet solution with business intelligence reporting and custom coding to support information subscriptions and decision modeling.
Challenges
Modifying the manufacturing firm’s data and information flow uncovered technical and human issues.
Technical issues included existing problems with data cleanliness, assumptions and workflows that were not exposed until data movement started.
On the human level, people's reactions to daily, real-time information was unlike interaction with monthly, scrubbed reports.
Benefits
- The portal provides more accurate and timelier information access
- SQL Server Reporting Services is rendering stacks of manual reports redundant by using relational database views to report key production and sales information
- Database entry is being performed via a custom entry screen, eliminating most documents
Business Value
- The extranet is a professional site for business partners and is valuable for client relationships and marketing.
- The portal provides more accurate and timelier infromation access.
- Information access is increased while work to generate information is greatly decreased.
- Internally, the production, sales and inventory modeling component, reduces time preparing, planning, and estimating future sales.