Qlik Sense vs BOARD: Comparing BI Platforms for Enterprise-Level Planning and Reporting

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In the fast-paced conference rooms of today's digital enterprises, the right business intelligence (BI) platform acts as a crucial decision-making ally. The landscape is crowded, making understanding and selecting the platform that aligns with your organization's strategic goals critical. Today, we delve deep into two formidable contenders—Qlik Sense and BOARD. Both are hailed for their enterprise-level planning and reporting capabilities but offer distinct functionalities and advantages. As technology leaders, your role is to sift through the numbers and narratives to empower your teams with the right insights. Here's how Qlik Sense and BOARD stack up.

Understanding the Heroes: Qlik Sense and BOARD

Qlik Sense, developed by Qlik, is revered for its data visualization and self-service analytics capabilities. It empowers users to discover deeper insights by connecting and exploring vast amounts of data across numerous sources seamlessly. Its associative model allows users to follow their data intuitively, providing answers to questions they didn't know they had.

BOARD is a performance management and BI solution that integrates seamlessly, bringing together business analytics, corporate performance management (CPM), and BI into a single unified environment. It's designed to cater to the needs of finance, operations, and business intelligence professionals who need solid analytical capabilities for planning and simulation.

Clarify the Journey: Identifying Enterprise Needs

Before diving deep into the comparison, leaders must clarify their organizational needs:

  • Complexity of Data: How complex is your data? What are the integration points across your systems and databases?
  • User Requirements: Do your users require self-service BI, or are they looking for advanced analytics?
  • Scalability: As your organization scales, does the tool support these growing needs without exponential increases in cost?
  • Collaboration: How important is collaboration across different departments and geographies?

Narrative Arc: Key Features and Functionalities

Qlik Sense: Discovery and Exploration

  • Associative Engine: At the core of Qlik Sense is its associative data engine, allowing users to query and explore data dynamically, free from the constraints of predetermined analysis paths.
  • Visualization and Dashboards: Qlik Sense is designed with a user-friendly interface enabling stakeholders to build custom dashboards tailored to their specific needs.
  • Smart Search and Cognitive Use: The tools within Qlik Sense offer natural language processing (NLP) capabilities that help guide users in data exploration, making sense of even underutilized rows of data.
  • Integrated Analytics: The platform supports embedding analytics in any device, amplifying decision-making wherever you are.

BOARD: Unified Planning and Analytics

  • All-In-One Platform: BOARD provides an integrated environment that marries BI, analytics, and performance management. It allows for centralized decision-making processes.
  • Advanced Simulation: Enables what-if analysis, helping leaders model future scenarios, an essential for strategic planning.
  • Strong Focus on CPM: Robust capabilities in budgeting, planning, and forecasting. BOARD can map into financial workflows and business models, driving efficiency.
  • Flexibility and Customization: While BOARD is comprehensive, it also allows for a high degree of customization to suit specific business needs.

The Climax: Comparing Capabilities

Both platforms serve the needs of modern enterprises but from different angles:

  • Data Visualization: While both offer visualization, Qlik Sense leads with its intuitive design, perfect for teams that need a broad range of visualization capabilities. BOARD, however, allows more customization for tailored insights.
  • User Engagement: Qlik Sense’s associative exploration keeps users engaged by letting them query data in any direction. BOARD impacts corporate processes more directly through unified management capabilities.
  • Integration: Qlik Sense supports a broad array of data sources right out of the box, while BOARD necessitates more configuration, although it's unmatched in integrating CPM with BI functionalities.

A Transformative Resolution: Making the Decision

Qlik Sense is ideal for organizations prioritizing innovative data discovery and user-friendly analytics. It excels in environments where data democratization and user empowerment are critical agendas.

BOARD, however, is perfect for enterprises needing a tightly integrated platform that combines BI and CPM capabilities. It shines in financial planning and operational efficiency contexts, pulling together complex business processes.

Call to Action: Collaborate with Deploi

Given the strategic value embedded in choosing the right BI platform, Deploi is here to assist. With our proven expertise, robust methodologies, and commitment to innovation, we walk with you in defining and implementing solutions that are perfectly tailored to your needs. Whether it's exploring Qlik Sense's intuitive analytics or BOARD's integrated performance management, we position your team to win.

Intrigued by what Qlik Sense or BOARD can do for your enterprise? Let's connect and transform your BI story. Reach out to us at contact@deploi.ca and let's explore the possibilities together. Your data is an asset—let Deploi help you leverage it to its fullest potential.

Martin Dejnicki

Martin is the Director of Engineering & Enterprise SEO at Deploi, with over 25 years of experience driving measurable growth for enterprises. Since launching his first website at 16, he has empowered industry leaders like Walmart, IBM, Rogers, and TD Securities through cutting-edge digital strategies that deliver real results. At Deploi, Martin leads a high-performing team, passionately creating game-changing solutions and spearheading innovative projects, including a groundbreaking algorithmic trading platform and a ChatGPT-driven CMS. His commitment to excellence ensures that every strategy transforms challenges into opportunities for success.