Axel by Aha!
The new-generation Axel Analytics System embeds analytics within a business in an active form that allows the business to understand and use analytics throughout the organization.
- Axel provides a platform that measures business performance and enables model-based decision-making.
- Axel establishes KPI (key performance indicator) models of your business and key processes in viewable and actionable KPIs.
- Users can create customized views of KPI models to support their individual needs.
- An analytics expressions language (Aha! Expressions) lets you easily create KPI models of your business processes.
- Click-to-forecast and click-to-data functions lets all business users rapidly analyze data trends and variances and forecast future KPI values based on historical performance.
- Predictor views of KPIs can perform quick "what-if" analysis of business changes on the entire business process.
- Rapid use of simulation, optimization, or scoring models enables click-to-model capability.
- Self-service customizable dashboards allow continuous reporting and viewing of summary results.
- Axel is accessed as a SaaS (Software as a Service) instance, which increases collaboration across geographic and organizational boundaries.
- The SaaS delivery option minimizes the impact on scarce IT resources and increases collaboration across geographic and organizational boundaries.
Axel technical features
- Model-based business analytics:This is the heart of the Axel solution, enabling the consistent, accurate decision-making that is the hallmark of a business with analytics embedded in its fabric.
- Aha! Expressions language:The unique Aha! Expressions language is easy to learn and lets your business analysts define and deploy the KPI-based models that show the true state of your business.
- Self-service:The Axel self-service features make the power of analytics available to everyday business users at all levels-not just power users. You can define your own customized dashboard view; click to forecast and predict what will happen to your business in any scenario; assume the role of Axel administrator, user, viewer, or data administrator with individual authorizations. With Aha!, analytics can be used by anyone.
- Software as a Service (SaaS):Axel's browser-based Software as a Service feature exists for on-demand users and enterprise users alike. Since Axel is true multi-tenant, the platform ensures data privacy and security in a public environment and ensures transparency and ease of use when being used internally.
Axel provides the richest offering of analytics features in the industry
Using Axel's proprietary KPI hierarchy taxonomy, KPI models are viewed as bullet graphs (small bullet-shaped graphs showing the maximum, minimum, average, current, and goal values of each KPI). KPIs exist for lower levels of detail on branches further out on the trees, with rollups to company or organizational KPIs existing at the tree's base. By evaluating KPI relationships at a glance with these views, including self-service customized views, the user sees analytics anomalies and their cause-and-effect relationships.
Aha! Expressions Language
A high-level language for defining KPI models makes KPI and goal development fast and easy. Metrics can be pulled directly from tables with simple reference statements, month-to-date and year-to-date values can be derived with a single function reference, rolling averages and historical values can be used by referencing time intervals or specific dates, and mathematical calculations of any kind are accommodated through straightforward expressions. Data integrity is accounted for directly in Aha! Expressions by recognizing missing values and setting default values or merely recognizing them as missing, allowing rollup references to ensure that a single source of data truth is used consistently.
Click-to-Forecast, Click-to-Data
By simply clicking on a KPI, an Axel user pulls up the data in graphical form for any date range indicated in the control boxes. By mousing over the graph the user can view individual data point values. By clicking on a forecast tab the user activates forecasting capabilities on any time period chosen. This allows a visual forecasting where business users can take into account their knowledge of market trends, seasonality, and expected future changes not reflected in the past. For more sophisticated forecasting, the Axel platform will export all of the data points chosen straight to the user on demand.
Click-to-Predict
If the Axel user wants to see how the business might be affected by change, the Axel Predictor function can be invoked. By manually changing metrics and KPIs, the Axel user can immediately see their effect across all KPIs in the model. Price changes, marketing campaigns, and new product introductions can be "what-if"ed for immediate high-level impact viewing.
Click-to-Model
The Axel platform accommodates invoking mathematical models when detailed analysis or optimization modeling is required or for cases where KPI data indicates predictive models (such as customer scoring models) must be recalibrated. Capacity simulation models to identify the ability to handle customer growth and optimization models to indicate advertising media changes can be invoked from the platform. Large simulation models (on customer data files, for example) can be performed using a cloud computing instance, and incorporating summarized results back into Axel data.
Dashboards
The Axel platform provides dashboards with bottom-line summaries and colorful bar charts, dials, and bulbs that can be related to specified goals. Dashboards are checkbox-customizable and have all the data readily available to avoid the time-consuming data extraction and verification associated with ad hoc reporting. Dashboards are unique to each user and accommodate individual preferences.
SaaS
The Software as a Service feature of Axel is available for on-demand and enterprise users alike. Since Axel is true multi-tenant, the platform ensures data privacy and security in a public environment and ensures transparency and ease-of-use when used internally. Axel users can have a role of administrator, user, viewer, or data administrator with individual authorizations. Administrators can add new users in seconds. Individuals can view and access only the KPIs and data metrics they are authorized to. Checkbox entry of authorizations is done at time of account initialization but can be easily changed at any time by a system administrator. Axel can be up and running in weeks-not months or years-with minimal IT involvement.
Aha! Data Services
Axel provides a highly secure publication/subscription set of services for faster and more reliable access and enrichment of analytics data. Connectors for over 500 file types are available and a complete stable SOA for data handling in production environments is provided. Data integrity and time-to-access-key Axel strengths-are critical success factors in any analytics implementation.
