What follows is an executive summary of the document "How OLAP can
help your organization". I am interested to learn from other
experienced OLAP consultants if what I am saying is accurate, and also
to find out if there are other ways OLAP can help your organization.

I was working on training the whole datawarehousing division on OLAP
at my previous job, and that is when I started focusing my attention
on what business benefits OLAP provides. I have prepared a lengthy
document which I am reluctant to share, having put in my own time to
write it. I hope readers of this newsgraoup will not feel reluctant
to share their ideas and knowledge with the OLAP community.

The document "How OLAP can help your organization" follows:

How OLAP can help your organization

OLAP is On-Line Analytical Processing. OLAP is a class of
applications and databases, that are used for business reporting,
analysis and planning. OLAP is a database/application that stores
data in a hyper-cube, a multi-dimensional structure where each
dimension is hierarchical. Data is generally entered at the lowest
level of each dimensional hierarchy, and then aggregated up the
hierarchy. Business users of OLAP are business analysts, financial
analysts, marketing analysts, managers, and senior executives.
Typical applications built using OLAP databases are financial
budgeting/planning applications, sales reporting and analysis
applications, data warehouse reporting applications, and much more.

Traditional databases and applications are designed and optimized for
OLTP (On-Line Transaction Processing). Traditional relational
databases store data in two dimensional tables, and allow the database
to be manipulated using SQL. These databases are not designed for
reporting, analysis, or planning applications. Creating summarized
reports require data to be aggregated at query time, resulting in slow
response to a query. Complicated SQL is required to query the
databases. In OLAP databases, data is pre-aggregated resulting in
faster query time, and front ends have user friendly point-and-click
user interfaces for querying the database. OLAP allows your users to
directly query the database, and get instant results, saving in time
and cost (cost of IT resources).

Users can use their regular spreadsheet to retrieve data, and go over
the intranet to retrieve data. Users can also send data to the
application/database for the purpose of planning. As opposed to using
SQL, which requires days of training, only a few hours of training is
more than enough.

OLAP is also fast to implement, which results in cost savings.
Typically OLAP implementations take weeks, depending on the complexity
of the database. Usually an iterative approach is used, with a
prototype developed within a few days, a pilot project in a week or
two, and a full roll out to all users in four weeks or so. The
iterative approach allows changes to be made to the
database/application as it is being developed, this allows OLAP to
better meet user requirements.

With OLAP you have a system that is dedicated to applications for,
reporting, analysis, and planning. This takes the load of your OLTP
systems, and allows the OLTP system to have good performance in
transaction processing.

In an OLAP application you can store data collected from a diverse mix
of OLTP systems like ERP systems and other software. OLAP gives you
one consistent and true picture of your organizational data, that can
be accessed by different classes of users.

OLAP can help your organization in many ways. It makes your user
analysts more productive (with quicker access to data), and less
dependent on your IT department. It gives your user analysts a
flexible reporting, analysis, and planning platform that was
previously unavailable. It results in cost savings of IT resources
needed for support and implementation. It saves on time for
implementation. Every large business that generates a lot of data,
whether it be financial, or sales, or manufacturing, can implement an
OLAP solution for reporting, analysis, and planning.

Al, I tried to email you but the message bounced. I am in a similar
situation in introducing OLAP to people who have never heard of it.
I can be reached at: mike_shen <AT> yahoo.com.