Technologies and practices for collecting, integrating, and analyzing business data to support informed decision-making.
Business intelligence (BI) encompasses the tools, processes, and strategies that transform raw data into actionable insights. A BI system typically includes data warehousing, ETL processes, reporting tools, dashboards, and ad hoc query capabilities. The goal is to give decision-makers timely, accurate, and relevant information.
BI is distinct from advanced analytics or machine learning — it focuses primarily on describing what has happened (descriptive analytics) and sometimes why (diagnostic analytics), rather than predicting what will happen.
Example: A regional transit authority uses a BI platform to consolidate ridership data, fare revenue, and operational costs from multiple systems. Managers can view dashboards showing ridership trends by route, revenue per kilometre, and on-time performance — all updated daily. This replaces manual spreadsheet reports that previously took days to produce.