Welcome to Part 2 of our 3-part blogpost series where we delve into the topic of how data analytics will dramatically change your business. In this part, we will explore the importance of data for businesses, e-commerce and traditional brick and mortar retailers of all sizes and how data significantly improved the financial results in the Himalayan Java eco-system.
With advancements in technology, deep data analytics has become easier and more accessible than ever before. Unfortunately it remains out of reach of most small and medium business and is still an often-overlooked aspect of running a successful business; Himalayan Java was no different. Let’s look at the key turning points that allowed us to help Himalayan Java identify areas of improvement and make data-driven decisions.
For a business to succeed and grow, it is crucial to monitor its operations, especially if it has multiple subsidiaries under one umbrella business. In our example, Himalayan Java has 40+ outlets all over Nepal. However, it cannot be considered as one entity, but rather 40+ individual businesses that need to be analyzed separately.
This is where having Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s) and deep data analytics comes in handy. KPI’s help to isolate the performance of each store and identify areas of improvement that are often hidden in plain sight. Without a robust analytics mechanism, a business is likely to rely solely on aggregate Profit & Loss (P&L) statements, which is what Himalayan Java had been doing for the last 20+ years. Their system simply did not provide a detailed analysis of the performance of each store.
Hence, it was important for us to operationalize an efficient data-driven analytics system to understand the health of each store, identify trends, and make informed business decisions.
Analyzing a business is a multi-step process that requires regular attention and consistent effort to effectively assess the company’s performance; Himalayan Java was no different.
Our efforts started by consulting with the leadership and determining the common KPI’s across all stores and later identifying how each KPI differed for each outlet – which gave us a more individualized view of the business. This helped to provide a clear and focused view of the performance of each store. Next, it was important to onboard store managers with our vision and make sure they understood the importance of what we were trying to achieve; this ensured that everyone was working towards the same goal.
However, the onboarding process was not easy at all; in fact, it was one of the many obstacles we ran into amidst our deep data analysis effort. Initially, the Himalayan Java operations team did not have the right skillset to interpret the KPI’s, which led to a stall. In fact, it took multiple onboarding sessions before we were able to bring them upto speed.
The other major obstacle was the “harmonization” of data i.e. collecting relevant data from different sources (Example: Point of Sale systems), cleaning/integrating/consolidating the data into a standard format and hosting it on a centralized platform. It was strenuous but with the help of data analytics tools/software and automation jobs, we were able to provide real-time insights into business performance on a clean, centralized platform.
Among all the platforms available in the market today, we have found KPI dashboards to be the most effective – for multiple reasons.
- First, dashboards provide a clear and user-friendly visual representation of key metrics and performance indicators, which is extremely efficient for businesses and operations team members.
- Second, dashboards require minimal effort from the users’ end and provide real-time insights into business performance. Finally, because the visual representation of data makes it easier to identify trends it became easier to “believe what was seen”.
By keeping track of key metrics, you can stay on top of your performance and make informed decisions that drive growth and success. Today, Himalayan Java operations team consistently make data-driven decisions based on their interpretations of the KPI’s and it has been game changing to say the least.
Our team at Xabit was proud to help Himalayan Java better understand their operations and achieve their business goals. By utilizing the right tools and strategies, any business can achieve success through effective analytics.
Regularly assessing and analyzing your performance can help you identify areas for improvement, stay ahead of the competition, and make data-driven decisions that drive growth and success.