IS 438 Business Dimensions

Business dimensions are the core components or categories of a business, anything that you want to analyze in reports. Business dimensions are fundamental to data organization and provide context for numeric data items, or measures. For example, a retail chain-store may categorize its sales data by the products that it sells, by its retail outlets, and by fiscal periods. This organization has the business dimensions Product, Location, and Time. The measures of the business, such as how much it sells, lie at the intersection of these dimensions.

Product: Model name, Model year, Package styling, Product line, Product category, Exterior color, Interior color ect. Dealer: Dealer name, City, State, Single brand flag, Date first operation Customer: Age, Gender, Income range, Martial status, House size, Vehicles owned, Home value, Won or Rent Payment Method: Finance type, Term in months, Interest rate, Agent Time: Date, Month, Quarter, year, Day of week, Day of month, Season, Holiday flag.

Business Dimensions

A business metric is a raw measurement of a business process. Measuring a metric is not always enough – needs to use that metric to guide business decisions and to ensure business is on the right track. Examples of Metrics Sales Metrics Sales metrics are used to determine your ability to move product and generate revenue. Make sure to monitor key metrics like sales growth, product performance, and quote- to-close ratio. Marketing Metrics Marketing teams are driven by having the latest business metrics on hand. Beside the all-important ROI (return on investment) metric, marketers commonly measure website and campaign performance, cost per lead, and incremental sales.

Inventory Metrics Departmental metrics like inventory/supply-chain metrics are key to understanding your performance on a tactical level. To be successful, you need to ensure every part of your business is running smoothly. Monitor key inventory metrics like turnover, perfect order rates, and order status. Call Center Metrics Call centers provide the perfect example of using business metrics to improve operational performance. Monitor key metrics like service level, customer satisfaction, agent performance, and cost per contact to get a tactical view of your business performance.

Financial Metrics The most common business metrics to monitor relate to your financial performance. Key metrics like gross profit margin, quick ratio, and debt-to-equity are critical measures of your business performance.