Cognos powerplay

COGNOS - Powerplay

Introduction to Cognos Powerplay

The world's best-selling OLAP software lets users explore volumes of data with sub-second response.

•It enables users to explore large volumes of summarized data with sub-second response times in a Web, Windows, or Excel environment.

•With Cognos PowerPlay, users at any business or technical skill level in a company can perform their own multidimensional analysis, create reports, and share them for better decision-making.


•Cognos PowerPlay draws information from relational databases to model and build PowerCubes ("Cubes").

•Cubes are data sets that can contain tens of millions of consolidated rows of data and hundreds of thousands of categories (members).

•Business rules and calculations (for example, percentage growth and market share change) can be built right into them, and time series analysis is delivered automatically.

•Cubes and reports can be deployed to Web clients, or to Windows and Excel clients, all using the same application server.


Cognos PowerPlay provides both a multidimensional data store and a feature rich end-user experience.

Its multi-server, load-balanced architecture is easy to install and manage, and it scales to thousands of users.

Module 3

Olap Fundamentals.An Introduction to Powerplay.Tools for Data Investigation.Analyzing Data.Report Building Using Powerplay.Advanced Concepts in Report Building.Advanced Features.

Click on the Links to Traverse

OLAP FundamentalsOLAP Fundamentals

• On Line Analytical Processing.• What is Business Intelligence?• What are Measures?• What is a Dimension?• Multidimensional Analysis.


OnLine Analytical ProcessingOnLine Analytical Processing

• What is OLAP?

– On Line No piles of paper.– Analytical Establish patterns– Processing Data-based

• On-line Analytical Processing (OLAP) is a category of software technology that enables analysts, managers and executives to gain insight into data through fast, consistent, interactive access to a wide variety possible views of information that has been transformed from raw data to reflect the real dimensionality of the enterprise as understood by the user.


What is Business Intelligence?

• Business Intelligence (BI) is:

– the use of corporate data to support decision-making

– the ability to explore and analyze data to reveal trends within a business.

• How does it happen?

Raw Data

Organized Information

Better Business Decisions


What are Measures

• The numeric data that is collected and stored by your organization are the measures you will use to evaluate your business.

• These are also termed as Facts.

Example:- Cost Quantity sold Units on-hand Hours per Job Number of calls


What is a Dimension??

• A dimension:– Dimensions represent those data element that

would be used for analyzing the Facts.– depends on data availability and on the key

performance indicators of the business

What?Where?

When?

Who?


Job Groups

Perform

ance

Time

Status

Salaries

Indicators

What Are PowerCubes?

• PowerCubes:• are created by Transformer• organize data into selected business perspectives

or dimensions.


• When analyzing your business, you want to explore measures across several dimensions.

What Product?

Who is Selling?

When?

How Much?

Where?

Multidimensional Analysis

An Introduction to PowerPlay

• How Does PowerPlay Deliver BI?• What Are PowerCubes?• PowerPlay Components• PowerPlay Application Development Process• PowerPlay Navigation


How Does PowerPlay Deliver BI?

• Powerplay Transformer combines all of the data into a summarized format called a PowerCube.

• The PowerCube structures data into a multi-dimensional format.

• Every decision-maker uses data organized into various reports

Product Revenue Reports

by Quarter

by Channel

by Customer Type

Power Cube


PowerPlay Components

• PowerPlay includes the following components:

Transformer defines the PowerPlay application and creates the PowerCube. (*.MDC)

PowerPlay accesses the PowerCube to give you the ability to explore your business information quickly and to build powerful customized reports.(*.PPR) Portfolio helps distribute your reports in an interactive, easy-to-use briefing book format.


PowerPlay Application Development Process

RevenueUnitsDiscountsQuota

Years 2

Quarters 8

Months 24

State 4City 16Store 72

Business Units

3ProductLines

6Brands 18Products 125

All Years National SalesForce

All Products

Sales Management Example

Technician 158

Develop the PowerPlay model

Plan measures and dimensions

Obtain the required data

Explore the PowerCube data using PowerPlay

Create the PowerCube


Dimension Line

• The Dimension Line:– represents the various aspects of your business– contains a series of folders of all the available

dimensions and measures.


Dimension Viewer

Use the Dimension Viewer to see a hierarchical organization of dimensions and categories in your cube.

Toolbox

Dimension

Level 1 = statesCategory = CA

Level 2 = citiesCategory = San Diego

= Locations


Levels and Categories

• Data is organized into dimensions and stored in a hierarchy of levels.

• A category is a data item that exists in a level.

Locations Dimension

Europe Germany

Far East

Americas

Belgium

France

Level = Region Level = Country

...

...

...

...

...

Categories


Explorer Report

• To explore and analyze your data, you can:– create a new report from a cube– open a .ppr file.

• The default display contains:– the first two dimensions in the rows and columns– the values for the first measure.


Reporter Report

A Reporter report provides you with:– flexibility over the content of your report– a blank report to which you add the categories you want

to analyze.

Tools for Data Investigation.

• Various Tools For Investigation• Additional ways of Investigating the Data


Various Tools For InvestigationVarious Tools For Investigation

• Drill-Down and Drill-Up.– Drilling down or up is a specific analytical technique

whereby the user navigates among levels of data

• Slice & Dice.Slice and dice allows you to change and arrange

dimensions in a report, which provides a different perspective on your data.

• Changing Displays. By changing the display you can see trends and

relationships in a graphic.


Drill Down and Drill Up

Explorer

Drill Up

Before

Drill Down

After

Drill Down


Slice and Dice

• Slice and dice allows you to change and arrange dimensions in a report, which provides a different perspective on your data.

• You can slice and dice by dragging a new dimension folder into the display.


Change Displays

By changing the display you can see trends and relationships ina graphic.


Various Tools For Investigation

• Using Alternative Drill-Downs.• Special Categories.• Replace Rows and Columns.• Swap Rows and Columns.• Explanation Window.


Alternate Drill Down and Drill Up Paths

• Alternate drill paths:– provide you with additional

perspectives on your business– are set up by the

Administrator– are easily identified from the

Dimension Line and Dimension Viewer.

Alternate Path

Primary Path


Using Special Categories

• Special categories:– are used to compare trends– provide an alternate organizations of the data.

Lee Chan

North America

Europe

Far East

Charles Loo Nam

New Reps

Region

Hari Krain

Special Category

Analyzing Data

• Rank and sort data• Filter data using different methods• Add layers • Use measures and multiple measures.• Nesting and Formatting.• Using Charts.


• Rank categories by their value in a specific row or column.

• See interesting trends like top selling Tents.• By default:

– ranked data is sorted– data is re-ranked as you drill or slice and dice.

Rank Data


Alphabetical

Numeric

Sort Data

Sorting data:• arranges categories in alphabetical or numeric order• finds products or customers quickly and easily.


Filter Data Using the Dimension Line

• Filtering creates focused reports that show you the exact level of information desired in each dimension.

• You can filter your report to focus on a particular location.

• The Dimension Line displays the filters in use.


Filter Data Using the Dimension Viewer

• You can filter data by clicking the Filter button. • The Dimension Viewer displays the hierarchical position

of the filtered category.


Layer Data

• Add layers to a report as a third set of dimension categories.

• Drag a dimension folder to the Layer target.

North America Layer 3 of 4

Far East Layer 1 of 4

Locations Layer 4 of 4

Europe Layer 2 of 4


Suppress Zeros

• Remove any zero value categories from the report to focus only on positive outcomes.

Suppress zeros, rows, and columns


Percentage of Row Total

Show Values as Percentages

• Display the values in your report as a percentage of various totals.


Change Measures

• Use the Measures folder to change the key performance indicator of a report.

• By default, the values in a new report are based on the first measure in the measure list.


Multiple Measures

• Display multiple measures to examine differences between them.

• Show multiple measures in the rows, columns, or layers.


What is Nesting ?

• Nesting is the introduction of another level to:

– provide additional information within the crosstab

– increase the perspective of your exploration.


Create a Nested Crosstab

• Drop zones are located in the crosstab label areas of both rows and columns.

Inserting a first-level row nested

category

Inserting a first-level column nested category

Select an item and then drag


Select Nested Categories

When you select a nested category, all occurrences of that category within the report are selected.


Layout Options

PowerPlay gives you three layout options to choose from:

Indented 1

Standard

Indented 2


Add Titles, Headers, and Footers

To customize titles, headers, and footers:

insert an item from the Insert menu

cut and paste to and from the clipboard

apply various font styles to text.


View Your Report

There are three different views of the crosstab.

Report Building with PowerPlay

• Reporter and Explorer Differences – An Overview• Reporter Mode Features


Reporter and Explorer Differences - an Overview

Area of Difference

Structure

Calculations

Drilling

Data Exploration

Reporter Explorer

Completely freeformand flexible

Can be added

Drilling Adds Categories to the

Report

Appends categoriesto the report

Has uniform structure

Cannot be added

Replaces categoriesin the report

Drilling Replaces Categories in the Report.


Reporter Mode Features

• Dimension Viewer Basics.

• Next and Lowest Level Children Of…• Drilling Down in Reporter.• Slicing and Dicing in Reporter.• Deleting Categories in Reporter.


Dimension Viewer Basics

DimensionViewertoolbox

DimensionViewer

Create subsetdefinition buttons

Next and Lowest level children of


Next and Lowest Level Children Of

• Control the level of detail when adding categories to the report.

Next Level Children Of (Locations)

Lowest Level Children Of (Locations)


Drilling Down in Reporter

Before drill down

After drill down

Unchanged

• During drilldown the other Data is not Hidden


Slicing and Dicing in Reporter

• Adds Categories into the Report and doesn’t hide Categories.


Deleting Categories in Reporter

Advanced Concepts in Report Building

• Including Calculations.• Adding Values to the Report.• Standard Reports.• Automating and Distributing Reports.


Calculations


Working with Calculations


Calculated Categories

• A category based on a calculation.


Perform Calculations When Adding Categories

Each

Sum of

Average of

Share of

Intersect


Perform Calculations When Adding Categories…

Next level children of

Each

Average of


Custom Exceptions

• You can define custom exceptions to quickly see the unusually high and low values in your reports.

• This feature helps you to immediately recognize information that may need further exploration.


Nested Crosstabs

• Add nested categories to see another level of information about your business.


Long Drop Zones

Next levelchildren of


Short Drop Zones

Next levelchildren of


Drilling Down in Nested Crosstabs

• Drilling down on a category added using the short drop zone.


Calculations and Nested Crosstabs


Create Nesting Levels

• Use the Dimension Viewer toolbox to add nested categories.


What are Standard Reports?

• Standard Reports will be used on a recurring basis and provide up-to-date cube data.


What are Subset Definitions?

• With a subset definition, you can view up-to-date cube data in a Reporter report.


Creating a Subset From a Subset Definition

• A subset definition is added to a report the same way as a category or dimension is added.

Subset Definition

Subset


Changing a Non-Standard to a Standard Report

• Because standard reports are created with subsets, any changes to the categories will be updated.

Non-Standard Report

Standard Report

Lowest level children of

Parentage subset definition


Create a Parentage Subset Definition

• Create a subset based on levels in a dimension.


Create an Advanced Subset Definition

• Create a subset that will meet multiple requirements and restrictions.


The Advanced Subset Dialog Box


Restricting by Parent and Find


Breaking a Subset

• You can break a subset when you don’t need it in a report, but you do not want to delete the subset altogether.

Additional Features

• Publish as HTML.

• Scheduling reports.


Publish as HTML

• HTML reports can be viewed by anybody who has a web browser.


Publish as HTML Dialog Box

• Creating a separate folder for each HTML report will keep all the required files together and make it easy to distribute them.


Scheduling Reports

• You can schedule reports to be run at night or over the weekend.

Education

Cognos powerplay