Astrato Embeds: Smarter decisions with Embedded Analytics

Our Head of Product Marketing, Al Herron, shares his excitement about our new Astrato Embeds capability!

 

In my last blog on 6 things your BI shouldn’t do, I shared some of the highlights of working at the next tech unicorn – innovating and working with some of the best minds in the business in the bustling heart of London’s West End.

Recently – at a team offsite – those minds came together to discuss how we communicate with each other (among other things). The exercise was focused on facilitating the best possible communication to encourage collaboration, and improve how we approach doing just about everything. From processing information and requirements to figuring out how we can help each other get stuff done and work better, together.

Oh – and building great products…

During the session, we uncovered quite a bit. Some of us are introverted. Others are LOUD. Some like visual images, some just need the facts to stay focused.

But all of us without fail appreciate context.

Context gives us the pieces of the puzzle that help us create a picture. And we use that picture to help us make the right decisions and deliver the best possible solutions.

Adding context with Embedded Analytics

What I really wanted to address when I sat down to write this piece was a topic I’m incredibly passionate about: Embedded Analytics.

Definitions of embedded analytics vary. Wikipedia defines embedded analytics as “the technology designed to make data analysis and business intelligence more accessible by any application or user.”

Bit of a mouthful. Gartner defines Embedded Analytics as “… where data analysis occurs within a user’s natural workflow, without the need to toggle between… application.”

This definition speaks to the crux of the issue: that embedded analytics – at least to me – is all about context. It’s insight that’s baked directly into the apps I use every single day. Like Gartner says, it’s part of my environment. It is not (and this is important) distracting.

The Problem with BI. BI is the Problem?

Organizations spend time and money on data literacy programs. A friend, a Chief Analytics Officer at a global bank, sets KPIs and measurements on all manner of benchmarks for analytics adoption. His annual bonus is dependent on those KPIs.

Making your data talk – and data storytelling – is an art. Executed well, the organization adopts insight-based decisioning. It becomes data driven. While gut feel and intuition have a place in the way we make decisions, it can cloud good decision making.

But chances are, unless we sit in an Analytics Center of Excellence or BI team, we spend more time in Line of Business applications than in our BI platforms. Just today when I asked a successful FD when he last checked his BI app – he looked worried.

Take our marketing team – we have a ton of apps – HubSpot, Google Ad Manager, LinkedIn, Photoshop, Illustrator or Figma. I have even found myself chatting to a colleague in Jira – even though we sit right next to each other!

That means insight can get overlooked in the place and at the time we make decisions.

Current BI Adoption

In some recent research, I came across a BARC and Eckerson Group infographic on “Strategies for Driving Adoption and Usage with BI and Analytics”. BI adoption stands at approximately 25% with “slow growth” in adoption.

So what is a proven way to drive an analytical mindset in an organization? When asked what drives adoption, BI and analytics leaders cite embedded BI at number 3 with a 38% increase.

Smarter decisions with Astrato Embeds

The mecca for embedded analytics is that a user will never know they are using analytics.

Back to my friends at Eckerson Group. In their paper on embedded analytics “as we move from an information economy to an insight economy, analytics becomes paramount.”

Embedded analytics, at its zenith, means a user makes smart decisions even though they “may not necessarily even recognize that they are working with embedded analytics in the business process.”

Here at Astrato we just released Astrato Embeds. I’m super excited about this release.

Astrato Embeds allows you to choose charts, grouped viz or a whole workbook, and embed it into key business apps all with drag & drop simplicity – no coding required.

 

It is this simplicity – recently customers have called the wider Astrato benefit rapid prototyping – that delivers faster time to insight. Add Astrato Embeds in the mix – wow!

A final call out to any reading this who are building apps, portals or DaaS/SaaS products (your own next tech unicorn) and want it smarter. Don’t build when you can Embed with Astrato.

 

Too good to be true? Don’t take my word for it – try for yourself – free for up to 5 users!

Try out Astrato now