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<p>Business dashboards have been a staple in almost every company, team, and industry since <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/digital-transformation" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">digitalization</a> began in the 1980s.&nbsp;</p><p>They’ve given insight into what has happened in companies by using historical data to track trends and KPIs – the key word here being <strong>historical</strong>. But what happens if you don’t want history to repeat itself?</p><p>What if you want to change the course of the future through swift and immediate action?</p><blockquote><p>Dashboards are no longer capable of driving change for your business in the modern world.</p></blockquote><p>Business dashboards are becoming obsolete, and we’re here to uncover why. We believe business leaders like you are missing out on better solutions and an early competitive edge. &nbsp;</p><p>To understand why we’re advocating for a future free of dashboards (as they exist today), we’re going to explore:</p><ul><li>Why business dashboards still exist today (capabilities)</li><li>Why dashboards are becoming obsolete (risks/challenges)</li><li>What does a future without dashboards look like (solutions)</li></ul>

<p>The need for data curation has never been greater. Yet, modern businesses still rely on dated methods (business dashboards) to cater to new demands, resulting in unique challenges.</p><h3>Capabilities of business dashboards</h3><p>Historically, dashboards were optimal (and at one time revolutionary) as the pace of business was slower. You could live with occasional data pushes in bulk because that was the technological standard. The data was still manageable, and you didn’t have to worry about your competition outdoing you with real-time data because it didn’t exist.</p><blockquote><p>The business dashboard as we know it today is no longer revolutionary — it’s the bare minimum.</p></blockquote><p>While business dashboards give us a high-level overview of data, they're static in nature — what you see is what you get. Built with push signaling behavior, communication is only ever one-way, which is the first unique challenge.</p><h3>Where business dashboards go wrong</h3><p>Amid a world of uncertainty, one thing is clear — you don’t need 100% of your business data dumped on you at once, especially if it lacks context or clarity. Rather, your teams need data catered to their unique challenges — &nbsp;data that allows them to go in-depth to find true insight.</p><blockquote><p>There’s no shortage of information, but a shortage in the <i>right</i> information.</p></blockquote><p>It’s 2023, and it doesn’t take a book on business strategy to know we all, in every business and industry, are flooded with push updates.</p><p>The traditional dashboard is just another ping, alert, and/or buzz we’re probably not paying attention to. Users, aka your teams, don't care whether these notifications are important because there are simply too many to manage.</p><p>The one-way philosophy of business dashboards neglects vital details: &nbsp;</p><ul><li>Which data is relevant? (quality vs quantity) &nbsp;</li><li>How up-to-date is this data? (accuracy) &nbsp;</li><li>How does this data help us find insights? (communication) &nbsp;</li><li>How accessible is this data? (usability)</li><li>How granular does the data get? (depth)</li></ul><p>These issues are chipping away at the relevance of dashboards in our fast-paced business environment.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Your organization can be in any stage — startup or stagnating, rapid scale or pursuing profitability — but that doesn’t mean the influx of data is slowing down.</p><p>Over time, we’ve accumulated thousands of metrics to help us gauge business performance. However, traditional business intelligence (BI) dashboards have poorly supported these metrics, inhibiting informed decision-making. &nbsp;</p><p>According to a <a href="https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/pages/about-deloitte/articles/press-releases/deloitte-survey-analytics-and-ai-driven-enterprises-thrive.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Deloitte</a> survey, executives are feeling this exact pressure. &nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>67% of executives said they weren’t comfortable accessing or using data from their existing resources, while 63% say although they are aware of analytics, they lack technological infrastructure and are still working in silos.</p></blockquote><p>Now let's see specific examples of how dashboards come up short in the modern business.</p><h3>Problem: Building dashboards is an ongoing, lengthy process</h3><p>Business intelligence dashboards take weeks or months to build. Your business may not have the luxury of sparing this time in data purgatory.&nbsp;</p><p>Even when the dashboard is complete, it may not hold all your data, which means more resources are needed to input what remains. Some portion of your data must be extracted, managed, cleaned up, and organized, adding days and weeks to a process that should be immediate. &nbsp;</p><p>As a result, updating traditional business dashboards may cost you just as much time as they save.</p><h3>Problem: Data collection relies on manual input</h3><p>Manual input subjects your business to risk from two perspectives:</p><ul><li>Time ROI and missed opportunities</li><li>Making decisions based on outdated data</li></ul><h4>Time</h4><p>While manually inputting data is an inconvenience, time is the double-edged sword of traditional dashboards. Not only is a time gap created with updating dashboards, but pulling data and dedicating labor to these tasks are sunk costs. &nbsp;</p><p>If your teams are so focused on churning away at data processing, who is doing the work that actually drives the business forward? Tasking away at data isn’t effective for strategy execution. &nbsp;</p><h4>Decision making</h4><p>The global pandemic taught us how taking weeks or months to make a decision can put any business at extreme risk. Human input creates dependencies and lag effects, which affects confidence in your reporting. &nbsp;</p><p>As a result of this uncertainty, we begin to understand why leaders in the Deloitte survey weren’t comfortable relying on their data to make decisions.&nbsp;</p><h3>Problem: Lack of prioritization</h3><p>No single person in your organization can possibly manage all your data at one time. Yet, this is how traditional dashboards function.</p><p>Your people care only about the data relevant to them — anything else is stealing focus away from what needs to be accomplished.</p><blockquote><p>A good dashboard provides actionable information. There needs to be a reason for it. When you see a dashboard, you should immediately know what needs to be done.</p></blockquote><p>Unfortunately, dashboards don’t provide this visibility. The best they can do is display the data available, leaving you wondering:</p><ul><li>What are the important KPIs?</li><li>Where are they located?</li><li>What change is considered normal, and what is abnormal?</li></ul><p>Therefore, the data on these dashboards is neither distinguishable nor actionable — and any additional manual filtering or analysis they require defeats the sole purpose of having them.</p><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:75%;"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1675369588/site-v5/image_221a768fbb.png" alt="comic demonstrating the irony of having too many kpis and have a kpi to show how well the data is understood"><figcaption>Comic via <a href="https://marketoonist.com/2019/11/kpi-overload.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Tom Fishburne</a></figcaption></figure><h3>Problem: Lack of AI and machine learning integrations</h3><p>Manual inputs create the dilemma of catching problems or signals too late.&nbsp;</p><p>Without AI and machine learning, users will need additional time to detect anomalies and assess their relevancy based on static thresholds. &nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>We are approaching the point of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technological_singularity" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">technological singularity</a> — <i>“A hypothetical moment in time when artificial intelligence and other technologies have become so advanced that humanity undergoes a dramatic and irreversible change.”</i></p></blockquote><p>With business behavior constantly evolving, critical questions arise:</p><ul><li>Shouldn't capabilities like KPI thresholds evolve too?</li><li>How do decision makers know when and how to adjust metrics?</li><li>How do we know inputs aren’t laced with human error?</li></ul><p>A lack of intelligent automation increases the chance that minor incidents slip through the cracks. Once gone undetected, they can quickly spread, turning into larger problems with a lasting negative impact on your business.</p><h3>Problem: Data is surface level</h3><p>Decisions need to be made with as much detail and context as possible. &nbsp;</p><p>A modern business “dashboard” needs three successive capabilities:</p><ol style="list-style-type:decimal;"><li>Tell you what has occurred</li><li>Give you a deep dive into why</li><li>Uncover the driving force behind it &nbsp;</li></ol><p>A traditional dashboard, at its best, will somewhat accomplish capability #1, but lack the depth to inform you of #2 and #3. <a href="https://hbr.org/2017/01/3-ways-data-dashboards-can-mislead-you" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Harvard Business Review</a> reports, &nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>“Although they can convey snapshots of important measures, dashboards are poor at providing the nuance and context that effective data-driven decision-making demands.”</p></blockquote><p>Consequently, dashboards can’t connect and correlate unexpected changes across different metrics, i.e., anomalies. Therefore, decision makers will waste time trying to understand the whole story behind the data and risk making misinformed decisions.</p><h3>Problem: Alert fatigue</h3><p>As mentioned, traditional dashboards rely on static thresholds, which constantly need to be reset based on changing business behavior. &nbsp;</p><p>However, relying on human input to constantly update these thresholds is both impractical and inconsistent. Thus, alerts may be suddenly (and inaccurately) triggered across different KPIs, putting many operations teams into overdrive.</p><blockquote><p>They become fatigued after spending time sifting through “alert storms,” ultimately taking the sense of urgency out of the alert’s purpose.</p></blockquote><p>Without urgency, there is no focus, which ultimately harms <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-execution-gap#step-1:-align-execution-to-strategy" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the execution of your strategy</a>. Yet, the challenge remains of identifying which alerts are worth considering as an anomaly, false positives, repetitive, or minuscule. &nbsp;</p><p>In dealing with the challenges of your modern business, the solution should be to reduce the quantity of alerts, while maintaining their quality.&nbsp;</p>

<p>There’s only one thing we know about our future in business — there will always be more data to sort, organize, and manage. No matter how advanced your current solution is, you can’t out-dashboard bad data management.</p><blockquote><p>Rather than trying to curate dashboards into a perfect-in-the-moment, yet fragile combination of visualization and sourcing, it’s time to rethink the idea of dashboards themselves.</p></blockquote><p>As a modern business, you’re seeking ways to make your data work smarter. Why continue spending hours of your week tediously checking in on endless KPIs, trying to make sense of what the endless stream of data means?</p><p>With the surge of AI making headlines everywhere this year, any reluctance to what everyone claims is the “next big thing” is understandable. Business observability solutions provide advanced analytics, visualization tools, and predictive capabilities, all to help you identify problems and create solutions quicker.</p><p>After reading this article, though, you have an understanding of why business dashboards are becoming obsolete. Embracing business observability as a concept is the next evolution in your business operations.</p><hr><p style="text-align:center;">Check out our <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/business-observability-software" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">ultimate guide to business observability software</a></p><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/business-observability-software" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1676645665/site-v5/Business_Observability_Software_TEMP_FILE_e21de24662.png" alt="Business Observability Software"></a></figure><hr><p>Quantive is your bridge between strategy and execution. Founded on the objectives and key results (OKR) methodology, <a href="https://quantive.com/products" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">our Strategy Execution Platform</a> is where businesses plan successful strategy, focus and align teams to it, and stay on the leading edge of progress.</p><p>As your company looks to achieve the best possible results, you need a modern approach to <a href="https://quantive.com/products/results" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">run your business</a> and change your business. <a href="https://quantive.com/modern-operating-model" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Modern Operating Model </a>brings strategy, teams, and data together to help make decisions faster, optimize operations, and drive better business outcomes.</p><p>Whether you’re a large enterprise facing competitive disruption or a small business leading the innovative charge, Quantive helps get you where you want to go.</p><p>Ready to achieve the best possible? Start using <a href="https://quantive.com/products/results/pricing" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Quantive for free.</a></p>

The Ultimate Guide to Business Observability Software

Why Business Dashboards Can No Longer Keep Up in the Modern World

<p>The past decade was defined by unprecedented growth and technological advancement, fueled by a never-ending “more, more, more” mentality. Yet, there is only one constant in business — it’s always changing.</p><p>What’s changed?</p><ul><li>Global sociopolitical and economic uncertainty?</li><li>The “first adopter” competitive edge diminishing?</li><li>Outdated methods not working as they should? &nbsp;</li></ul><p>This is where the topic of <strong>business observability</strong> begins. When it comes to your business, and especially your data, “more” is no longer the answer. How we employ and utilize our data at scale seems to be the ultimate question across industries.</p><p>But what is business observability, and why are AI-supported solutions suddenly so important?&nbsp;</p>

<p>You might have heard the term “observability” before. Usually applied in the context of monitoring IT performance or engineering environments, observability has slowly found cross-functional applications.</p><blockquote><p>Business observability is the ability to properly collect and manage business data, then make informed decisions using insights from that data.</p></blockquote><p>Business observability allows you to minimize failure or disruption through a business lifecycle that never stops evolving, granting you visibility into everything happening across your organization and/or teams.</p><p>Your company can leverage business observability to:</p><ul><li>Monitor and measure the performance of KPIs in real-time</li><li>Quickly identify trends, issues, and opportunities &nbsp;</li><li>Fuel decision making informed by data</li></ul><p>Whether affected by internal or external factors, your day-to-day operations are becoming more complex. Data-informed decision making and business agility are no longer "nice things to have” — they are a necessity in any modern operating model.</p><hr><p style="text-align:center;">Learn more about <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/what-is-the-modern-operating-model" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the Modern Operating Model</a>&nbsp;</p><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/what-is-the-modern-operating-model" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1672763612/site-v5/what_is_MOM_e096dd39be.png" alt="modern operating model diagram"></a></figure><hr><p>So, why should you consider business observability for your business?&nbsp;</p>

<p>Without proper business observability, silos worsen, decisions are made without context, and inconsistencies in your data go unaddressed. This makes detecting and diagnosing potential issues a serious vulnerability, impacting your business and customers alike.</p><p>So what is business observability really all about? <strong>Automation</strong>.</p><p>Yes, the buzzword that has infiltrated business rhetoric and every ambitious professional’s dictionary. Business observability and automation go hand-in-hand through three key capabilities:</p><ol style="list-style-type:decimal;"><li>Data collection</li><li>Data organization</li><li>Trend identification</li></ol><h3>Data collection</h3><p>Automate KPI dashboards and monitoring software by organizing all your data in one place. With one source of truth for all your business data, there’s no shifting between applications or guessing which data is most accurate.</p><h3>Data organization</h3><p>Handling the sheer volume of data by our (human) selves is no longer possible. Business observability solutions take your data a step further by improving how you sort and organize data.&nbsp;</p><p>Data becomes accessible and insightful with little-to-no manual input.</p><h3>Trend identification</h3><p>Business observability solutions go beyond one-way alerts offered by traditional solutions like dashboards — they leverage the power of machine learning and AI to enhance automation.</p><p>Data is first inspected without human intervention. Green, yellow, and red flags are identified to users, with key operational metrics providing insight into what’s happening.&nbsp;</p><p>As a result, decision-making loops are streamlined and automated, saving your business time and resources.&nbsp;</p>

<p>After saying “more, more, more” is no longer the answer for modern businesses, it would be hypocritical for us to suggest having just one “more” solution in your business stack will make all the difference.</p><blockquote><p>Rather, business observability solutions offer both “better” and “more” as a value. Better technical functions and more practical applications, versus more alarms and notifications.</p></blockquote><p>Let’s explore how traditional solutions like business dashboards fall short of your business demands.</p><h3>Lackluster reporting capabilities</h3><p>Business intelligence tools and KPI dashboards have been the go-to choice for monitoring performance. We’ve used them to create reports, visualize data, and send alerts. &nbsp;</p><p>The problem? Much of this work relies on the assumption that:</p><ul><li>We know what to look for in our data</li><li>We can predict changes before they occur</li><li>We can dedicate all our time to manually monitoring them</li></ul><p>Sure, there have been improvements to these tools as the business landscape has evolved. But frankly, one-way business dashboards can’t keep up anymore. Their limited value is no longer sufficient given our greater, more comprehensive needs in the modern world.</p><h3>Alert fatigue</h3><p>Over time, data volume has increased and processes have become more complex. The dashboards we currently use not only lack scalability in relation to the growing number of metrics, but can't provide full context into KPI relationships within the organization.&nbsp;</p><p>What once helped us distinguish the important now achieves the opposite. &nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>The previous sense of urgency and impact of dashboards has been diluted — we’ve over-notified, over-pinged, and otherwise, dashboard-ified everything to the point that nothing feels important anymore.</p></blockquote><p>This creates three obstacles for the modern business:</p><ol style="list-style-type:decimal;"><li>There's a larger scope for things to go wrong</li><li>It’s nearly impossible to identify individual deviations &nbsp;</li><li>Minor overlooked faults can lead to significant repercussions</li></ol><p>What’s missing is <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/strategy-execution-gap#step-1:-align-execution-to-strategy" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">alignment and focus at the core</a>. Without that, strategy execution falters because nobody knows what to pay attention to or why.</p><h3>Flat data</h3><p>Perhaps the greatest opportunity loss with traditional solutions is extracting the most of your data. There’s a wide range to look at and analyze, but the best a static KPI dashboard can do is show surface-level data.&nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>Traditional dashboards and one-off monitoring tools can’t go the extra step when it comes to our data — adding context and depth.</p></blockquote><p>Your modern business requires a solution that doesn’t just display your data, but intuitively processes how complex, intertwined, and nuanced it is. How does a business observability platform account for this? By:</p><ul><li>Going granular with key metrics and qualitative segments</li><li>Uncovering the source of change with root cause analysis</li><li>Sending comprehensive breakdowns of trends and anomalies</li></ul><p>Evolving in operations isn’t possible until you can <a href="https://quantive.com/products/signals/collect" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">view, analyze, and act on your data</a> in one place.</p>

<p>Let’s be clear — business observability doesn’t just replace monitoring. It enhances it using data and insights to provide a holistic, comprehensive understanding of your ecosystem. &nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>Business observability provides an adaptive, autonomous, modern approach to data — identify changes, opportunities, and potential issues otherwise impossible with static business monitoring. &nbsp;</p></blockquote><p>Using the power of your KPIs across the organization, business observability guides you toward better decision-making and corrective action when necessary. &nbsp;</p><p>Business observability can be achieved using the following framework: &nbsp;</p><ul><li><a href="https://quantive.com/products/signals/collect" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><strong>Collect</strong>:</a> Unify data to reduce monitoring complexity &nbsp;</li><li><a href="https://quantive.com/products/signals/detect" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><strong>Detect</strong>:</a> Proactively identify changes in business KPIs &nbsp;</li><li><a href="https://quantive.com/products/signals/inspect" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><strong>Inspect</strong>:</a> Understand the root cause of any unexpected behavior &nbsp;</li><li><a href="https://quantive.com/products/signals/act" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><strong>Act</strong>:</a> Optimize where appropriate or remediate the disruption &nbsp;</li></ul><h3>Collect data</h3><p>Business observability starts by capturing the right data.</p><p>After all, you can't control what you’re not measuring. As such, the first step is figuring out which business KPIs to monitor and where they’re sourced from, as each set of metrics is unique and configured to user priorities.</p><p>For example, in marketing, teams may track a KPI like Average Order Value (AOV) to assess customer segments and refine marketing strategies accordingly. Sales teams, on the other hand, may look at the number of Sales Qualified Leads (SQLs) as a broad metric.</p><p>Business observability platforms expand on data collection with the ability to deconstruct each KPI in terms of geography, demographics, device, source, etc. &nbsp;</p><h3>Detect changes&nbsp;</h3><p>Once you’ve set up your data collection processes, you'll need to keep an eye out for unusual behavior. Anomaly detection is a core competency inspired by business monitoring.</p><blockquote><p>Examples of anomaly detection include: sudden spikes in check-out errors, shipments taking too long, conversions plummeting, customer churn, etc. &nbsp;</p></blockquote><p>To detect events effectively, you'll need to understand what the typical behavior of each KPI looks like, and if there are any interdependencies between them.&nbsp;</p><p>A business observability platform will integrate these complex behavioral patterns into its detection framework, helping you account for their complexities.</p><h3>Inspect issues</h3><p>After identifying unexpected behavior, you’ll want to understand what caused it. The underlying reason might not be obvious, as important as other issues, or accurately reflect what’s happening in your operations. &nbsp;</p><p>For example, if you're an e-commerce company and you notice an unusual dip in orders, you might assume there's an issue in your online store's payment system. However, the problem could also be in your paid advertising funnel or a simple reporting error in your host’s functionality.</p><p>Business observability platforms go a step further in helping you identify and inspect the issue, not just send alerts.</p><h3>Act on insights</h3><p>Now you know what happened and why. &nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>The top differentiator in business observability versus traditional business monitoring is taking corrective action — fixing bugs, supporting customers, and correcting issues before they become costly.</p></blockquote><p>On the other hand, if an unexpected change was positive, your platform will help you understand what’s working in your favor and double down for optimal results. &nbsp;</p><hr><p style="text-align:center;">Learn more about the capabilities of a <a href="https://quantive.com/products/signals" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">business observability platform</a></p><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><a href="https://quantive.com/products/signals" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1669896737/site-v5/visual_BO_detail_5ef78bf976.png" alt="Business Observability product demonstration"></a></figure><hr>

<p>You've now know about business observability and what it can accomplish for your business.&nbsp;</p><p>Now it's time to deep dive into the business observability process.</p><hr><p style="text-align:center;">Learn about the <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/business-observability-stages" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">4 stages of business observability</a></p><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/business-observability-stages" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1678199993/site-v5/The_4_Stages_of_Business_Observability_9348b46877.png" alt="Four hollow circles in sequential order on a green background, each with different designs, surrounded by a cylindrical line with arrow, to demonstrate the 4 stages of business observability"></a></figure><hr><p>Quantive is your bridge between strategy and execution. Founded on the objectives and key results (OKR) methodology, <a href="https://quantive.com/products" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">our Strategy Execution Platform</a> is where businesses plan successful strategy, focus and align teams to it, and stay on the leading edge of progress.</p><p>As your company looks to achieve the best possible results, you need a modern approach to <a href="https://quantive.com/products/results" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">run your business</a> and change your business. <a href="https://quantive.com/modern-operating-model" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Modern Operating Model </a>brings strategy, teams, and data together to help make decisions faster, optimize operations, and drive better business outcomes.</p><p>Whether you’re a large enterprise facing competitive disruption or a small business leading the innovative charge, Quantive helps get you where you want to go.</p><p>Ready to achieve the best possible? Start using <a href="https://quantive.com/products/results/pricing" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Quantive for free.</a></p>

What is Business Observability?

<p><strong>Are you struggling to achieve your business goals? &nbsp;</strong></p><p><strong>Not understanding what's happening in your organization?</strong></p><p><strong>Tired of deciphering meaning from your data?</strong></p><p>If this sounds like you, you’re in the right place. What is business observability software, and why can it change your business? This guide will provide you with comprehensive principles, best practices, and first steps. You'll learn:</p><ul><li>A conceptual overview of business observability software</li><li>Techniques for using data and insights in your software</li><li>A direct path to achieving your business goals</li></ul><p>Starting with business observability software, making the most impact with your data, and ultimately driving change in your business begins here.&nbsp;</p><hr><p style="margin-left:0px;text-align:center;">Don't have time to read the full article now? <a href="https://info.quantive.com/hubfs/Quantive_Guides/Business_Observability_Software_Guide.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Download the pdf</a> and save for later.</p><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><a href="https://info.quantive.com/hubfs/Quantive_Guides/Business_Observability_Software_Guide.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1680069613/site-v5/BO_Playbook_mockup_4af4ecacdc.png" alt="BO_Playbook_mockup.png"></a></figure><hr>

<p>Business observability software allows companies to monitor and measure the performance of operational key performance indicators (KPIs) in real-time — quickly identify trends, issues, and make decisions based on the most up-to-date information. &nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>Observability involves collecting, analyzing, and interpreting data across different areas such as customer experience, sales/revenue, and marketing. This helps your business stay responsive and competitive in today's fast-paced, evolving market. &nbsp;</p></blockquote><p>By stepping beyond the capabilities of passive, general business monitoring, observability creates all-important context in your data — better context fuels better action, driving improvement and growth.</p><h3>Why should you care about business observability software?</h3><p>If we had to pitch business observability software in 30 seconds, this is how we’d do it.</p><p><strong>Functionality:</strong> It provides a structured approach to making data functional and aligning your key metrics with priorities. &nbsp;</p><p><strong>Alignment:</strong> It consolidates data sources and systems, decreasing siloed activities to provide a comprehensive view of the organization. &nbsp;</p><p><strong>Responsiveness:</strong> It identifies and analyzes data issues, anomalies, and trends near real-time, as a result making well-informed, timely decisions a possibility for everyone.&nbsp;</p><h3>Business observability software at 30,000 ft</h3><p>Business observability gives you a complete, actionable understanding of your organization’s everyday health and performance with four pillars:</p><ol style="list-style-type:decimal;"><li>Collect</li><li>Detect</li><li>Inspect</li><li>Act</li></ol><h4>Collection</h4><p><a href="https://quantive.com/products/signals/collect" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Collect</a>, store, and manage data from a variety of sources across the organization to define KPIs and input metrics.</p><h4>Detection</h4><p>Autonomously monitor KPIs in real-time and <a href="https://quantive.com/products/signals/detect" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">detect unusual behavior.</a> Using artificial intelligence and machine learning models, immediately identify trends, issues, and opportunities across key metrics. &nbsp;</p><h4>Inspection</h4><p>Comprehend the data and insights generated to draw the best fitting conclusions. <a href="https://quantive.com/products/signals/inspect" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Inspect and analyze</a> the root cause of issues and anomalies with contextual information behind each phenomenon. &nbsp;</p><h4>Action</h4><p>Alert the right stakeholders in a timely manner to <a href="https://quantive.com/products/signals/act" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">act on the insights</a>, issues, and anomalies identified. Enable this with real-time monitoring, smart alerting capabilities, and key collaboration and communication integrations. &nbsp;</p>

<p>The first step in incorporating this process is about enablement. Business observability software requires certain capabilities to function properly. These include:</p><ul><li><strong>Plans: </strong>Detailed outlines for support and maintenance</li><li><strong>Access:</strong> To relevant data sources and systems</li><li><strong>RCA:</strong> Quick root cause analysis and action capabilities</li><li><strong>Tools: </strong>Easy-to-use data analysis resources</li></ul><p>To generate insights, a business observability software needs this enablement. The next step to business observability is to have a clear understanding of your desired outcomes. &nbsp;</p><p>This involves three simple questions:</p><ol style="list-style-type:decimal;"><li>What are my goals?</li><li>What are my needs?</li><li>What are my use cases?</li></ol><h3>What are your goals?</h3><p><i>"What am I trying to achieve with this investment?"</i> is the first question to ask yourself in the context of business observability software.</p><p>Maybe you want to:</p><ul><li><strong>Improve</strong> customer satisfaction with faster issue resolution</li><li><strong>Reduce</strong> the frequency and severity of incidents &nbsp;</li><li><strong>Eliminate</strong> distractions from higher-value priorities</li><li><strong>Save</strong> valuable time and maximize productivity</li><li><strong>Expand</strong> awareness by informing the state of your business operations</li></ul><p>These are all action-oriented goals observability software can achieve for your business.</p><p>Once you've identified your goals, attach quantitative or qualitative metrics to them and set a regular cadence for tracking progress (<a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/okr-meaning" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">a system like OKRs</a> is inherently well-aligned with business observability for this reason). &nbsp;</p><p>These will help you evaluate and demonstrate the success of each initiative.</p><h3>What are your needs?</h3><p><i>"What requirements must be met for this initiative to be successful?"</i> is the second question to ask yourself in the context of business observability software.</p><blockquote><p>You need end-to-end visibility into your business operations to detect, investigate, and resolve operational incidents. It’s not enough to track one aspect of your business alone. &nbsp;</p></blockquote><p>At minimum, a vendor should integrate with key systems like your customer feedback platform, sales and revenue data, marketing metrics, etc.</p><p>When choosing business observability software, think about how it will fit into your current processes. If you use Slack to communicate with your team, look for a solution that integrates with it. The easier a software meshes into your existing workflow, the more likely your team will use it.</p><p>Finally, consider the resources you can dedicate to this initiative:</p><ul><li>A managed solution, if your team operates at or above capacity</li><li>A quick adoption self-serve option, if you have spare time and want an immediate setup</li><li>An enterprise business observability software, if you have the resources and want a professional walkthrough during the process</li></ul><p>Different software should specialize in different needs.</p><h3>What are your use cases?</h3><p><i>"How could this create real impact for my organization?"</i> is the final question to ask yourself in the context of business observability software. Usefulness comes in many forms:</p><ul><li>Which issues your team has faced</li><li>How you currently solve them</li><li>Where you could use the most help</li></ul><p>While usefulness isn’t limited to these issues, most use cases gravitate toward past problems, current solutions, or future opportunities. Here are some examples:</p><blockquote><p><strong>Issue:</strong> Identifying customer experience problems</p><p><strong>Solution:</strong> Connect your omnichannel data to a business observability software</p></blockquote><blockquote><p><strong>Issue:</strong> Investigating operational incidents through root cause analysis</p><p><strong>Solution: </strong>Connect your data warehouse</p></blockquote><blockquote><p><strong>Issue:</strong> Managing revenue data</p><p><strong>Solution:</strong> Set up alert processes to notify key stakeholders as regional sales dip in territories&nbsp;</p></blockquote>

<p>Business observability is a powerful way to gain insights into the performance and success of your business. However, like any new initiative, challenges and pitfalls can arise.</p><p>Prepare accordingly to ensure your business observability program succeeds — here are the seven most common challenges:</p><h4>1. Barriers</h4><p>Business observability requires strong collaboration, coordination, and the ability to integrate a variety of data and insights. Organizations with siloed teams and limited systems will inhibit the capabilities of your business observability software.</p><h4>2. Complexity</h4><p>Business processes and systems can be difficult, distributed, and dynamic, making it complicated to understand how they work. &nbsp;</p><h4>3. Context</h4><p>Business observability software aligns data and insights in the context of business goals. Developing an understanding of your organization’s ecosystem and objectives is challenging. &nbsp;</p><h4>4. Data overload</h4><p>As the amount of data (and the power needed to process it) increases, manual tools, automated processes, and hands-off monitoring all must identify what’s relevant and actionable.</p><h4>5. Decision making</h4><p>Driving consistent change requires overcoming two friction points — engaging all stakeholders and deriving clear, actionable insights.</p><h4>6. KPI focus*</h4><p>With so many KPIs available, it’s hard to identify insights from the noise — as a result, choosing the right KPIs and forecasting scenarios brings uncertainty. &nbsp;</p><p><i><sub>* We’ll explore the importance of KPIs more in the next section.</sub></i></p><h4>7. Skills and expertise</h4><p>Data analysis, visualization, and root cause analysis are a few specialties needed in business observability software — these skills aren’t always available or may require technical training to develop.&nbsp;</p>

<p>When implementing business observability software, KPIs measure the success of your efforts. Your approach to KPIs is critical for driving sustained results. &nbsp;</p><p>There are three key components in the relationship between business observability software and your KPIs:</p><ul><li>Identifying and prioritizing important KPIs and metrics</li><li>Establishing KPI ownership and accountability</li><li>Evaluating insights effectiveness and developing a feedback loop &nbsp;</li></ul><h3>Defining successful KPIs</h3><p>Good KPIs mimic SMART goals — specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and timely. They should be aligned with your business goals and objectives to help inform decision making.</p><p>KPIs exist in business observability software to measure the performance and health of your business against its objectives and goals. Good KPIs are relevant, but not limited to, the following categories:</p><ol style="list-style-type:decimal;"><li><strong>Finance: </strong>Key metrics that provide insight into financial performance, revenue generated, and track costs and expenses</li><li><strong>Retention:</strong> KPIs that measure customer loyalty and satisfaction</li><li><strong>Performance:</strong> Indicators that measure the quality, reliability, and perceived value of products and services provided</li><li><strong>Operations:</strong> Key metrics that measure effectiveness, cost efficiency, and quality of business processes and systems</li></ol><h3>Avoiding wasteful KPIs</h3><p>These vague, difficult to measure, unrealistic, irrelevant, or out of date KPIs are the antithesis of good ones. They distract you from your business goals and waste valuable resources. &nbsp;</p><p>Some examples of bad KPIs include, but are not limited to:</p><ul><li><strong>Vanity:</strong> The number of likes on a social media post that won’t affect business objectives &nbsp;</li><li><strong>Headcount: </strong>The number of employees, which may not directly impact business performance</li><li><strong>Volume:</strong> The number of new customers, exclusive of each customer's lifetime value or impact on overall revenue</li><li><strong>Traffic:</strong> The number of website visits, which doesn't always reflect the quality of the website experience or successful marketing efforts</li></ul><h3>Ownership and feedback</h3><p>Defining KPI ownership fosters accountability and minimizes confusion about who is responsible for what. With the right people tracking and managing the right metrics, your teams can focus on improving KPI performance.</p><blockquote><p>Business observability software helps stakeholders thoroughly inspect KPIs and share insights, encouraging active feedback to improve their quality and relevance over time. Better feedback loops add detail to regular reporting and review processes.</p></blockquote><p>It’s not enough just to have a channel for feedback — ensure team members engage through that channel by rating, commenting, and suggesting improvements. To ensure consistency of engagement, use their feedback to improve analysis and interpretation of the data.</p><p>An AI/ML powered system will enhance this process, if available.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Sure, business observability software has many proposed capabilities and benefits for your business. But you need proof it can work in practical, everyday scenarios your business may encounter.</p><p>In this section, we’ll cover business observability software use cases in:</p><ul><li>Product analytics</li><li>Cloud cost monitoring</li><li>E-commerce</li><li>Marketing</li><li>Telecommunications</li></ul><h3>Product analytics</h3><p>Measure product performance, while monitoring trends, issues, and opportunities for improvement. Here are specific use cases in product analytics with business observability software.</p><h4>Product usage and adoption</h4><p>By tracking how customers interact with your product, business observability software provides insight into usage patterns, adoption rates, and user engagement. &nbsp;</p><h4>Product performance and reliability</h4><p>By monitoring product performance data, software can uncover up-to-date product quality and reliability. This helps address current and future performance issues before they worsen. &nbsp;</p><h4>Customer feedback</h4><p>By collecting feedback on customer journeys and satisfaction, software can reveal if customers are happy with their overall experience. Pair this with product usage and adoption metrics for insights into product-driven customer retention and growth. &nbsp;</p><h3>Cloud cost monitoring</h3><p>Optimize your cloud environment and reduce costs by promoting visibility into cloud spend and usage patterns.</p><p>You can get detailed data on live cloud costs by integrating cloud provider APIs, cost management tools, and other data sources into your business observability software. Additionally, control unexpected costs by identifying areas for optimization and setting cost control policies to trigger alerts.</p><p>Some relevant cloud cost monitoring KPIs include:</p><ol style="list-style-type:decimal;"><li><strong>Total spend: </strong>Measured in different granularities, like service, region, or account.</li><li><strong>Spend by service:</strong> Specific areas like compute, storage, or networking, measured by different granularities like region or availability zone.</li><li><strong>Usage by service:</strong> Such as the number of hours computed or the amount of data stored, measured by different granularities like region or availability zone.</li><li><strong>Spend by resource: </strong>Specific areas such as EC2 instances or S3 buckets, measured by different granularities like instance type or tag.</li><li><strong>Usage by resource:</strong> Such as the number of EC2 instances or the amount of data stored in S3 buckets, measured by different granularities like instance type or tag.</li></ol><h3>E-commerce</h3><p>From dialing in channel performance to understanding consumer behavior, here are <a href="https://quantive.com/solutions/signals/ecommerce" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">specific use cases in e-commerce</a> with business observability software.</p><h4>Conversion rate</h4><p>Measures the percentage of visitors who make a purchase, tracked by product, category, customer demographic, interest, channel, or source of traffic. &nbsp;</p><h4>Average order value</h4><p>The average spend per customer per purchase online, tracked by product, category, customer demographic, interest, channel, or source of traffic.</p><h4>Customer acquisition cost</h4><p>The average cost of gaining a new customer online, tracked by product, category, customer demographic, interest, channel, or source of traffic.</p><h4>Page load time</h4><p>Calculates webpage load time, tracked by page, page type, customer demographic, interest, channel, or source of traffic.</p><h4>Transaction processing time</h4><p>Assesses processing time of a transaction on a payment platform, tracked by product, category, customer demographic, interest, channel, or source of traffic.</p><h4>Shopping cart abandonment rate</h4><p>Evaluates the percentage of customers who don’t complete a purchase with items in cart, tracked by product, category, customer demographic, interest, channel, or source of traffic.</p><h4>Return rate</h4><p>Computes the percentage of customers who return a fulfilled order, tracked by product, category, customer demographic, interest, channel, or source of traffic.</p><h3>Marketing</h3><p>Optimize platforms and improve marketing performance with specific use cases in marketing with business observability software.</p><h4>Campaign performance</h4><p>Use metrics such as:</p><ul><li>Number of clicks and impressions</li><li>Level of engagement</li><li>Conversions generated by each campaign</li><li>Cost per click (CPC)</li><li>Return on investment (ROI) for each campaign</li></ul><p>These metrics can break down further into categories such as advertising platform, target audience, and type of content or offer. A business observability software will return these metrics in real time, flagging anomalies to inform real-time decision making.</p><h4>Channel optimization</h4><p>Compare the performance of different marketing channels — for example, Google AdWords vs. Facebook Ads. You can also compare performance based on medium, such as video or display ads. &nbsp;</p><p>With this level of information, teams can identify the most effective channels and optimize tactics accordingly. Channel integrations may include data from, but not limited to:</p><ol style="list-style-type:decimal;"><li><strong>Advertising platforms:</strong> Google AdWords, Facebook Ads, and LinkedIn Ads. This data might include clicks, impressions, and conversions, as well as targeting and bidding strategies used for each campaign</li><li><strong>Marketing analytics tools:</strong> Google Analytics and Adobe Analytics. This data might include website traffic, page views, and conversions, as well as the sources of traffic and the behavior of individual visitors on the website</li><li><strong>Customer relationship management (CRM) systems:</strong> Salesforce, HubSpot, etc. — this includes data about customer interactions, behaviors, product and service interests, and effective channels and tactics for engaging with them</li></ol><h3>Telecommunications</h3><p>Maintain customer connections with autonomous monitoring. Keep up with key indicators that maintain revenue and reputation with<a href="https://quantive.com/solutions/signals/telecommunications" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> specific use cases in telecom.</a></p><h4>Managed services</h4><p>Stay connected to customers and get automatic alerts when issues occur. Churn prediction, configure-price-quote effectiveness, and service-level agreement confirmation are all shifted to a proactive approach.</p><h4>Fraud detection</h4><p>Avoid chain reaction events from fraud — inconsistent billing, reputation damage, negative impact on customer satisfaction, and churn potential — with real-time disarming capabilities.</p><h4>Revenue protection</h4><p>Create hands-off monitoring systems for critical data points like voice minutes per region, data use per segment, and total volume.&nbsp;</p>

<p>You've seen some of the capabilities of business observability software. You understand the challenges and the required steps for their success. &nbsp;</p><p>But why should you make a change from traditional dashboards or other monitoring platforms?</p><p>After all, incorporating another solution comes with its own challenges — friction with the new process, proof of concept, and resource investments.</p><blockquote><p>Sticking with the status quo may work, for now, but your data needs are only going to become more complex. You don’t want to be caught playing catch up to your competitors. &nbsp;</p></blockquote><p>AI and machine learning are just the beginning of modern business intelligence. We understand both the excitement and fear when thinking about it. But leaning into these solutions now:</p><ul><li>Prevents risk and resource burn in the long term</li><li>Creates business and competitive opportunities</li><li>Improves your decision making from strategy to execution</li></ul><p>If you’re interested in taking the next step to evaluate business observability software, make sure to check our cheat sheet in the next section.&nbsp;</p>

<p>As you’re evaluating business observability software, check for the following core capabilities. Keep in mind this list is not exhaustive, but a starting point for conversations you need to have when considering a vendor.</p><h3>1. Approach to action</h3><ul style="list-style-type:disc;"><li>Configurable alerting and notifications system</li><li>Collaborative insight sharing with team members and stakeholders</li><li>User feedback to improve quality of AI-powered data analysis</li></ul><h3>2. Data collection</h3><ul><li>Consistent and reliable data collection from desired sources</li><li>Accessible storage and management</li><li>Data privacy and security</li></ul><h3>3. Data compatibility</h3><ul><li>Compatible with existing systems and data sources</li><li>Supports custom integrations</li><li>Extracts and analyzes data within those systems</li></ul><h3>4. KPI setup</h3><ul><li>Defines metrics and performance indicators &nbsp;</li><li>Establishes targets and benchmarks for each metric</li><li>Aligns with business goals and objectives</li></ul><h3>5. Real-time detection</h3><ul><li>Rapid identification of unusual KPI behavior</li><li>High-level descriptions of phenomena detected</li><li>Machine learning algorithms adapt with KPI trends</li></ul><h3>6. Performance</h3><ul><li>Handles large volumes of data and transactions</li><li>Adapts capabilities and performance at scale</li><li>Provides real-time insights and notifications</li></ul><h3>7. Price and licensing</h3><ul><li>Provides capabilities within budget</li><li>Offers license deals for different deployment structures</li><li>Flexible with support and maintenance</li></ul><h3>8. Privacy and security</h3><ul><li>Robust controls for information control</li><li>Support for data encryption, authentication, and access</li><li>Compliance with relevant regulations/standards (GDPR, etc.)</li></ul><h3>9. Real-time detection</h3><ul><li>Automatic root cause analysis of unusual KPI behavior</li><li>High-level descriptions of phenomena detected</li><li>Machine learning algorithms to address and resolve events</li></ul><h3>10. User experience</h3><ul><li>User-friendly, human-first interface</li><li>Clear documentation and accessibility</li><li>Supports different deployments — on-premises, cloud, hybrid, etc.&nbsp;</li></ul>

<p>Quantive is your bridge between strategy and execution. <a href="https://quantive.com/products" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Our Strategy Execution Platform</a> is where businesses plan successful strategy, focus and align teams to it, and stay on the leading edge of progress.</p><p>As your company looks to achieve the best possible results, you need a modern approach to <a href="https://quantive.com/products/results" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">run your business</a> and change your business. <a href="https://quantive.com/modern-operating-model" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Modern Operating Model </a>brings strategy, teams, and data together to help make decisions faster, optimize operations, and drive better business outcomes.</p><p>Whether you’re a large enterprise facing competitive disruption or a small business leading the innovative charge, Quantive helps get you where you want to go.</p><p>Ready to achieve the best possible? Start using <a href="https://quantive.com/products/results/pricing" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Quantive for free.</a></p>

Learn more about Quantive's business observability software

<p>Business observability focuses on the performance and key metrics of your entire company. It involves broad data sources such as marketing platforms, customer feedback, and sales data. &nbsp;</p><p>With such a wide range of capabilities, breaking up the stages of business observability is the best way to understand its full potential.</p><p>These stages provide a comprehensive and actionable way to improve your organization's day-to-day health and performance. They include:</p><ol style="list-style-type:decimal;"><li>Collect</li><li>Detect</li><li>Inspect</li><li>Act</li></ol><h3>Collection</h3><p>Gather and <a href="https://quantive.com/products/signals/collect" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">manage data from various sources</a> throughout the organization to establish and improve KPIs.</p><h3>Detection</h3><p>Independently track KPIs in real-time and <a href="https://quantive.com/products/signals/detect" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">detect unusual activity.</a> Using artificial intelligence and machine learning models, quickly identify patterns, problems, and opportunities across critical metrics.</p><h3>Inspection</h3><p>Comprehend the data and insights produced to draw timely insights. Analyze the root causes of problems and <a href="https://quantive.com/products/signals/inspect" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">inspect anomalies</a> with contextual information about each phenomenon.</p><h3>Action</h3><p>Notify appropriate stakeholders quickly to <a href="https://quantive.com/products/signals/act" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">address the insights, issues, and anomalies</a> identified. This is made possible through real-time monitoring, intelligent alerting features, and vital collaboration and communication integrations.&nbsp;</p>

<p>How you <a href="https://quantive.com/products/signals/collect" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">collect and connect data</a> makes up the critical first stage of business observability.</p><p>Collecting data provides the information needed to monitor and measure the performance of a business. Connecting data is effectively squeezing the most juice from your data possible.</p><h3>Collection capabilities</h3><p>When assessing the software's collection capabilities, consider the following:</p><ol style="list-style-type:decimal;"><li><strong>Scalability:</strong> Collect and process large amounts of data efficiently</li><li><strong>Flexibility:</strong> Adapt to different types of data and changing business needs</li><li><strong>User-friendly interface:</strong> Easy to use, with or without technical expertise</li><li><strong>Real-time data: </strong>Access real-time information for fast decision-making</li><li><strong>Security:</strong> Maintain confidentiality and privacy by protecting data</li><li><strong>Integration:</strong> Reporting, analysis, and visualization tools (e.g., Looker, DBT)</li><li><strong>Support:</strong> Offer guidance when integrating different data sources</li></ol><h3>Connector Types</h3><p>The more connectors a business observability software offers, the wider range of businesses it may support. The first stage of business observability involves having software connectors that support data integrations from:</p><ul><li>Third-party tools</li><li>Internal databases and data warehouses</li></ul><p>Some business observability software connectors may include:</p><ol style="list-style-type:decimal;"><li><strong>Cloud connectors: </strong>Cloud-based systems and services like Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud Platform. The software can process this data to monitor and analyze business metrics.</li><li><strong>Database connectors:</strong> Both relational databases (e.g., MySQL, PostgreSQL, Snowflake, Big Query) and non-relational databases (e.g., MongoDB, Cassandra).&nbsp;</li><li><strong>Application connectors:</strong> Like customer relationship management (CRM) systems, e-commerce platforms, and marketing automation tools.&nbsp;</li><li><strong>Custom connectors:</strong> Monitor and analyze metrics specific to your operations, even if they are not supported by other connectors in the software.&nbsp;</li></ol>

<p>Having all the data is great. But what you draw from it is the next stage of business observability.</p><blockquote><p>The <a href="https://quantive.com/products/signals/detect" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">detection stage of business observability</a> is like accessing the optic nerve of your organization. Detection is understanding how operations are performing, so you can manage your business smarter.</p></blockquote><p>One of software’s smartest capabilities is automatically generating insights from your KPIs, eliminating countless hours manually poring over data. Machine learning algorithms and other tools spot data trends and patterns, so you can stay on top of potential issues and keep things running smoothly.</p><h3>Insight attributes</h3><p>Making important decisions is about having all the necessary information. That's where insights come in. &nbsp;</p><p>An insight is a clear, concise piece of information that helps you understand what's going on in your business. &nbsp;</p><p>Backed on solid data analysis, it should guide you on what to do next. Here's what you can expect from an insight:</p><ul><li>A description of the issue or phenomenon</li><li>Data sources used to identify it</li><li>Key findings from the data</li><li>Implications of those findings</li><li>Suggestions for further investigation or action</li></ul><p>Insights are the roadmap for your next steps, keeping your business moving in the right direction.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The next stage in business observability is <a href="https://quantive.com/products/signals/inspect" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">going further in depth to inspect</a> key drivers and contributing factors of change. &nbsp;</p><blockquote><p>This pillar allows users and stakeholders to understand how insights are drawn, amplifying the validity, reliability, and relevance of their conclusion.</p></blockquote><p>For example, the software might collect an e-commerce business’s performance metrics (orders, average order value, number of transactions, etc.). Through data analysis, the software identifies increased payment failures during peak traffic periods. &nbsp;</p><p>This could be a potential issue affecting user experience, leading to lost sales.</p><p>Inspection capabilities in this stage of business observability give specific root causes on where these increased payment failures originate — through any device or browser — so the payment provider can take swift corrective action. &nbsp;</p><h3>Personalized insights</h3><p>Since one size doesn't (usually) fit all, insights need to be molded specifically to your needs, interests, and preferences. Here's how this stage of business observability achieves that:</p><ul><li><strong>Behavior:</strong> Use data and analytics to understand past behavior and configurations, identifying trends and patterns relevant to each person</li><li><strong>Display: </strong>Configure insight presentation and format, matching each person's learning preferences and visual needs</li><li><strong>Follow-up:</strong> Provide options for further exploration and action, such as links to related data, resources, or suggestions for next steps</li></ul><p>Personalized insights are more engaging and relevant to the user, building trust and confidence in the data analysis being presented.&nbsp;</p>

<p>With insights generated and root causes identified, the final stage in business observability is <a href="https://quantive.com/products/signals/act" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">taking action</a> — amplifying and addressing revealed issues and anomalies.</p><p>This business observability stage’s last capability is to inform strategy and operational decision-making, which affect key areas such as product development, marketing, and customer service.</p><h3>Delivering insights where they matter</h3><p>The starting point for acting effectively is alerting the right stakeholders. Once the right people have been notified, it's important to analyze findings together, bring up recommendations, and discuss potential solutions or strategies.</p><p>Collaboration creates the best plan of action to address the issue and improve performance. Here are some examples of how the final stage of business observability helps you achieve this:</p><ul><li><strong>In-app feed:</strong> Share insights through an in-app feed or report, giving teams an overview of KPIs and trends</li><li><strong>Email and messaging: </strong>Make access to insights seamless by pushing them directly to inboxes, or collaboration tools such as Slack or Teams</li><li><strong>Ticketing systems: </strong>Integrate with existing ticketing systems to incorporate insights into workflows</li></ul><p>Your teams will increase performance while reducing issues and anomalies, all by overhauling processes and implementing new strategies through this business observability stage.</p><h3>Alerting without chaos &nbsp;</h3><p>Observable systems identify and surface alerts before end customers are impacted. Ensure insights are delivered without endless notifications — here are some best practices:</p><ol style="list-style-type:decimal;"><li><strong>Balance: </strong>Alert fatigue is real — too many of them make it hard to distinguish signals from noise</li><li><strong>Specificity: </strong>Alerts should be contextual, personalized, and grouped, giving a concise, yet complete picture</li><li><strong>Versatility: </strong>Alerts should be sent where people are — communication channels like Slack and Teams, or through ticketing systems&nbsp;</li></ol>

<p>You've learned about the stages of business observability and which critical capabilities you should look for. &nbsp;</p><p>But why do traditional options like dashboards or standard software monitoring platforms fall short in our modern work environment?&nbsp;</p><hr><p style="text-align:center;">See why sticking to a <a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/business-dashboard" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">business dashboard leaves you vulnerable</a></p><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><a href="https://quantive.com/resources/articles/business-dashboard" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/gtmhub/image/upload/v1675473159/site-v5/Why_Business_Dashboards_Can_No_Longer_Keep_Up_in_a_Modern_Business_ade3a2dd5d.png" alt="Dashboard outline cut off by bars graphic to represent business dashboards"></a></figure><hr><p>Quantive is your bridge between strategy and execution. Founded on the objectives and key results (OKR) methodology, <a href="https://quantive.com/products" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">our Strategy Execution Platform</a> is where businesses plan successful strategy, focus and align teams to it, and stay on the leading edge of progress.</p><p>As your company looks to achieve the best possible results, you need a modern approach to <a href="https://quantive.com/products/results" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">run your business</a> and change your business. <a href="https://quantive.com/modern-operating-model" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Modern Operating Model </a>brings strategy, teams, and data together to help make decisions faster, optimize operations, and drive better business outcomes.</p><p>Whether you’re a large enterprise facing competitive disruption or a small business leading the innovative charge, Quantive helps get you where you want to go.</p><p>Ready to achieve the best possible? Start using <a href="https://quantive.com/products/results/pricing" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Quantive for free.</a></p>

Why Business Dashboards Can No Longer Keep Up