BizNet Software vs. SAS Visual Analytics

My favorite part is using if for analytical review reports, especially budget to actual reviews. I can make changes to the GL based on issues found during the review and the report updates immediately without having to update, re-key, verify changes, etc. I know it is going to be updated and correct every time.

I was in a meeting with the client and there I have to show them some analytic data to them. But I was confused about how I will manage to show big data to clients with accuracy. But then the SAS Visual Analytics software helps me in presenting accurate data at the moment and it was very presentable and through that, I got the deal for that business.

Incentivized

• Once a worksheet has been created, you can change a single cell and update the entire report. This makes it much easier than recreating a report every time you start.
• It draws data directly from our database that can be filtered down in various ways. This allows us to get the data that we really need quicker.

Incentivized

• Provides the flexibility to the end user to slice and dice the data.
• Anyone can make predictive models with the help of in-built algorithms without the need to write a single line of code or knowledge of what's under the hood of algorithms.
• The feature to simply ask a question related to data and getting a response in form of text, chart or graph is amazing.

Incentivized

• Access to comprehensive training for new users is lacking. While the pay-based BizNet University has some useful videos it doesn't allow for other learning styles.
• Having to create a separate OCBC data source and linked server for each arm of business opened is sometimes a hassle.

• SAS is relatively expensive when compared to other BI tools and requires a large amount of upfront fee which becomes an issue for smaller organizations.
• UI for the dashboards looks a little date in comparison to competitors like Tableau and Microstrategy.
• Integration with other open source software like Python needs to be built in.

Incentivized

Lack of communication from BizNet on new policies with the resellers, changes in the policies that affect the client aren't positive in my opinion

Incentivized

SAS really is the cutting edge in Business Intelligence. That is all they do! They are constantly coming out with new products, product upgrades, and their tech support is second to none. In addition, their support of Education has made our ability to acquire their product possible.

Excel knowledge is a prerequisite to use BizNet well.

SAS BI is good for creating reports and dashboards and then sharing it with the users. It also has ability to manage access to the reports and dashboards but somehow with most of the world moving to open source languages R, Python and Julia, SAS BI feels to be archaic in terms of feature set and integrations it allow[s]. Also, comparing it with other Business Intelligence tools like Tableau and Microsoft BI, the functionality of SAS BI is very limited and doesn't justify the pricing.

Incentivized

We have only had a few occasions to call on the support team over 4 years, but every time our need was met in a superior manner.

When you call tech support, you are immediately routed to a person who can answer your question. Often they can answer on the spot. However, if they cannot, you are given a track number and then followed up with. There have been times when I have had multiple track numbers open and they will actually TRACK YOU DOWN to ensure that your problem has been resolved. Issues do not fall into black holes with SAS. They are also willing to do a WebEx with you to diagnose the problem by seeing your environment, which is always helpful.

We went pretty seamlessly into BizNet, but could have had lots of trouble if the professional service was not aware of our set up and use.

FRX - Great Plains Report Writer - These do produce financial reports but are much more tedious to set up. BizNet is much more flexible and easier to use. The functionality is an Excel add-on which allows us to use the powerful functionality of Excel as well as Biznet's functionality to do data retrieval from Sage 100 general ledger.

Incentivized

SAS Business Intelligence is not the cream of the crop for business intelligence applications, but it is not far behind. The software is generally easier to apply than most other business intelligence software. Additionally, SAS Business Intelligence runs smoothly in the background when making real-time updates. With that said, the software is not as efficient of many of the other business intelligence software applications that have been on the market for longer than this one.

Incentivized

• BizNet continues to pay for itself.
• I am sure we haven't even learned to use half of what it is capable of and their customer service is top notch.
• I would say that BizNet continues to have a positive impact on our entire financial portion of our business.

Incentivized

• SAS Visual Analytics licensing cost should be reduced to enable users to use it in mass scale.
• More statistical and mathematical equations and theories should be converted into SAS functions for reusing.
• Because of enriched ETL and reporting capabilities SAS Visual Analytics is most preferred by business users.

Incentivized