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Entrinsik Informer is a versatile reporting tool that has transformed the way data is accessed and analyzed on campus. Users find Informer …
Overview
What is Entrinsik Informer?
Entrinsik Informer is a web-based reporting and business intelligence application popular in the higher education vertical market. It helps organizations transform real-time data into actionable information by delivering ad-hoc reporting, data analysis, and interactive dashboards.
Recent Reviews
Popular Features
- Multi-User Support (named login) (11)9.090%
- Report sharing and collaboration (10)9.090%
- Drill-down analysis (9)9.090%
- Formatting capabilities (10)8.181%
Reviewer Pros & Cons
Director, Systems Management & MIS Operations
College of the Desert (Higher Education, 501-1000 employees)
Pricing
N/A
Unavailable
What is Entrinsik Informer?
Entrinsik Informer is a web-based reporting and business intelligence application popular in the higher education vertical market. It helps organizations transform real-time data into actionable information by delivering ad-hoc reporting, data analysis, and interactive dashboards.
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Product Details
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- Competitors
- Tech Details
- FAQs
What is Entrinsik Informer?
Informer 5 from Entrinsik is a data discovery and analytics tool that aims to simplify the process of accessing, cleansing, blending, and analyzing data from multiple sources. According to the vendor, with Informer, companies can aggregate all their disparate data into a single platform using an intuitive, 100% web-based interface that replaces outdated query tools and complicated reporting systems.
The tool aims to eliminate the need for data warehouses and cubes, and eliminate complicated “views” and limited functionality. With extensible architecture, collaborative environment, and enterprise-level performance, Informer aims to deliver actionable insights and better, data-driven decisions for its customers.
Entrinsik Informer Features
BI Platform Features
- Supported: Administration via Web Interface
- Supported: Live Connection to External Data
- Supported: Snapshot of External Data
- Supported: In-memory data model
- Supported: Multi-Data Source Reporting (Blending)
Supported Data Sources Features
- Supported: MS Excel Workbooks
- Supported: Text Files (CSV, etc)
- Supported: Oracle
- Supported: MS SQL Server
- Supported: IBM DB2
- Supported: Postgres
- Supported: MySQL
- Supported: ODBC
- Supported: Cloudera Hadoop
- Supported: Hortonworks Hadoop
- Supported: SAP Hana
BI Standard Reporting Features
- Supported: Customizable dashboards
- Supported: Report Formatting Templates
Ad-hoc Reporting Features
- Supported: Drill-down analysis
- Supported: Formatting capabilities
- Supported: Report sharing and collaboration
Report Output and Scheduling Features
- Supported: Publish to Web
- Supported: Publish to PDF
- Supported: Report Versioning
- Supported: Report Delivery Scheduling
- Supported: Delivery to Remote Servers
Data Discovery and Visualization Features
- Supported: Pre-built visualization formats (heatmaps, scatter plots etc.)
- Supported: Location Analytics / Geographic Visualization
Access Control and Security Features
- Supported: Multi-User Support (named login)
- Supported: Role-Based Security Model
- Supported: Multiple Access Permission Levels (Create, Read, Delete)
- Supported: Report-Level Access Control
- Supported: Table-Level Access Control (BI-layer)
- Supported: Field-Level Access Control (BI-layer)
Mobile Capabilities Features
- Supported: Responsive Design for Web Access
- Supported: Dashboard / Report / Visualization Interactivity on Mobile
Application Program Interfaces (APIs) / Embedding Features
- Supported: REST API
Entrinsik Informer Screenshots
Entrinsik Informer Videos
Customers Talk About Informer
Introduction to Informer 5 BI & Data Analytics
Entrinsik Informer Competitors
Entrinsik Informer Technical Details
| Deployment Types | On-premise, Software as a Service (SaaS), Cloud, or Web-Based |
|---|---|
| Operating Systems | Windows, Linux, Mac |
| Mobile Application | No |
Frequently Asked Questions
Entrinsik Informer is a web-based reporting and business intelligence application popular in the higher education vertical market. It helps organizations transform real-time data into actionable information by delivering ad-hoc reporting, data analysis, and interactive dashboards.
Reviewers rate Publish to Web and Report Versioning and Role-Based Security Model highest, with a score of 9.1.
The most common users of Entrinsik Informer are from Mid-sized Companies (51-1,000 employees).
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Reviews and Ratings
(86)
Community Insights
TrustRadius Insights are summaries of user sentiment data from TrustRadius reviews and, when necessary, 3rd-party data sources. Have feedback on this content? Let us know!
- Business Problems Solved
- Recommendations
Entrinsik Informer is a versatile reporting tool that has transformed the way data is accessed and analyzed on campus. Users find Informer easy to grasp and use, making training a breeze. With its seamless integration with multiple systems, Informer allows users to create and manipulate data as needed, eliminating the need for manual gathering of report data and saving hours of time. The software empowers end users to govern their own data and find the information they need with minimal support. IT departments have control over access, limiting what each user sees based on their access level. Additionally, the scheduling feature in Informer has been a game changer for users by allowing reports to run automatically and be delivered via email, streamlining workflows and processes. Informer's ability to provide accurate and timely reports from multiple databases has increased usage campus-wide, with different groups of users running created reports. It serves as a single point for querying multiple systems and databases, allowing users to create their own reports and reducing the burden on IT programmers. Overall, Informer has solved a multitude of problems for colleges and universities by addressing quick and complex reporting needs across various departments and empowering users to make informed decisions based on up-to-date information.
Users have made several recommendations for Entrinsik Informer based on their experiences. Many users find Informer to be a useful tool for reporting that is easy to use for end users. Furthermore, users highly recommend Informer for its ability to create various data gathering options and its outstanding customer service. Additionally, users have found that Informer is a tremendous time saver as it decreases report development time and enables users to create their own reports. Users also suggest using Informer when a database or CRM lacks a strong built-in reporting feature and recommend using external software like Excel for any necessary alterations.
Attribute Ratings
Reviews
(1-3 of 3)Companies can't remove reviews or game the system. Here's why
June 30, 2016
Great Product and Awesome Support!
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Simply and as succinctly as I can possibly make it - Informer is a great product that produces superior results right out of the box. It is a product we depend on every single day in our entire organization and it always produces great results and truly worth every last cent of investment. The enhancements over the years have taken an already great product and truly made it better and the company is always listening to their customers to better the product and add features that truly enhance the customer experience. We originally purchased Informer to report from a single U2 Data source, but it is now reporting from multiple data sources and solving more analytical problems than the simple reporting we originally purchased it to solve.
- The ability to schedule using various methods of delivery or on-demand reporting to users in a secure way - Giving users access to the data source and selection and parameters that return what they need to see, but nothing more.
- The ability to report and link on multiple data sources and types. This makes it far easier for use to link SQL Data with U2 Data and provide functional reporting and analytics without having to create a warehouse in between.
- Support and Enhancements. They are always providing great things and the releases are far more stable than most other software that is released.
- That is pretty difficult as we built the ROI on Informer solving a specific set of roles in the company. It has far exceeded the initial and current specifications, so we couldn't be happier.
- If I had to pick one thing, it would be to have employees geared to a specific industry for deployment and integration, but they have done a far better job than the others playing in the same ballpark.
We are constantly looking at better ways to do things, including building our own internally. I don't think it is fair to compare the products we have evaluated and why we have continued with Informer as they all do some things well. I will say that Informer still meets or exceeds our expectations and even though we are constantly evaluating new products and ideas, we have no plans to replace the product in the near or far future.
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90%
9.0
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- Initial ROI was met by having a reporting system that didn't take a huge chunk of resources from the system or Information Technology. The ability to schedule parameterized reports that go out to much of our staff on a weekly and monthly basis.
- Over time, we found more creative ways to utilize some of the live excel aspects of reporting to build analytical and graphical based reporting and forecasting.
- The ability to utilize native U2 commands, lists made it easier to port existing reporting and knowledge.
November 11, 2015
Excellent product--Excellent company
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Entrinsik Informer is being used throughout the university as the primary reporting tool. It allows not only for ad-hoc reporting but also to assist in decision-making at management level. We are able to export data to outside entities to provide data for FMLA benefits, insurance benefits, and Alumni database population as well as others. The ease of the tool itself makes it relatively easy for end-users to create their own reports as well. It also allows mapping to a UniData database which is not common in the BI world.
- Ease of use for end-users--drag and drop interface allows for users without database knowledge to create reports.
- The ability to map Informer to multi-valued databases like Unidata/U2.
- The ability to link multiple databases allows for endless opportunities for data integration.
- Reliable, dependable, and extremely stable product that works seamlessly with upgrades.
- Allows export of data in multiple formats to allow for external download of data.
- The dashboard product (which we don't have but we have had a trial version in the past) allows for Google map plotting to view trends in applicant/student demographics.
- While I don't think there is anything that is hard to use with Informer, additional functionality might be the ability to run multiple reports off of one query.
No comparison really--Informer's ease of use and Entrinsik's customer support is far superior.
25
Various academic and business functions across the university including but not limited to university schools, Financial Aid, Records and Advising, Academic Affairs, Office of the Bursar, Accounting, etc.
1
I am the support person at our university and handle any rare issue we might have with Informer in-house. I am responsible for doing the upgrades and setting up security. This product is so simple to support and Entrinsik's customer support is excellent and extremely responsive when there is a rare instance that I need to go to them for something I can't resolve myself.
- Ad-hoc report building/running throughout the entire university.
- Quick and easy report writing capabilities. Ease of use for report writers.
- Export of data required by either internal or external entities in various formats.
- Live Excels allow for users to run reports when needed with no intervention from IT
- One report runs a process that calculates hours worked for the past 365 days for FMLA elibitility and then runs a report that exports the FMLA data directly to our 3rd party FMLA administrator.
- Our Institutional Research department runs their 10th day statistical data from an Informer report and then archives this data.
- Created extremely complex report for export of our Alumni data to our Blackbaud Alumni database in the format that this database needed for successful import.
- Implemented in-house
August 19, 2015
How did we function without it?
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
We have rolled Informer out across our campus. We went live with Informer in February 2011, coming from a dos-based reporting tool where we had 8 people writing reports. We now have 101 different staff members who have written their own reports. We have 211 users on our campus who have run reports on their own. Most of them received one 2-hour training class to run and manipulate their reports. This has certainly de-centralized the functions away from our IT office running all of the reports. Additionally, this is allowing the end-users to manage their own data on their own timeline. I have been a data analyst for the University for over 20 years, and this tool is by far the easiest to manage.
We recently rolled out dynamic dashboards and 43 report-writers attended the training session.
We recently rolled out dynamic dashboards and 43 report-writers attended the training session.
- The terms are easily understood. Our report writers and users have an easy time plotting the data to make sure they are receiving the information they need.
- The ability to schedule on-going reports has been a tremendous time saver. We currently have 260 reports running in a "hands off" mode so they can be delivered to upper management for their needs. Included in this list is a pool of "audit" reports where supervisors can receive a report if there are issues with common data entry standards.
- Security is easy to manage. We are able to allow all of the appropriate granular security with each user group.
- The ability to use LiveExcel interaction with our database allows some of our administrative assistants to use their Windows Office skills rather than having to login to the tool itself.
- While we do like the new Dashboards, the scale-ability of the graphical representation would be helpful.
- We had developed a list of "wishes" and submitted them to the Entrinsik forum... and lo and behold, when release 4.4.1 came out, the issues were addressed! We particularly needed the ability to copy parts of the set up from one instance to another. We continue to be users of the Wiki and Forums available to clients.
Before using Informer, we used "Query Builder" and staff found that very difficult to manage and write reports. We do use Crystal Reports and while it contains some of the output functions we need, it is not end-user friendly and generally requires extensive training to be able to run the most basic reports. After further review, Crystal Reports has been removed from the "standard tools" list, in favor of Informer.
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6.7
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100%
10.0
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Full cross-sample of all administrative departments from Finance, Purchasing, Human resources, Advancement, Admissions, Financial Aide, Student Accounts, Student Affairs, Athletics, Marketing, Information Technology, Event Scheduling, International Programs, Provost/Academic Affairs. Campus Security.
1
We have one person tasked with management of the product (Security, File Setup and Staff Training); which takes about 1/2-time FTE. Our Systems maintenance team manages the software updates on an as-needed basis, which is about quarterly.
- With a new Capital Campaign underway, we hope to accelerate the distribution of the Key Indicators to the full committee in a real-time method.
- Data Mining for research on the KPIs ~ Admission, Retention, Financial Reporting
- Data Delivery for Financial Reports on a scheduled basis to the appropriate staff and budget officers
- Data Analysis for a recent conversion completed by the Advancement Office where we managed the entire conversion specifications by side-by-side data analysis of two different datasources.
- Using the Dashboards, for Faculty Departments to identify course needs to facilitate scheduling appropriate classes and capacity for upcoming terms.
- Using Informer to identify changes to Faculty Advisement records for ease of scheduling
Yes
a DOS-based Query product that required massive IT support and had limited user-access
- Product Features
- Product Usability
- Product Reputation
- Vendor Reputation
- Third-party Reviews
User-Friendly was a key component. After a single two-hour training session, our power users are set to go.
We surveyed our administrative database co-workers (Ellucian); and reviewed a few of their suggestions, and Informer by Entrinsik always rose to the top.
- Implemented in-house
No
Change management was a big part of the implementation and was well-handled
It took about a year for the administrative units to understand that we were providing them with a tool to manage their own data. There is a still a small modicum of trust issues, mostly relating to understanding the data, and not the tool used to provide the information.
- The understanding that "group" training is generally not a reality on a College Campus. Due to the confidentiality of the data components, the training must be done in very small groups so they will be training on their own data.
- The willingness of some departments to take on the responsibility of retrieving and reviewing their own data. This had previously fallen to IT and an Institutional Research department. With all of the new federal regulations in just about every department on our campus, they are understanding that they need to control this review.
No
We were setting up a training class for Dashboard Users, and we were having an issue on security settings. In less than an hour, all of the appropriate flags were set and we were ready to go.
- From an IT perspective: The Initial setup, Datasource mapping and file-joins are quite easy.
- From an end-user, If they know their data, the reporting is quite simple. The user still has to know what they are trying to identify in the report.
- The dashboard setup takes about 15 minutes to learn
- The report writers have to understand the underlying database file structure. The Informer tool is quite simple to manage if you know it. We have tried to provide tools to the reporting units on their file structure as an aid.