Item: Qlik Sense
Rating: 3
Author: Verified User

Overall Satisfaction with Qlik Sense

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Qlik sense is being used for our organization to capture demographic data for clients served across all programs, as well as provide outcome data, fidelity data (adherence to our program model), and tracking of strategic initiatives for clients within our flagship program. Additionally, Key Apps and sheets that we use internally have been "templatized" and are being offered as part of the "deep evaluation and learning experience" we provide to other organizations who adopt our flagship model (within their own organization in different states) as part of our Network Affiliate model.

Pros and Cons

Pros

Interactive visualizations.
Customization to add your own company branding (logo, color schemes, etc.).
Allow for multiple cuts or filters of data depending on user needs (region, time frame, client type, etc.).

Cons

Use Standard SQL so that new staff can build sheets and apps quickly using existing knowledge
need to be able to select specific dates for filtering data (i.e., show data for all clients served between 7/1/2019 and 6/30/2020) as this would address the majority of our data requests from contracts and development
Provide a "user training" section of the site that allows end-users to have a guided training on how to navigate QilkSense and use Key features like the snapshot tool or how to apply multiple filters to a particular view using the organization's data, not a random dummy data set.

Return on Investment

Desktop version with "date picker" plug in eliminated roughly 10 ad-hoc data requests each month (about 20-30 hours per month) but the date picker plug in no longer works nor does the desktop version.

Alternatives Considered

Tableau Online and Microsoft BI

Tableau is too expensive. Microsoft BI is what we might switch to in terms of our department's skill set, available (free) training resources through forums and youtube, and pricepoint for a nonprofit.

Other Software Used

Apricot by Social Solutions, IBM SPSS

Likelihood to Recommend

Well suited for departments where teams have actual software development and computer programming formal training. We are an Evaluation team that has technical skills but we are self-taught coders and do not have the knowledge base to set up systems for complex data analysis and visualization.

Training resources seem slim compared to more well-known visualization software (Tableau) which puts our relatively non-technical department at a greater disadvantage in using the product.

We have had a terrible time getting a response from the Qlik team re: expanding licenses and managing the switch from the Desktop to the cloud version of the software. Members of our leadership team and affiliate network members had to wait months before they were granted licenses and access to view their data and dashboards for decision making. This was after multiple calls and emails by our data analyst and our VP of Evaluation and Learning.

Qlik Sense Feature Ratings

Comments

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Confusing product for a nonprofit that needs dedicated technical expertise to fully utilize

Software Version