Business Intelligence for SMEs
Business intelligence for SMEs: useful data to read the business
Business intelligence turns the data a company already has (accounting, invoicing, cash, payroll, management software) into readable, up-to-date indicators that support decisions. It requires neither specific software nor a large organisation.
Who it is for. Small and medium-sized businesses that want to read financial statement data, costs and margins regularly through a dashboard of indicators.
Request an initial meetingComplete the form; the firm will reply proposing an initial meeting to assess the case.
An overall view
Margins, cash and costs read together, with the same criteria every month.
Variances highlighted
Differences from budget are visible on a regular basis, so they can be assessed in time.
Shared rules
Connected sources and uniformly defined indicators: meetings focus on decisions, not on reconciling figures.
What it is for
To answer questions such as: what is the margin per customer or per job, how long we take to collect payment, whether we are keeping to the budget. Illustrative example: a product line may generate most of the revenue and only a smaller share of the margin; without a periodic review, the difference emerges at year-end, when it is too late to act.
How we work
Source analysis
Management software, accounting, payroll and the other systems already in use. The tool (for example Microsoft Power BI or Excel) is chosen afterwards, based on the company’s systems and needs.
Indicators
We start from the questions the company needs to answer, not from the number of charts.
Dashboards and support
Clear reports, reviewed periodically together with a professional of the firm.
What is monitored
Economic
Revenue, margins and costs by area.
Financial
Cash, due dates and funding needs.
Commercial
Customers, products and most profitable lines.
Labour cost
Impact on revenue and trend.
Budget vs actual
Variances and their causes.
Operational
Process indicators chosen with the company.
A product line generates 60% of revenue but only 30% of margin. Read together with costs, this guides pricing and commercial priorities. The values are illustrative and do not refer to real clients. Below, a demonstration dashboard.
Support from artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence tools support building and updating dashboards, reconciling data from different sources and flagging variances against budget. The benefit is less time on repetitive tasks and checks applied systematically.
Data under control
Who accesses the data, which indicators are the official ones and how personal data are processed (GDPR) is defined at the start of the work, together with the company.
Business intelligence organises and reads the indicators; the management control links them to objectives, variances and decisions. The two areas complement each other.
Frequently asked questions
Where do we start?
From the questions you want answered and the data available. Indicators are chosen according to need, not by the number of charts.
Do we need to change management software?
It is not a prerequisite: existing data and systems are assessed first. Any connections or new tools are defined after that analysis.
How does it relate to management control?
Business intelligence helps organise and read the indicators. Management control links them to objectives, variances and decisions: the two areas complement each other.
How much does it cost?
It depends on the complexity of the systems to be connected and the reports required. The fee is agreed in writing before the engagement.
Who sees the data?
Only the people the company designates. Access and official indicators are set together at the start, in compliance with the GDPR.
Contact the firm
Write to us: we will assess your situation together.
Contact us
Write us a few lines; we reply on working days.