Business intelligence techniques (I have only small data...)

hi,
i need to know about BI (Business intelligence).. My problem is that i have small data.. approx of an year(initially). and i want to apply sum BI technique on it .. but so far i have read, it says that you can apply BI techniques on that much limited data...

so im stuck.. any suggestions..?

I might not fully understand the question! :-)
BI is a discipline that includes a LOT of different practices. It is as varied as business itself. It includes and accommodates innovation based on the particular kind of business you are working for.

Your question makes me think you are in a degree program that has certain requirements for a project you are doing. Maybe you are still trying to perfect your English and it is difficult to interpret the instructions? If that is the case, maybe you can post your instructions and we can help you understand them.

But you CAN'T be stuck. There is always a solution.
How much data do you think you need to apply a BI technique? I think you should be able to use BI even with one piece of data. :-) But it depends on what techniques you are using...

Kevin,
thanx for ur response, i did not put lot of detail in my initial post,
But yes i am in a degree program, im doing MS in Software Engg. and the problem im talking about is my MS Thesis.
well my problem is that"i have to survey the software industry(Software houses,graduate software engineers and faculty of various universities) in Pakistan . Aim is to find out that what type of "Generic and Specific skill sets " do graduate students(software engg. for my case) possess when they graduate from a universiry. then we will see that what are the required skill sets by software industry. research need is to align the industry's requirements with universities curriculam so that universities may produce/generate specific skill sets in graduate students by modifying their curriculam."

now it is a simple kind of research. i want to add up some "innovative factor" or some "resarch element" so that each year, data get to be added and by applying some BI technique, i may be able to :

(1) show current trend of data
(2) predict future trend of data

An Artificial intelligence(A.I) specialized teacher told me that i can not use some A.I technique as i would ONLY be having limited data i.e ; of ONE YEAR (coz i have to follow my deadline which is in november2011).

Data mining was another possible option, but it needs large amounts of data transactions. where as i have limited transactions..

Hope that now u have got the whole picture ...
NOW this is where i am stuck..

What do i do with that much limited amount of data? what kind of technique can i apply..

Plz help me out... :(

Excellent! That is cool. I think you might like to use a theme like this: CHECKLIST. You can make a check list to show what the programs should include in order to meet industry needs. Start by interviewing industry experts about industry needs, and make a great checklist. Then, you can use the checklist to create a structured interview to use with the people you interview about the programs.


You could do this, but wouldn't it be better to take a problem solving approach? How about using the checklist to make recommendations about what new courses should be offered in the universities.

If you do that, you can forget all the other complex aspects of this, and it will still be very meaningful.

***If this suggestion is completely inappropriate, it is because I don't know this subject very well! :-)

thanx alot Kevin, but at MS level, they dun want u to just solve problems, they want u to solve the problems using some new/ unique technique...

but thanx anyway.. i appreciate ur response
my regards

Oh... when you mention BI technique, I think it is what I think of as a research method.

When I have a limited about of data, I use qualitative methods. I don't know what your program's equivalent of qualitative methods might be, but maybe that will help. Quantitative methods require a lot of data, but qualitative methods take a very close look.

The checklist I mentioned can be a theme for the paper but not the actual method. I wonder if you are allowed to use "grounded theory." Anyway, I am afraid I might not have the necessary knowledge to help you, but if you post what you write we will help in whatever way we can!

well thats very helpful.. i had never heard of "Grounded theory", so i just googled..
and i believe that may take me forward.. although , i hav not clear concept of ever thing, but it has started to make sense..
thank you sooo much.. i m so great full to u...