xOverTime is excited to be offering its xMetrics solution which is a more useable and cost effective way for companies to manage business metrics or Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). Managing the collection, calculation, analysis, reporting and distribution of metrics is supported by a whole slew of software technologies which can be found in the Gartner Magic Quadrant called Corporate Performance Management (CPM). These systems are powerful but come with hefty price tags for the technology and the implementation, never mind the fact that staff ends up with a learning curve that often results in limited use just by a handful of experts in the company.
xMetrics approaches the problem from a whole different perspective. At xOverTime we decided that instead of forcing staff to learn a whole new collection, calculation, and reporting tool, we would simply rely on their vast experience with Microsft Excel. Everyone in the company can use excel and they run amazing calculations and reports using it. Typically, companies start with Excel for metrics management, and even after a big CPM system is implemented they still pull data back to Excel for additional analysis and reporting. So we looked at what we needed to add to Excel to make xMetrics a better CPM solution.
The primary capability missing from Excel is a database. xMetrics delivers cloud database capabilities to excel users without them ever having to leave Excel. Using an Excel Add-in, Excel users can save a workbook and move data from it to a cloud database. Within minutes Excel users can see how to push data to xMetrics and retrieve it back to Excel, without creating database tables or writing a SQL statement.
To improve data governance around the use of Excel and to promote data sharing and collaboration, xMetrics has additional features such as allowing users to control who has access to their data, manage notifications when data is updated, and group data into catalogs to support ease of analysis and data sharing. No longer does staff need to email whole workbooks with all their calculation details, specific data from the workbook can be grouped and shared specifically with certain users. Sales metrics for one region might not be so easily accessible to other regions, even though they are managed in one workbook all together.
We are really excited about xMetrics and we have already built a number of example templates for energy management, sales, GRI, environment, etc. Better yet, your current excel workbooks easily become the next template for use with xMetrics. You’ve spent time getting those reports the way management and staff are familiar with them so keep using them. Let xMetrics bring the database and collaboration capabilities which will provide a more robust CPM solution for your company.
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