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ReaderLink Turns a New Page With WebFOCUS
Technology Category
- Analytics & Modeling - Real Time Analytics
- Application Infrastructure & Middleware - Data Exchange & Integration
Applicable Industries
- Retail
Applicable Functions
- Sales & Marketing
- Warehouse & Inventory Management
Use Cases
- Inventory Management
- Supply Chain Visibility
Services
- Software Design & Engineering Services
- System Integration
The Challenge
ReaderLink, a premier distributor of paperback and hardcover books, was struggling with data accessibility and report generation due to its custom-built information systems. The company had disparate legacy systems that made it difficult to quickly access data and develop ad hoc reports. This led to inconsistencies in sales numbers and a lack of confidence in the data. The company sought to revolutionize the way it collects, reports, analyzes, and distributes information. However, the team feared that creating an enterprise BI environment would be time-consuming and cumbersome, partly due to previous experience with data warehouse projects. ReaderLink's applications were developed and deployed over many years, leading to poor integration and a tremendous amount of data redundancy.
About The Customer
ReaderLink, formerly known as Levy Home Entertainment, is the nation's premier distributor of both paperback and hardcover books. The company manages the middle of the literary supply chain, including warehousing, packing, shipping, and in-store merchandising. ReaderLink has more than $600 million in annual sales and serves national retailers like Target, Wal-Mart, and Toys “R” Us. The company relies heavily on sales and warehouse reports to determine which titles are selling well and which picking lines are performing efficiently. ReaderLink also shares information with its partners, providing them with valuable insights into sales and inventory data.
The Solution
ReaderLink chose to implement the WebFOCUS business intelligence (BI) platform to build a self-service reporting environment. The company worked with Information Builders Professional Services to fast-track the enterprise-wide business intelligence project. The consultants suggested extracting information from the operational databases and creating Microsoft SQL Server databases as staging places for generating reports for various domains, including sales and marketing, finance, inventory, and warehouse management. ReaderLink produced six BI dashboards in six months, three with help from Information Builders Professional Services and three internally. The company also created a Publisher Portal that provides valuable information to the companies that supply ReaderLink with books, such as which titles are selling, where, and in what quantities.
Operational Impact
Quantitative Benefit
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