Introduction to Sisense
Sisense is a comprehensive business intelligence (BI) platform designed to help organizations of all sizes prepare, analyze, and visualize complex data. Launched in 2004, Sisense has evolved to become a powerful cloud-based analytics solution, competing directly with other major BI tools like Power BI and Tableau.
Key Features and Functionality
Data Integration and Modeling
Sisense allows users to easily connect and integrate multiple disparate data sources, regardless of their type or size. It features a seamless drag-and-join interface that enables the creation and management of complex data models without the need for aggregations, indexes, or summary tables. This simplifies the data preparation process, allowing users to dive directly into data analysis.
Advanced Analytics
Sisense offers robust advanced analytics capabilities, including:
- Data Visualization: Users can create interactive dashboards with graphs, charts, scorecards, and other visualizations to represent data insights effectively.
- Big Data Services: The platform is capable of handling large datasets and performing complex analytics on big data.
- Forecasting and Trends Analysis: Sisense includes features for forecasting future values based on historical data and analyzing trends to understand patterns in the data.
AI-Enhanced Analytics
Sisense integrates powerful AI features to enhance data analysis:
- Generative AI (GenAI): Enables conversational analytics, allowing users to interact with data through natural language queries.
- AI Assistant: Helps users explore data and generate queries using natural language questions.
- Narratives: Automatically generates text-based insights to accompany visualizations, facilitating quicker decision-making.
- Explanations: Identifies reasons for changes in the data, providing deeper insights.
- Exploration Paths: Automatically generates visualizations and insights that anticipate users’ questions.
Self-Service and Collaboration
Sisense supports self-service analytics with features such as:
- Calculated Fields: Allows users to create new field values using formulas based on existing data elements.
- Data Column Filtering: Enables filtering data in reports based on predefined or automated parameters.
- Data Discovery: Users can drill down and explore data to discover new insights.
- Collaboration/Workflow: Facilitates team collaboration through shared dashboards and workflows.
Reporting and Dashboarding
The platform offers a range of reporting and dashboarding tools:
- WYSIWYG Report Design: Users can design reports using a what-you-see-is-what-you-get interface.
- Dashboards: Create and manage interactive dashboards that are easy to share and access from any device.
Scalability and Maintenance
Sisense is highly scalable, allowing businesses to add collaborators and datasets as needed. It also promises regular feature updates and product maintenance, ensuring the platform stays current with evolving business needs.
Integration and Customization
Sisense provides integration APIs and the Compose SDK, a set of client-side libraries and components that allow users to compose queries, visualize data, and customize components directly from the app code. This includes support for TypeScript and access through GitHub.
In summary, Sisense is a powerful BI platform that combines advanced analytics, AI-enhanced features, and robust data integration capabilities to help businesses simplify complex data and make informed decisions. Its scalability, collaboration tools, and continuous updates make it a versatile solution for organizations of all sizes.