IT development of any kind, and in particular “business intelligence” systems, need to consider how humans interact with systems. The attitude that good design is 'cosmetics' and does not rank with speed and accuracy is precambrian thinking.
For those who say it is only the engineering that counts. Reflect on the Model T Ford. Henry Ford built a fast (for its time), reliable and affordable car for the masses – the Model T. It was a great success until General Motors decided to offer similar cars in colours other than black.
The same goes for customers who invest hundreds of thousand dollars on Business Intelligence systems. Most do not see the artful data transformations, the clever code or the multitude of man hours that go into making 1 + 1 = 2 in a server-based analytics and reporting system. They see a screen with information and judge the system on how good it is based on whether it is intuitive, enjoyable and useful.
Publishing spreadsheets to the Web and 'prettying up' the data is not a recipe for success in information system design. It certainly will not lead to the kind of appeal that is required to deliver Business Intelligence to the masses.
This is because poorly presented content lacks credibility. If users did not care about how they interact with technology DOS would be the system of choice, Wang computers would be on everyone's desk and Bing would be the #1 search engine.
The stand out successes in the Web age combine good engineering with great design. I give you Apple, Google and Facebook. I can't think of one global brand that succeeded with “ours works better and we're cheaper”.
Apple's emphasis on industrial design and Google's focus on the user experience are part of their organisational DNA. Some have even accused Steven Jobs of putting design ahead of technology. Tut tut say the techies – look at the share price says I. For its part Google studies every move users make with their search engine. User interaction is a science at Google.
Both Apple and Google get that it is not the tool but how appealing it is to use. This is a far sighted approach within information technology. Their leadership embedded and nurtured great design in their organisational DNA. More of this thinking is needed in BI.
