IBM Cognos 8 Business Intelligence: The Official Guide

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2 IBM Cognos 8 Business Intelligence: The Official Guide Dan Volitich New York Chicago San Francisco Lisbon London Madrid Mexico City Milan New Delhi San Juan Seoul Singapore Sydney Toronto

3 Copyright 2008 by The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Manufactured in the United States of America. Except as permitted under the United States Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher The material in this ebook also appears in the print version of this title: All trademarks are trademarks of their respective owners. Rather than put a trademark symbol after every occurrence of a trademarked name, we use names in an editorial fashion only, and to the benefit of the trademark owner, with no intention of infringement of the trademark. Where such designations appear in this book, they have been printed with initial caps. McGraw-Hill ebooks are available at special quantity discounts to use as premiums and sales promotions, or for use in corporate training programs. For more information, please contact George Hoare, Special Sales, at george_hoare@mcgraw-hill.com or (212) TERMS OF USE This is a copyrighted work and The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. ( McGraw-Hill ) and its licensors reserve all rights in and to the work. Use of this work is subject to these terms. Except as permitted under the Copyright Act of 1976 and the right to store and retrieve one copy of the work, you may not decompile, disassemble, reverse engineer, reproduce, modify, create derivative works based upon, transmit, distribute, disseminate, sell, publish or sublicense the work or any part of it without McGraw-Hill s prior consent. You may use the work for your own noncommercial and personal use; any other use of the work is strictly prohibited. Your right to use the work may be terminated if you fail to comply with these terms. THE WORK IS PROVIDED AS IS. McGRAW-HILL AND ITS LICENSORS MAKE NO GUARANTEES OR WARRANTIES AS TO THE ACCURACY, ADEQUACY OR COMPLETENESS OF OR RESULTS TO BE OBTAINED FROM USING THE WORK, INCLUD- ING ANY INFORMATION THAT CAN BE ACCESSED THROUGH THE WORK VIA HYPERLINK OR OTHERWISE, AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIM ANY WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO IMPLIED WAR- RANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. McGraw-Hill and its licensors do not warrant or guarantee that the functions contained in the work will meet your requirements or that its operation will be uninterrupted or error free. Neither McGraw-Hill nor its licensors shall be liable to you or anyone else for any inaccuracy, error or omission, regardless of cause, in the work or for any damages resulting therefrom. McGraw-Hill has no responsibility for the content of any information accessed through the work. Under no circumstances shall McGraw-Hill and/or its licensors be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, punitive, consequential or similar damages that result from the use of or inability to use the work, even if any of them has been advised of the possibility of such damages. This limitation of liability shall apply to any claim or cause whatsoever whether such claim or cause arises in contract, tort or otherwise. DOI: /

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5 About the Author Dan Volitich is president and owner of John Daniel Associates, which he cofounded in 1996 to serve the business intelligence market. Dan s extensive experience with business intelligence (BI) began in the mid-1980s (before the market coined the term BI) at a large commercial real estate firm in Fairfax, Virginia. As their IT director, he successfully delivered enterprise business intelligence solutions, streamlining mission-critical business functions for every department in the company. Upon his return to Pittsburgh in the early 90s, Dan again found himself chartered with empowering end users. Dan s background has given him tremendous insight into the value of empowering end users with business critical data, and that insight is invaluable in the delivery of BI solutions to John Daniel clients today. With more than 24 years of experience in planning and delivering successful BI solutions to Fortune 500 and mid-market companies, Dan believes superior product knowledge and outstanding customer support are essential components to maintaining a leadership role in the BI market. That combination has been a significant factor in the continued growth of John Daniel Associates. Dan is a Penn State graduate with a Bachelor s degree in accounting with a heavy emphasis in IT. Copyright 2008 by The McGraw-Hill Companies. Click here for terms of use.

6 Contents at a Glance Part I Introduction to Performance Management and IBM Cognos 8 BI 1 Performance Management Monitoring Performance Using Dashboards and Scorecards Introduction to IBM Cognos 8 Business Intelligence Planning, Budgeting, and Forecasting for the Finance Office Part II Accessing and Using IBM Cognos 8 Business Intelligence 5 Cognos Connection I Cognos Connection II IBM Cognos 8 BI Consumer Modes Part III Authoring IBM Cognos 8 Business Intelligence Content 8 Self-Service Query Authoring Advanced Reporting I Advanced Reporting II Analytics Using Analysis Studio Advanced Reporting III Scorecards and Metrics Event Management Part IV Administration of IBM Cognos 8 Business Intelligence 15 Building the Model with Framework Manager Framework Manager II Security Cognos Connection Management Index iv

7 For more information about this title, click here Contents Acknowledgments xv Introduction xvii Part I Introduction to Performance Management and IBM Cognos 8 BI 1 Performance Management Defining Performance Management The IT Perspective of BI The BI Business Perspective Create a BI Competency Center The Pursuit of Performance Management Summary Monitoring Performance Using Dashboards and Scorecards Dashboards Show Current Information Viewing Metrics with Scorecards Value of a Balanced Scorecard Planning for Dashboards and Scorecards Understand Your Needs Choose Metrics Benefits of a Successful Implementation Introduction to IBM Cognos 8 Business Intelligence Cognos 8 User Roles Non-Author Roles Author Roles Cognos Connection and Cognos 8 Studios Cognos Connection Query Studio Report Studio Event Studio Metric Studio Analysis Studio Planning, Budgeting, and Forecasting for the Finance Office Options for Integrating Options for Reporting Enterprise Planning Data Create Package when Running GTP on Planning Application v

8 vi I B M C o g n o s 8 B u s i n e s s I n t e l l i g e n c e : T h e O f f i c i a l G u i d e Select Planning Contributor as a Data Source in Framework Manager Use Generate Framework Manager Model Extension Setup Prior to Running the Generate Framework Manager Model Extension Table-only Publish Layout Configure and Run the Generate Framework Manager Model Extension Framework Manager Model Location Package Name List Types Annotations Generate Framework Manager Model Extension Wizard Inside the Framework Manager Model Physical and Business View Relationships Created Security Filters Package Ready for Publishing Data Source to Table-only Layout Container Part II Accessing and Using IBM Cognos 8 Business Intelligence 5 Cognos Connection I About Cognos Connection Customizing Cognos Connection Set a Home Page Set Preferences Run Reports Organize Information Create a New Folder Set the Default View Set Properties Manage Reports Save Report Views Schedule Reports Create a New Job Cognos Connection II View Output Versions Download Manage Versions Run with Options View Historical Information View Run History View Run History Details

9 C o n t e n t s vii Set Properties My Watch Items Disable an Entry View the URL Change Output Formats Use Report Viewer Options Save As Report View Use Drill-up and Drill-down Use the Go To Link New Pages Create a New Page Add Content to a Portlet Create a Portal Tab Advanced Portal Page Features Portlet-to-Portlet Communication Portlet-to-Portlet Communication Using a Prompt IBM Cognos 8 BI Consumer Modes Using IBM Cognos 8 Go! Office Connect to Microsoft Office Log on to Cognos 8 Through Microsoft Office Import Cognos 8 Content into an Office Application Using BI Analytics in Microsoft Excel Publish Microsoft Office Documents in Cognos Refresh Cognos 8 Content in Microsoft Office Using IBM Cognos 8 Go! Search Create a Search Index Access Search Mode Using IBM Cognos 8 Go! Mobile Part III Authoring IBM Cognos 8 Business Intelligence Content 8 Self-Service Query Authoring About Query Studio Types of Data Data Views Create a Query Open Query Studio Add Query Items Move Columns Filter Data Sort Data Group Data Chart Data

10 viii I B M C o g n o s 8 B u s i n e s s I n t e l l i g e n c e : T h e O f f i c i a l G u i d e Save a Query Print Data Enhance a Query Format a Query Apply a Template Combine Filters Summarize Data Pivot to Create a Crosstab Modify Advanced Options Calculate Data Manage a Query Open an Existing Query Export and View Queries Report Definitions Advanced Reporting I Opening Report Studio Standard Toolbar Style Toolbar Insertable Objects Explorer Bar Work Area Properties Pane List Report Group Data in Reports Filtering Reports Adding Calculations to Reports Adding Summary Lines to Reports Setting the Rollup Aggregrate Function Basic Report Formatting Add a Header to a Report Change Font Size in a Report Add Background Color to an Object in a Report Add a Border to an Object Conditional Highlighting Prompting Cascading Prompt Adding Dynamic Titles Adding Formatting to Parameters Creating Crosstab Reports Creating Chart Reports Advanced Reporting II Create a Drill-Through Set Up a Target Report for Drill-Through Access Set Up a Source Report for Drill-Through Access

11 C o n t e n t s ix Master Detail Relationship Create a Master Detail Relationship Selecting Ancestors Modify the Style for Multiple Items Query Management Query Types Specify What Appears when There Is No Data Available Dynamic Data Formatting Using Variables Bursting Reports Advanced Prompting HTML Items Singleton Insert a Singleton Object Edit a Query Associated with a Singleton Object Associate Multiple Singletons to One Query Table of Contents Set Up the Table of Contents Add a Table of Contents Entry for a Particular Data Item Add Bookmarks to the Table of Contents Analytics Using Analysis Studio About Analysis Studio Defining the Next Business Question Understanding Dimensions and Measures Create an Analysis Open Analysis Studio Add Dimensions and Measures Drill-Down and Drill-Up Navigate Down or Up a Level Slice and Dice an Analysis Save an Analysis Working with Large Data Sets Showing Less Is More Applying Context Filters Create and Edit Calculations Display Top or Bottom Values Applying Zero Suppression Managing Custom Sets Applying Complex Filters Nesting Items Stacking Items Nesting and Stacking Items Modify the Layout Sorting Data in an Analysis Excluding Categories

12 x I B M C o g n o s 8 B u s i n e s s I n t e l l i g e n c e : T h e O f f i c i a l G u i d e Manage Totals and Subtotals Inserting Charts and Graphs Modify Data Format Apply Templates Beyond Analysis Studio View Analysis in Report Studio IBM Cognos 8 Go! Office Analysis Advanced Reporting III Differences Between Relational and Dimensional Models Model Types and Dimensional Structure Navigating Dimensional Structures Generating a Report from a Dimensional Model Inserting Hierarchies into Reports Attributes in Reports Focus Dimensional Data Dimensional Query Behavior Efficient Dimensional Queries Navigation with Dimensional Functions Family Functions Relative Functions Relative Time Functions Complex Functions Express Authoring Mode Package Tree Settings Advanced Options for Inserting Data Objects Context Filters Page Layers Pick Up and Apply Styles Prompting Calculations Analyze Intersections in Analysis Studio Drill-Down Capabilities Scorecards and Metrics Introduction to Metric Designer Create Metrics Metric Types Create a Metrics Extract from a Dimensional Source Create a Metric Extract from Relational Packages Add Multiple Metrics to a Single Scorecard Helpful Hints for Working with Metrics Ensure Scorecards Have Unique ID Codes Choose the Best Time Setting Verify Metric Data Extracted from Packages

13 C o n t e n t s xi Introduction to Metric Studio Accessing Metric Studio Transfer Metrics Transfer Metrics from the Staging Area Transfer Metrics from Flat Tables Work with Scorecards Create Impacting/Impacted Relationships Add Metrics to Scorecards in Metric Studio Create Scorecard Strategies Develop Watch Lists Add Cognos 8 Reports to Metrics Metric Studio Success! Event Management Accessing Event Studio Navigation in Event Studio What Is an Event? Business Uses for Event Management Creating an Agent Specify a Condition Test an Agent Adding a Task Specify the Task Execution Rules Preview the Data Save an Agent Scheduling an Agent Maintaining an Agent Modify an Event Condition Modify a Task Delete a Task Change the Order to Run Tasks Specify Default Options for Tasks of an Agent Agents in Cognos Connection Run an Agent Manually Schedule an Agent in Cognos Connection Create an Agent View Part IV Administration of IBM Cognos 8 Business Intelligence 15 Building the Model with Framework Manager What Is a Model? Creating a New Model Starting a New Project The Metadata Wizard

14 xii I B M C o g n o s 8 B u s i n e s s I n t e l l i g e n c e : T h e O f f i c i a l G u i d e The Application and Its Objects Navigating Framework Manager Objects that Make Up the Model Creating New Objects in Your Model Creating Objects to Organize Your Model Creating a Namespace Creating Folders Creating and Editing Query Subjects Creating Data Source Query Subjects Creating Model Query Subjects Creating Stored Procedure Query Subjects Completing Query Subjects Definitions Creating Relationships Relationship Links Cardinality How Cognos 8 Uses Relationships to Generate Queries Relationship SQL Viewing Relationships in Your Model Modeling Challenges Approximating a Star Schema Aliasing More Objects for Report Writers Creating Filters for Users Creating Calculations Setting Properties Important Properties to Set The Easiest Way to Set Properties on Many Objects Organizing Your Model Star Schema Groupings and Reference Shortcuts Approaches to Model Organization Validating Your Model Testing Verifying The Model Advisor Publishing Your Model Creating a Package Publishing a Package Framework Manager II Macros Creating a Macro Macro Functions Additional Macro Examples Security Configure Package Access

15 C o n t e n t s xiii Specify Object Security Data Security Dimensionally Modeled Relational Models Why Dimensionally Model Metadata? A Dimensional Primer Building the Dimensionally Modeled Relational Model Managing Projects in Framework Manager Multi-user Development Other Items of Interest What Now? Security Authentication Authorization Users, Groups, and Roles Default Users Default Groups Default Roles Securing the Default Roles Adding Users, Groups, and Roles to the Cognos 8 Namespace Access Permissions Setting Access Permissions Access Permissions Interaction Cognos 8 Capabilities Accessing Capabilities Capabilities You Might Want to Change Groups and Roles: What Is the Difference? Using Roles, Access Permissions, and Capabilities Business Case: Configuring Initial Security Business Case: Wait! That Is Not What I Wanted! User Modes Configuring the Consumers Role Configuring the Authors Role Configuring the Administrator Roles Troubleshooting and Testing Cognos Connection Management Introduction to Cognos Administration Manage Data Source Connections Create a Data Source Connection Modify a Database Connection Content Administration Create an Export Archive of Your Content Import a Content Archive Organize Content

16 xiv I B M C o g n o s 8 B u s i n e s s I n t e l l i g e n c e : T h e O f f i c i a l G u i d e Schedule Management View Schedules Modify Schedules Maintain Distribution Lists Add a Contact Create a Distribution List Server Administration Manage Metrics Set Properties Manage Gateways Manage Logs Manage Tuning Manage Status and Monitoring View Status Monitoring Portlet Integration Index

17 xv Acknowledgments The idea for this book was presented to me at a meeting in Burlington, Massachusetts, by Peter Malandra and Paul Hufford. Jacqueline Coolidge joined the project shortly after the effort was underway and we were off. I live this technology every day, and I thought, How difficult could it be to put it into words and diagrams so that others may benefit by this great technology in their businesses? So off I went to my team to get their buy-in. Sure, they said. We will help you do this without interruption to our clients. And they did. But I know they interrupted other aspects of their lives: most importantly, time with their families and sleep lots of sleep. For that, I am extremely grateful. While I have the byline for this book, this book would not have been possible without the assistance of my team. The Cognos 8 solution is very deep. Since the 8.3 version was just released in the fourth quarter of 2007, it was impossible to think that one person could compile this information in a way that would have comprehensive value to its readers. A heartfelt thank you to the following individuals on my team: Rob Kovacevic, my executive VP of quality and the foundation of my technical team; Gerard Ruppert and Susan Boyles, both principal associates on my team; Bryan Townsend, Alicia Scappe, and Susie Bann, all associates who also contributed content to the book; Erin Morris and Mary Gido, thank you for your endless hours of editing, screen capture, and insight; Janet Amos Pribanic, executive VP of sales, thank you for encouraging the rest of us to keep plugging forward and reminding us how much celebrating would be in line when we were complete. And to the rest of my team, I say thank you for your commitment to excellence over the years. You are the best. Because of the aggressive publication schedule, and the fact that we were writing the book in addition to our full-time professional obligations, I partnered with a local firm, i-squared, to act as our project manager. i-squared is an enterprise content management and development firm. Val Tassari was my main contact there. She kept the information moving and the documents organized, and she even helped edit and review the chapters before passing them on to McGraw-Hill. This book would not have been possible without the help of Val and her great team at i-squared. Cognos, an IBM Company, is a first-class organization. I have been working with this technology for more than 17 years, and we have been an exclusive partner with Cognos for more than 12 years. I wish to thank the Cognos executive team that has supported this effort and trusted us as a partner to deliver this book. Peter Malandra, thank you for recognizing the quality of our partnership and internally supporting our endeavor. Jacque Coolidge and the technical reviewers at Cognos: Oliver Bergmann, Dean Harrington, Armin Kamal, Pam Copyright 2008 by The McGraw-Hill Companies. Click here for terms of use. xv

18 xvi I B M C o g n o s 8 B u s i n e s s I n t e l l i g e n c e : T h e O f f i c i a l G u i d e Neeley, Lori Pitcher, and Dan Wagemann. Thank you for your expertise and input to help make this an excellent product. The individuals at McGraw-Hill are some of the most patient folks I ve met in quite some time. Lisa McClain and Mandy Canales did a great job of keeping me on task and guiding me forward one step at a time. Janet Walden, the editorial supervisor, Lisa Theobald, our copy editor, and Vasundhara Sawhney, the project manager at ITC all of you did a great job of making sure that those deadlines (for the most part) were never missed. Thank you all for your patience and for understanding that excellent technology people are not necessarily prepared to be excellent authors and process people; somehow you helped me bridge that gap quite well. I am sure you all have several nicknames for me by now, but all I can say is thank you. Last, but certainly not least, I would like to thank the tremendously talented development team under the direction of Peter Griffiths. For more than 12 years I have represented only the Cognos solution. I do that because I truly believe that Cognos is the best solution in this space. Writing this book has been a reminder of just how good it is. Enjoy.

19 xvii Introduction Once I was on board with the idea of writing a book to communicate the functionality and value of Cognos 8, it became clear to me that many of the chapters in this book could, indeed, be their own individual books. The depth of Cognos 8 is just that substantial: Cognos 8 brought about significant improvement and a brand new architecture as well as a unified user platform. This release introduced the ability to deliver reporting, analytics, scorecards, dashboards, and office of finance solutions under one architecture. My first glimpse into Cognos 8 was in the spring of I thought it was so great that I went out and bought cognos8.com, pointed it to my web site, and promptly heard from the Cognos lawyers. But that is another story. We realized immediately that the changes in the product would warrant significant planning and education, not only for our own team, but for our clients and prospects as well. The change in reference from administrative catalogs to a Framework Manager model made us realize that our deep understanding of this solution would benefit our clients immensely. These changes and my desire to communicate the value of this solution evolved with this book into a realistic objective, not just an idea. Who Should Read This Book? The audience for this book includes end users of the Cognos 8 solution, power users, administrators, and even executives who are stakeholders in a performance management or BI initiative. If you are new to Cognos 8 as a user or administrator, it is a great time to be coming on board. If you are a client using previous versions of the software and considering migration to Cognos 8, it is a great time to be coming on board. This book does not, in any way, replace any formal training offering on the Cognos solution. It will, however, augment your knowledge and present real examples and context of applicability with Cognos 8 inherent with the experiences we have had with the solution. Approach and Organization of the Book This book is organized a little differently from some of the technology books we have read. My approach was to lay the foundation for an introduction to Cognos 8 and the definitions of performance management and business intelligence so that you, the reader, would have that understanding up front while moving through subsequent chapters of the book. Cognos 8 functionality is defined by user roles, and as such, those roles increase in technical depth and functionality. The user roles in Cognos 8 are defined by a user s need, Copyright 2008 by The McGraw-Hill Companies. Click here for terms of use. xvii

20 xviii I B M C o g n o s 8 B u s i n e s s I n t e l l i g e n c e : T h e O f f i c i a l G u i d e leveraging specific studios that enable that role. My intent is to enable you to progress through the content of the book and increase the functionality extended in the solution as you go along. For example, we discuss performance management concepts early on so that you can gain insight to the purpose of a performance management initiative within your organization. Furthermore, the book focuses on aspects that an organization might need to consider when taking on such an endeavor by way of people, process, and technology. Many of our clients ask us how best to deploy Cognos 8 for their organization. It is my hope that you will find value in the insight and tips and techniques that we have learned along the way with our clients, and I hope that it will have value to you in your Cognos 8 deployment. We have witnessed confusion in the market between dashboards and scorecards. The business user community may communicate the need for multiple facets of their business on one page, and understanding these differences when describing their information needs to a development team will translate to a conversation around what is possible with their current data and if, indeed, a dashboard satisfies that requirement. The development team will be required to discern whether a user is describing a scorecard or dashboard. This unity in understanding these concepts will yield higher returns for your business. The Cognos 8 technology leads this industry in delivering better decision-making tools for its users. But, no doubt about it, it requires smart, diligent people and a cohesive plan and commitment to that plan. Your technical expertise and business insight are both solid requirements for successful deployment of Cognos 8. Whether you re an IT administrator responsible for the delivery of the Framework Manager model or an end user who is performing analytics for your organization through Analysis Studio, this book will help you elevate your skills and leverage this powerful technology for the betterment of your organization. Following is a glimpse at what s inside this book. Part I: Introduction to Performance Management and IBM Cognos 8 BI The definitions of performance management and business intelligence are discussed, as well as the various perspectives of business intelligence. IT administrators play a critical role in this solution. We discuss the IT perspective in such an initiative. The business user s role is empowered by use of effective information in the Cognos 8 solution. Whether consuming a report as an Cognos 8 consumer or performing analytics as a business analyst, the Cognos 8 user roles provide flexibility for information delivery. Additionally, we describe the difference between a scorecard and a dashboard, so that you can understand the place of each solution in your business. We provide insight into and definition of the roles and studios within Cognos 8. These definitions will help identify how and what to deploy to whom. As mentioned, the office of finance has become an integral component of performance management, and in this part we discuss integration, reporting, setup, and configuration of the planning, budgeting, and forecasting solution. Part II: Accessing and Using IBM Cognos 8 Business Intelligence We move into the access and use of IBM Cognos 8 BI in Part II. The Cognos Connection portal helps you organize information for your business. We share insight about Cognos Connection and how users run reports using filters, options, and settings for report properties. Additionally,