Most Business Intelligence (BI) projects contain requirements for reports. Since reports are not a new concept for end-users, some tend to approach these projects with pre-conceived notions of what the reports will look like. However, BI applications allow for more efficient ways of working with reports than traditional methods. A Report Layout Prototype (RLP) can be a useful tool for Business Analysts (BA) to set expectations and influence reporting efficiency.
The Reporting Paradigm
Reporting continues to be an essential part of how companies track their performance and day-to-day activities. With the vast increase in data and rapid growth of business transactions, reports can become extremely large and unmanageable. In some large companies, traditional reports have grown to as much as 400 pages. However, with markets becoming more competitive, less time is available to employees, therefore many of these large reports are never actually reviewed in detail.
