BI Systems Development
Overcoming data compatibility issues to unlock the value in property management data
Project: change++ developed a solution to process a daily data feed and enable vital analysis.
Services: Business Intelligence.
Results: The property management company can now extract and use accurate data about its core business operations to streamline processes and make better business decisions.
The client
change++’s client is a London-based property management company with a long history of managing and letting a diverse portfolio of properties.
Their needs
The company uses an off-the-shelf property management software system to manage its financial and lease management operations. Data is hard to extract from the system, making meaningful analysis almost impossible.
This was preventing the company from gaining valuable business insight. Reporting was limited to a monthly rent roll report, and even that involved a laborious process to extract the data.
The company approached change++ to find an efficient way to extract and transform data for analysis.
What we did
change++ set about the challenge by pushing a daily feed from the property management software into a data warehouse and then processing it into a daily cube.
We used Microsoft SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS) to extract the data and processed it using a SQL Server Analysis Services (SSAS) cube hosted on an internal virtual machine. We then connected the SSAS cube to Microsoft Power BI Desktop.
An initial proof of concept involved creating a simple cube to replicate the Rent Roll Report – the only report that was currently possible using a very manual process. The success of the proof of concept quickly led to the extension of the solution to include three other business processes and measures. These were Lease Expiry, Charged Rent and Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) information.
The cube was built in such a way that the data could be ‘sliced and diced’ in different ways. End users then had the freedom to interrogate information in new ways, using familiar analysis tools and dashboards from Excel and Power BI. The business benefitted from greater commercial insight into its activities and results that had previously been locked away in inaccessible data.
The results
Unlocking the data meant the company could now extract and analyse a wide range of information held within the property management system. Staff can also use the new system to highlight issues that need attention – when EPC checks are due, for example – and are able to interrogate the data and create reports using Excel and Power BI.
Regular monthly reports provide management teams with clear insight into the business and can be easily adjusted to highlight relevant information. The solution from change++ gives the business freedom to interrogate and analyse data from the property management system in wholly new ways. It provides business intelligence where the company needs to focus attention, and has helped streamline processes, saving multiple hours manually extracting data.
Benefits include:
- Intelligent analysis and insight using accurate business data
- Hours saved manually extracting data each month
- Access to familiar tools (Excel and Power BI) for robust decision-making
- Fast access to key business data for specific enquiries
- Issues that need attention are now highlighted
- Streamlined processes to get tenants into vacant properties
- Reduced costs and increased revenue