Everywhere you hear, “data is power,” and although it may sound like a cliché, it is just a fact. Yes, data is power, and companies that can maximize their potential can make informed decisions, gain a competitive edge, and grow faster. This is where business intelligence (BI) tools come in, and Qlik is at the forefront in this field. Named a Leader in the 2023 Gartner Magic Quadrant for the 13th year in a row, Qlik is a company that provides powerful data integration and data analytics tools to help businesses make sense of their data and use it to drive growth.
In recent years, Qlik has been transitioning to a cloud-based platform that provides companies with exciting new opportunities to seize every business moment through:
- Real-time information
- Auto-generated insights
- Immediate actions
As the only cloud platform built for Active Intelligence, Qlik Cloud allows you to access your data and insights from anywhere, collaborate with team members, and scale up or down as needed.
In this guide, we will explore what Qlik Cloud is, how it works, and how it can benefit businesses of all sizes. We’ll also help you plan a seamless migration to Qlik Cloud with a comprehensive step-by-step checklist.
Whether you’re a small business owner or a large enterprise, understanding Qlik Cloud can help you make faster, data-driven decisions and achieve better outcomes.
So, let’s explore the world of Qlik Cloud and see what it has to offer.
Table of Contents
What are the benefits of moving from servers to Qlik Cloud?
Transitioning to Qlik Cloud: Your Comprehensive Checklist
Companies that moved to the cloud and how that affected them?: Netflix, Amazon, and Coca-Cola
Start Your Journey to Cloud Analytics with Qlik Cloud
What is Qlik Cloud?
Qlik Cloud is a cloud-based business intelligence platform that allows users to access and analyze data from any device or location securely. The platform uses modern cloud technology to provide innovative features and capabilities that enable businesses to make informed decisions and gain a competitive advantage.
Also, Qlik Cloud provides advanced features such as natural language search, predictive analytics, machine learning, and AI-powered recommendations. This makes it easier for users to uncover hidden patterns and trends in their data, enabling them to make more informed decisions.
Qlik Cloud can be broken into two core features: Qlik Data Integration and Qlik Analytics. Let’s get familiar with their functionalities in detail.
Qlik Cloud Data Integration
Businesses today generate vast amounts of data. However, much of this data is not analytics-ready or accessible and is often in an unstructured and unusable format. Qlik provides a solution to this problem by operationalizing DataOps for analytics. This means that businesses can transform raw data into trustworthy and actionable insights that are easily accessible to any analytics tool. With the introduction of Qlik Cloud Data Integration, data engineers can now deliver, transform, and unify data through Qlik’s iPaaS (Integration Platform as a Service), making it easier to integrate data from multiple sources and streamline the data management process.
Features and capabilities of Qlik Cloud Data Integration
- Data Movement & Streaming
Accelerate the replication, ingestion, and streaming of data across a wide range of databases, including mainframe, SAP, and SaaS applications. The platform’s real-time change data capture capabilities enable fast and efficient delivery of data to popular cloud platforms for downstream analytics. You can stream real-time updates as they come providing the freshest data and enabling real-time analytics. Also, you can flexibly automate multiple replication profiles, such as one-to-many publication, data-type mapping, and schema synchronization all in a drag-and-drop interface with no hand coding. As a result, you can stream ingestion into data lakes and integrate legacy systems with microservices environments.
- Data Warehouse Automation
Approach that automates and accelerates cloud data warehouse operations. DWA continually ingests all data in real-time, automates the entire data warehouse lifecycle with a model-driven workflow, and makes data marts readily accessible across your organization with cataloging, all without requiring a single line of code. Data engineers can create a data model, add new data sources, and provision new data marts with ease, thanks to the platform’s agility and flexibility. The use of data warehouse automation (DWA) ensures success at every step of the pipeline, from data modeling and real-time ingestion to data marts and governance.
- Data Transformation
Convert, join, enrich, consolidate, and standardize data from heterogeneous formats or structures using a modern, push-down ELT approach. Data Transformation in Qlik Cloud is easy and allows you to manipulate raw data into a structured and organized format optimized for analysis. You can collect, clean, and shape data from multiple sources like spreadsheets, databases, etc., and create a unified data model that will provide actionable insights.
- Application Automation
Delivers instant awareness about every aspect of your business and helps you drive immediate actions. You can use Qlik Application Automation to connect to market-leading SaaS applications such as Microsoft Teams, Salesforce, and Slack and integrate those systems into a business process with a simple drag and drop. You can easily specify what events should trigger an action in your SaaS application, and you will be able to respond to critical changes immediately. For example, if your sales drop below a given number, you will automatically be sent an email or notification in Teams.
Qlik Cloud Analytics
Qlik is leading the way in a new generation of analytics, setting the benchmark for businesses looking to make data-driven decisions. Cloud analytics is a way of performing data analysis and business intelligence activities using a vendor-managed infrastructure rather than using your own on-premise servers. Qlik Cloud Analytics is a complete, cloud-based platform for modern business intelligence that delivers actionable insights to every decision-maker.
Features and capabilities of Qlik Cloud Analytics
- Visualization Dashboards
Visualization Dashboards are essential tools for transforming your data into business value. Qlik Cloud offers powerful visualization tools that allow users to create interactive dashboards, reports, and charts that help them better understand their data. These tools enable businesses to identify trends, patterns, and insights that might otherwise go unnoticed, making it easier to make informed decisions.
- Augmented Analytics AutoML
Qlik AutoML is part of the full suite of augmented analytics capabilities available in Qlik Cloud. It recognizes patterns and drivers in historical data to create machine-learning models that can predict future outcomes using a simple no-code approach for business analysts. You can get real-time calculations by making interactive selections and testing what-if scenarios with Qlik’s advanced analytics capabilities.
Keep exploring: Machine learning with Qlik AutoML. How it works and best practices.
- Embedded Analytics
Embedded analytics is the technology designed to make data analysis and business intelligence more accessible by any application or user. Go beyond the dashboard and put analytics at the point of decision. With a complete set of open APIs, you can embed analytics in operational apps as well as create mashups and external applications. Place analytics insights in the hands of those who can take immediate action.
- Alerting Action
By using alerts, users can receive proactive notifications regarding any alterations in data, enabling them to promptly respond to shifts in their business. Trigger event-driven actions through an intuitive, low-code interface without requiring human intervention.
What are the benefits of moving from servers to Qlik Cloud?
As we mentioned earlier, in today’s fast-paced world, data is everywhere, and leading organizations have already realized the importance of proper data analytics and business intelligence. However, having the right data analytics and business intelligence tools in place is only the first step toward success. To stay ahead of the competition, organizations must be able to make critical decisions in real-time, as the consequences of even one choice can determine the success or failure of an entire operation.
So how can you access your data in seconds, in a secure and easy way? Moving to cloud. The future of analytics lies in the cloud, and making the move to cloud computing can be a game-changer for your business. By embracing the cloud, businesses can gain a strategic advantage and rise to the top of their industry, leaving their competitors in the dust. The numbers say it all:
- All companies use at least one public or private cloud.
- By 2025, 85% of organizations will be “cloud first.”
- Over 60% of all corporate data is in cloud storage.
Still uncertain? Let’s outline the key advantages of transitioning to the cloud:
Scalability
Qlik Cloud provides flexible and scalable solutions that can quickly adapt to the changing needs of your business. With on-premise deployment, you have to invest in additional hardware and infrastructure to scale up or down. But with Qlik Cloud, you can easily adjust your subscription and resources as needed to meet your business demands. This flexibility is particularly important for businesses with fluctuating data volumes or seasonal demand.
Lower total cost of ownership
Which organization doesn’t like to save costs and work efficient? Migrating to Qlik Cloud can help you save money on hardware, maintenance, and staffing costs. With on-premise deployment, you need to purchase, install, and maintain hardware and software, which can be costly and time-consuming. In contrast, with Qlik Cloud, you don’t have to manage and maintain your own infrastructure. Qlik Cloud takes care of all infrastructure maintenance and upgrades, saving you time and money.
Improved accessibility
With Qlik Cloud, you can access your data and analytics from anywhere, at any time, on any device. This means you can work remotely or on-the-go, collaborate with colleagues more easily, and make informed decisions in real-time. Sure, we don’t encourage working on your days off but even if that is the case, Qlik Cloud also provides a mobile app that lets you access your data and analytics on your smartphone or tablet, so you can stay connected even when you’re away from your desk.
Enhanced security
Compliance and security are built in at the core to protect your most business-critical workloads and most sensitive data. Qlik Cloud provides advanced security features such as encryption, data masking, and access controls to ensure the safety and privacy of your data. With Qlik Cloud, you can be confident that your data is protected and secure.
Faster time to value
Qlik Cloud offers a fast and seamless migration process, allowing you to quickly and easily leverage the benefits of cloud-based analytics. With Qlik Cloud, you can get up and running in minutes without the need for complex infrastructure deployment or software installation. This means you can start seeing results and driving value for your business faster. Qlik Cloud also provides a user-friendly interface that makes creating and sharing visualizations, reports, and dashboards easy, enabling you to gain insights and make data-driven decisions quickly.
Transitioning to Qlik Cloud: Your Comprehensive Checklist
Following the myriad benefits of migrating from servers to Qlik Cloud, it’s essential to have a clear roadmap to ensure a smooth and efficient transition. While the move promises streamlined operations, improved accessibility, and reduced infrastructure costs, the migration process demands meticulous planning and a strategic approach. To aid businesses in navigating this transformative journey, we’ve curated a comprehensive checklist. This tool is designed to guide you step-by-step, ensuring you maximize the advantages of Qlik Cloud while minimizing potential migration challenges.
Companies that moved to the cloud and how that affected them?: Netflix, Amazon, and Coca-Cola
Although we’ve covered all the essential information regarding transferring to the cloud, it’s often helpful to complement theoretical knowledge with practical illustrations. With that in mind, we’ve compiled several instances of industry leaders who migrated to the cloud and enjoyed numerous advantages.
Netflix
Have you ever wondered how Netflix is able to suggest such personalized movie recommendations that seem almost tailor-made for you? Well, the secret lies in their move from on-premise servers to the cloud, which has enabled them to leverage advanced data analytics and machine learning algorithms to analyze your viewing habits and preferences. So, the next time Netflix surprises you with an amazing movie suggestion, you’ll know exactly how they did it.
Amazon
Similarly, Amazon has gained a competitive advantage by leveraging data analytics and machine learning to provide personalized product recommendations to its customers. By moving its data analytics and business intelligence operations to the cloud, Amazon has been able to analyze massive amounts of data in real time, enabling them to offer tailored product recommendations based on browsing and purchasing history.
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola the global beverage giant, has embraced the power of data analytics and business intelligence to get ahead of the competition. By migrating its data analytics and business intelligence operations to the cloud, Coca-Cola can now process vast amounts of data in real-time. Through the use of advanced machine learning algorithms, the company can analyze customer preferences and purchasing behavior from multiple sources, including social media. This data-driven approach has given Coca-Cola a deeper understanding of customer sentiment and trends, allowing them to develop new products and targeted marketing campaigns that resonate with their customers. With its innovative use of technology and data, Coca-Cola has firmly established itself as a leader in the beverage industry.
Qlik Cloud FAQs
What is Qlik Cloud?
Answer: Qlik Cloud is a comprehensive cloud-based data integration and analytics platform. It enables users to effortlessly consolidate, manage, and analyze data from various sources, leveraging the power of cloud computing. This platform stands out for its associative analytics engine, robust data integration capabilities, and interactive dashboard functionalities. Users can gain deeper insights through advanced data visualization tools and AI-driven analytics. Qlik Cloud’s scalability and flexibility make it ideal for businesses of any size, seeking to harness their data for informed decision-making. Its secure, cloud-native architecture ensures data safety while providing accessibility from anywhere, promoting a data-driven culture within organizations.
How does Qlik Cloud differ from traditional BI tools?
Answer: Qlik Cloud distinguishes itself from traditional Business Intelligence (BI) tools through its associative analytics engine. Unlike conventional BI tools that rely on query-based analytics, Qlik’s associative model enables users to explore data connections in all directions, uncovering hidden trends and patterns. This provides a more holistic view of data without the limitations of pre-defined queries. Additionally, Qlik Cloud offers seamless integration with a wide range of data sources, both on-premise and in the cloud. Its cloud-native architecture ensures scalability and agility, allowing businesses to adapt quickly to changing data needs. The platform’s focus on user experience with intuitive dashboards and interactive visualizations further sets it apart, making data analytics accessible to users at all skill levels.
Can Qlik Cloud be integrated with other cloud services?
Answer: Yes, Qlik Cloud offers robust integration capabilities with various cloud services. It can connect to popular cloud storage and computing platforms like AWS, Google Cloud, and Microsoft Azure. This integration allows for seamless data transfer and synchronization across different environments. Users can also leverage APIs to integrate Qlik Cloud with other SaaS applications, enhancing its functionality. This interoperability makes it easier for businesses to maintain a unified data ecosystem, ensuring that insights are derived from the most comprehensive and up-to-date information available.
What are the security features of Qlik Cloud?
Answer: Security in Qlik Cloud is a top priority, incorporating several layers of protection to safeguard data. The platform uses robust encryption methods for data at rest and in transit, ensuring that sensitive information remains secure. User authentication is managed through secure access protocols, and role-based access control allows administrators to define and enforce data access policies. Regular security audits and compliance with industry standards like GDPR and HIPAA testify to Qlik Cloud’s commitment to data security. Additionally, the platform’s cloud-native architecture benefits from the inherent security features of leading cloud service providers, offering a secure and reliable environment for data analytics.
How does Qlik Cloud support mobile access and use?
Answer: Qlik Cloud is designed with mobility in mind, offering full functionality on mobile devices. Users can access dashboards and reports from smartphones and tablets, enabling data-driven decision-making on the go. The mobile interface is optimized for ease of use, maintaining the same interactive and visual experience as the desktop version. Alerts and notifications can be configured to keep users informed of critical data updates or anomalies. This mobile accessibility ensures that key insights are always at the fingertips of decision-makers, regardless of their location.
Start Your Journey to Cloud Analytics with Qlik Cloud
Qlik Cloud has proven to be an invaluable tool for companies worldwide, allowing them to gain a deeper understanding of their customers and develop better products and campaigns.
At B EYE, we understand the importance of data in business, and we can help you move to Qlik Cloud and use all its amazing features together. Whether you’re a small business owner or a large enterprise, understanding Qlik Cloud can help you make more informed decisions and achieve better outcomes.
Contact us today to learn more about Qlik Cloud and how we can help you harness the power of your data.
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