Strategic capability through business intelligence applications

Abstract

This thesis analyzes the potential strategic capability that can be improved from the deployment of business intelligence (BI) applications. AOK Niedersachsen (AOKN), a German health insurance company in the north of Germany (Lower-Saxony), is used as the case study for primary qualitative research and analysis. For many years, information and data have been considered even “factors of production” for companies; but data and information have become more complex, requiring processing and structural analysis to get the needed transparency in the company. Data from different operational sources must be extracted and structured to provide information for management accounting employees, top management, and end-users throughout an organization. In the healthcare industry, BI systems have played a crucial role for decades. For organizations such as AOKN, the application of BI tools and technologies can create and support sustainable capability. Several research questions are answered in this thesis through structured one-to-one interviews with different AOKN employees, and the resulting analysis of interview data. A qualitative approach to this case study is used, allowing the researcher to get in-depth information about a specific context. When case studies are conducted, the one-to-one interview is considered to be an optimal instrument and a significant source of evidence. BI technologies and tools are classified within an appropriate conceptual framework which integrates the complex BI demands and structures of AOKN, identifying different components as part of the framework - systems infrastructure, data provision, reporting, and information receiver. The framework is further enhanced by four factors of a competitive advantage model drawn from existing literature to develop capabilities. The use and integration of BI technologies and tools in the strategy development process are then analyzed. Different BI tools, that have an important function during the whole strategy process, are recommended for each strategy phase. The final area of research examines the possible addition of new functions and solutions to current BI technologies and tools to enhance the potential of these systems in gaining capabilities. Research findings encompass system access, report characteristics, and BI end users profiles and capabilities. To this end, a structured model gives examples of practical AOKN BI projects that have generated strategic capabilities for the organization. At the end, the conclusion chapter stresses the needs of contribution to knowledge (theory and practice)