Data Analytics plays a pivotal role in organizations, serving as a catalyst for informed decision-making and strategic planning. We previously covered how Alteryx Designer can drive Data Analytics at companies (see here).
In this blog, we will dive deeper into how Alteryx Server plays a significant role in establishing an Analytics culture at a company.
As a quick refresher, Alteryx Designer is a software that allows users to build workflows to automate day-to-day activities. It requires a per-user license and is a desktop application. Alteryx Server is a complement to companies that wish to expand beyond the basics with Data Analytics.
Creating Synergy
A regular, ordinary company has a large diversity of technology skill sets, from those business-savvy people with little technology experience to those without business acumen. The million-dollar question is optimizing the personnel skillset to drive analytics and achieve better business/financial results.
Can you just teach data analytics to a Senior-level person solely responsible for business? Sure. But is it that simple? Not really!
Can you magically acquire 10+ years of experience at a specific business and apply your data analytics knowledge to drive the business? There is no magic pill for that!
For most companies, the answer is to create Synergy between the different skill sets. Here is where Alteryx Server becomes a powerful tool to create this synergy, both logistically and financially.
The Gallery
Alteryx Gallery (Server’s web interface) is like a regular website you can access through an internet browser. The idea is to separate the necessary skill sets. Alteryx Designer is used for workflow development, while Alteryx Server is used for collaboration, versioning control, and true automation of processes through scheduling.
Alteryx Gallery’s interface is simple and intuitive. Non-technical people can easily find the workflows they need to execute and extract the end result to analyze and make informed decisions.
You can segregate users and workflows into Collections, creating better governance around the assets (really important for SOX compliance). For example, collections allow users from a specific department or group to be placed in a “box.” They only have access to workflows inside that “box.”
Image of the Gallery:
If you are new to Alteryx Server, you may still wonder how easy it is for a non-Alteryx developer to execute Alteryx workflows. Alteryx has Analytic Apps. In a simple explanation, Analytic Apps are interfaces for workflows.
They can be executed either at the Designer or Server levels. These Apps simplify the interface people have to deal with. You don’t have to know anything about Alteryx; you just have to answer simple prompts like “Which month’s report do you wish to run?”
With the use of Alteryx Analytic Apps and the Gallery interface, non-Alteryx users have a simple and straightforward method of leveraging Data Analytics at their disposal without having to go through the work of skilling up technically.
In this scenario, the non-technical people will rely heavily on the Alteryx Server, whereas the technical people will be the backbone of the operation. Ensure new workflows, updates, and proper versions are available to the key business users needing those reports.
All of the work required by the technical developers can happen either at the Designer or Server levels.
Financial Flexibility for Data Analytics Growth
Alteryx Server is licensed per core and not user. It allows companies the financial flexibility to bring more people on board using their Alteryx footprint with Server and not needing to hand out Designer licenses.
You can add as many users as you wish to the Alteryx Server Gallery. As of this blog’s release, an Alteryx Server license cost for the first pricing tier was 80k, and the Designer was around 5k. As more users are added, companies may find the need to scale up or scale out Alteryx Server, that may lead to additional licenses (lower cost in comparison to the main Alteryx Server license).
It is good to mention that many companies have a Sandbox Server to serve as their DEV environment and another as their PROD environment. Alteryx allows you to migrate workflow between these different Servers to optimize your setup (proper full workflow migration may involve additional steps depending on how you use Alteryx Server)
Conclusion
In conclusion, Alteryx Server is crucial in establishing an organization’s analytical culture. Providing a user-friendly interface and Analytic Apps enables non-technical personnel to access and leverage data analytics effortlessly.
This fosters synergy between different skill sets, allowing technical experts to be the backbone of the operation while empowering business-savvy individuals to make informed decisions.
Moreover, Alteryx Server’s licensing flexibility, based on cores rather than users, offers financial advantages by accommodating more users without costly licenses. With separate Sandbox and Production environments, seamless workflow migration and optimization become achievable, further enhancing the analytics process.
Embracing Alteryx Server as a key player can transform any organization into an agile, data-driven powerhouse, ready to excel in today’s data-centric landscape and gain a competitive edge. Establishing an analytical culture with Alteryx Server is a strategic investment that opens doors to data-driven success.
If you have any additional questions about Establishing an Analytical Culture with Alteryx Server, reach out to our team of experts!
