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Managed Reporting—Plus Analysis, Query, and Scorecarding

A key component of Cognos' business intelligence solution, Impromptu delivers powerful managed reporting. This is complemented with advanced data analysis, ad hoc query, and scorecarding capabilities provided by other components of the Cognos solution. With Cognos, Reporting, Query, Analysis and Scorecarding are integrated to allow users to move seamlessly between reports, analyses, queries, and advanced data visualizations.

Users can seamlessly drill through to an ad hoc query environment using Cognos Query, where additional exploration is possible in real time using query design features and query links.

Powerful Report Creation

Impromptu provides report designers with the ability to create virtually any kind of report. From simple lists, to crosstabs and charts, to networks of linked reports, Impromptu allows report designers to deliver exactly the reports their users need.

Frame-Based Reporting. Create virtually any kind of report using Impromptu's powerful frame-based reporting feature. Grouped lists, crosstabs, charts, pictures, and more can be combined with one another to create any report a user might require. Reports can include "if-then-else" logic that controls the display of specific report content based on conditions.

Powerful, Flexible Prompting. Prompts make it easy for users to focus on specific information by "cascading", or inheriting the scope of preceding prompts. Prompts and filters can be tied to specific reports, or defined for entire applications.

PowerPrompts defined in Impromptu and deployed with Impromptu Web Reports allow users to create customized reports that meet their individual reporting requirements. When executing reports, powerful prompts guide users through actions like adding or deleting columns, changing the layout, or applying a template.

Linked Reports. When building reports, creators can easily add links that allow users to navigate directly from a data point in one report to another, related report. For example, when viewing a report of top sales reps, clicking on a sales rep name can open a report of all orders for that sales rep.

Sub-Reports. Use sub reports to deliver multiple, related reports within the scope of a single report. For example, create a summary report that contains two distinct but related summary lists: total revenue by location and total revenue by product line. Impromptu's powerful database query engine delivers the information, generating optimized SQL as required for these kinds of multi-pass reports.

Powerful Summaries and Calculations. Impromptu provides a large library of calculations and summary functions that allow report designers to deliver the reports users need. Easily add summary calculations at break points within a report, and use calculations to extend the information delivered from the database. If Impromptu's extensive library of functions doesn't meet your needs, you can expand it by defining your own User Defined Functions.

Exception Highlighting. Impromptu's advanced exception highlighting features remove the burden of discovering data anomalies from the user, and lets the report do all the work. Report builders can easily define thresholds for exception highlighting, and have Impromptu apply appropriate formatting and styles to data values based on these thresholds. Exception formatting is applied in standard Impromptu reports, as well as in PDF-based reports generated using IWR.

Multiple Output Formats. Reports can be output to a variety of formats including PDF and Microsoft Excel, with formatting maintained.

Built for Deployment

Deploy Business Intelligence across your organization, and outwards to extranets for customers, suppliers, and partners.

Zero-Footprint Client. The zero footprint Impromptu Web Reports client makes it possible to deploy reporting applications to a broad audience. Users need only a browser and the ability to view PDF documents in order to begin using published reports.

Powerful Publishing and Subscribing. Report Administrators have complete control over the publishing of reports. Once reports are published to a server, users can largely service themselves, by subscribing to the reports they need. Once a user subscribes to a report, that report automatically shows up in the users Inbox whenever it's refreshed.

PowerPrompts. When PowerPrompts are deployed with Impromptu Web Reports, administrators can service a broad range of users, based on a single report definition. PowerPrompts generate pure HTML prompts that step users through the report creation process, allowing users to create customized reports to meet their individual reporting requirements. When executing reports, users can add or delete columns, change the report layout, or apply a template.

Scheduling. Administrators can control when reports are executed with flexible scheduling features. Running reports in off-peak hours ensures that maximum bandwidth is available for users during the working day.

Burst Reports. Administrators can easily set up burst reports, where a single report definition will generate distinct reports for multiple user classes. Users who are members of these classes will see only the data that pertains to them.

Firewall Compatible. Impromptu Web Reports multi-tier architecture, coupled with its use of pure HTML and PDF, allows users to access reports through corporate firewalls. Impromptu Web Reports is easily configured so that only a lightweight CGI component resides on the Web Server, with the report server behind the corporate firewall.

Minimal Training. Impromptu Web Reports uses standard Web navigational concepts, so virtually no user training is required. All users need is the Web browser they use every day. Administrators are free to concentrate on improving their report deployment system, rather than training their user base.

Enterprise Ready

Build Business Intelligence applications that are scalable, easily secured, and easy to manage across your enterprise.

Enterprise Scalability. Impromptu Web Report's scalable, multi-tier architecture delivers the performance required for large managed reporting environments. With processing distributed across a multi-server Web architecture, Impromptu Web Reports scales to thousands of users. Automatic load balancing and the ability to add servers as required allow Impromptu Web Reports to meet the needs of large reporting groups.

Enterprise Security. Impromptu Web Reports security meets all the needs of enterprise reporting applications.

In terms of configuration, Impromptu Web Reports is firewall compatible, so it can be deployed securely both within and beyond the corporate firewall. Additionally, Impromptu Web Reports supports Secure Sockets (SSL).

For user authentication, Impromptu Web Reports is completely integrated with the Cognos LDAP-based common security component. Application designers can tailor user class access to information at many levels, ranging from entire applications, to individual reports, down to specific database entity and value-based security.

Enterprise Administration. Administrators can easily manage reporting applications and the servers on which these applications run, using a remote Java administration tool. Administrators can update report definitions and schedules, define events that trigger report execution, set up burst reports, and more, all using remote administration tools. Auditing features allow report administrators to track both report and server usage.