Top 10 Most Asked Questions about NetSuite Analytics Warehouse

NetSuite Analytics Warehouse has generated a lot of interest (and some frequently asked questions) since its recent release. One reason there is so much demand for NetSuite Analytics Warehouse is that it offers companies, which strive for a data-driven culture, easy access to their data. NetSuite Analytics Warehouse is the only out-of-the-box data warehouse built specifically for NetSuite with the added capability to access other data sources from customer systems.

Designed with the businessperson in mind, NetSuite Analytics Warehouse (NSAW) delivers financial and operational metrics across the enterprise. It is a unique combination of both a robust business intelligence tool and a data warehouse. NSAW is built with Oracle Analytics Cloud (OAC) and Oracle Autonomous Data Warehouse (ADW).

NSAW pulls data in at automated intervals from NetSuite ERP and from other systems. NSAW connects the data across Oracle NetSuite ERP, ADW and OAC. Myers-Holum helps our customers integrate data into NSAW from third-party applications, like Salesforce, Shopify and other custom content. This facilitates data access across the organization. Being able to connect, analyze and report on KPIs and metrics using NSAW helps ensure a data-driven culture can take root and thrive.

As our customers adopt NetSuite Analytics Warehouse, we have found that many customers come to us with similar initial questions. Today, we sat down with Knute Holum, EVP at Myers-Holum to get the answers to the most commonly asked questions our customers want answered that you might find useful, as well:

Is it required that NetSuite is the ERP provider?

Yes, NetSuite must be the ERP. NSAW is exclusively available to NetSuite ERP customers.

If users do not have access to NetSuite. How can others see the visualizations? Are the visualizations like other BI tools?

Visualizations can be created as PDFs and distributed via email to users who don’t have a logon to NetSuite Analytics Warehouse.

How technical of a person do you need to be to really use NSAW effectively?

You can be completely non-technical and still use NSAW effectively. NetSuite and non-NetSuite data sources and pre-packaged analytics in NSAW are navigated, customized and viewed through a simple and intuitive user interface. Custom analytics are built through a simple drag-and-drop process. The learning curve is very short.

Will Quickbooks be one of the main pre-selected historical ERP systems to bring in?

Yes, QuickBooks ERP history will be supported early on by Myers-Holum.

Are the data connections to NetSuite and other source systems based on a traditional ETL (e.g., scheduled) or are they real/semi-time in nature?

The data connection to NetSuite is scheduled (typically a nightly refresh) or on-request. Data connections to other source systems can be real-time or near-real-time, depending on what tool is used for the connection.

Can data from external sources, non-NetSuite sources be loaded directly into NSAW and combined with NetSuite data?

Yes. NSAW is fully open and extensible. You can create custom schemas and load data using any tool that can write to an Oracle database. Once data is loaded from external sources, it can be readily combined with NetSuite data both in the reusable semantic layer, and in analytic workbooks.

Can data be blended from multiple NetSuite transaction types in reports and analysis?

It's very easy to blend data across multiple NetSuite transaction types. You pull in multiple NetSuite transactions into an analysis and they're automatically joined and blended based on common dimensions and dimensional attributes.

Is there a tool for loading and integrating data into NSAW from external sources outside NetSuite?

NSAW is integration tool agnostic, but Myers-Holum is working closely with a third-party cloud data integration vendor that can pull data from several hundred prepackaged sources connectors, and load data directly into NSAW.

How does NSAW fit with SuiteAnalytics – do they overlap?

NSAW extends the capabilities of SuiteAnalytics by allowing you to easily blend data from multiple NetSuite transaction types, as well as from non-NetSuite data sources. NSAW also provides a broad range of prebuilt visualization styles, and includes a built-in machine learning capability for predictive analytics.

What does another system need in order to be connected to NetSuite Analytics Warehouse?

Loading data from another system to NSAW requires a SQL-based tool that can write (insert) data to an Oracle database using a “cloud wallet” database connection. Reading data from NSAW in another system requires a SQL-based tool that can query (select) data from an Oracle database using a “cloud wallet” database connection.