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Recommendations for Database Reporting Tool Selection and Associated Training Programs
Introduction
Below, the Reporting Strategies Project Team has described six examples of identified reporting needs and made tool and training recommendations for each. Before you read these examples, it is important to understand that most offices have multiple needs and will probably require multiple solutions. In planning a strategy that will work for your department, you should decide which of your needs is the most important and plan to phase in the tools and training in stages. Once you have decided which example best fits your situation, you can read more about the recommended tools in Appendix A attached to this report or at http://www.wellesley.edu/Computing/Reporting/reportingtools.html.
These recommendations are being given as the first piece of a reporting strategies project which will be completed in early May. Many of the tools (or the environments which support them) that we have recommended in this first phase are relatively new and untested. Also, the Datamart, which is referred to throughout this document, is currently available to only two functional areas (Alumnae/Development and Human Resources). Nevertheless, the Technology Priorities Committee wanted early release of this information to department and technical managers so that departmental planning could begin.
Many offices are currently using Focus as a reporting tool. There is no reason for any office to move away from Focus at this time as long as it continues to retrieve the information you need. The Focus environment will be maintained well into the future while technical staff learn to use the newer tools and while IS sets up the new reporting environments. However, IS cannot take on the support of these new technologies and continue to support the development of reports using Focus. Wherever possible, we ask that new reports be developed using the new recommended tools.
Both this document and the list of current institutional reporting tools found in the section Identification and Definition of Reporting Tools Used at Wellesley. make use of four new institutional terms to describe staff responsible for reporting. They are report viewers, report modifiers, data miners and report developers. A complete definition of these terms can be found in the Glossory of Wellesley Database Terms.
Although many of the reporting tools mentioned
in this document are supported by Database Systems, technical staff who use
them frequently will most often be able to provide the best support. We hope
to create a process by which technical support staff can communicate with and
use each other's increasing expertise
as well as the services of Database Systems.
Reporting Need 1
The office that needs to report from small (desktop) non-integrated
databases.
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Environment
Many offices have the need to capture and report on information that is specific to their own office. Examples might include a database to track calls for job requests, schedule appointments, or to track conference registration. If you have the need to capture and report data which you cannot imagine another office will ever want to see or use, then creating a desktop database is your best solution.
Recommendation
The college supports two software packages that meet this need: FileMaker Pro, which works in both the Macintosh and Windows environments and Microsoft Access which is only available for Windows computers. Both of these software programs have their own reporting components. Both of these software packages are supported by the Help Desk and User Services. If you work extensively in a Windows (PC) environment, we would recommend that you use Access because of the wider (beyond this college) support available for it and because staff coming to the college from elsewhere will be far more likely to come with knowledge of Access. FileMaker Pro is a good choice for those who want to be up-and-running quickly with a simple database. However, it also includes many features that allow for more complexity, including the ability to create one-to-many and many-to-many relational databases using look-ups and portals, as well as security on the report and the field levels, scripting and web-publishing. FileMaker Pro includes its own multi-user functionality which allows many users on both Macintosh and Windows computers to simultaneously use a database hosted on a desktop computer.
Training
Individuals who are designing simple (non-relational) databases will find that FileMaker Pro and Access are fairly intuitive and require little formal training. Element K offers several levels of both self-study and instructor-led courses for Access 97 and FileMaker Pro 5.0. (Wellesley currently supports FileMaker Pro 4.1 because of its ability to be key-served, however those who take the Element K version 5.0 training will notice very few differences.) Extensive full-day training courses are available for both Access and FileMaker Pro at Harvard and elsewhere. Wellesley offers two levels of 2-hour hands-on instruction in FileMaker Pro each semester.
Problem Resolution
Many of the students who staff the help desk (X3333) can help you resolve frequently reported problems. If a problem is more complicated or requires an office visit, it will be referred to a staff member who is dedicated to the support of either software product.
Prerequisites
Warning: If you are creating a database to capture data that will be of cross-departmental or institutional interest, you should consult with Database Systems. Although the short-term solution may still be to design a desktop application, it should at least be designed with an eye to possible future inclusion into a central database.
Reporting Need 2
The office that reports occasionally from the integrated
institutional database(s) and relies on knowledge about data from someone in
another office.
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Environment
Some offices need to occasionally report or query institutional data that is owned and understood by another office. They need to look at the same kind of report each month or each week and rarely need to see additional or different information. Because of their infrequent use, they need a report-viewing tool that is extremely intuitive (something that can be remembered from month to month without taking out a training manual each time). Examples are: administrative assistants in academic departments who need budget information once a month, faculty who need class lists each semester, and student services staff who need mailing labels for a pre-identified groups of students.
Recommendation
In this case, the office does not need a reporting tool as much as they need an easy way to execute a report or query which has been created by someone else. The choice of report development tool needs to be left up to the technical report developer who takes on the task of developing the report. The report developer's choice of tool will depend on the report developer's skill set and upon the type of report or query required. The importance here is that all reports be accessed and executed in the same simple way. Whether a report writer uses Microsoft Access, Oracle Discover, Oracle Reports or WebDB (now Portal) the tool should be transparent to the person requesting the report. We recommend that offices who require this level of reporting support know who their technical support person is and contact that person. Because many of these technical report developers support multiple offices, they need to know of a report need well in advance. The ability of a report developer to create a report for your office will depend in large part on how accurately you can describe your requirements.
Training
The initial training and documentation on how to access and run your reports will be provided by the technical support person who develops your report. (We expect that most reports will be available to report viewers via the Web.) Database systems will provide information to help offices without technical staff learn to specify a reporting need using Banner forms or the Datamart dictionary.
Problem Resolution
The help desk (X3333) will provide support and problem resolution if you are having difficulty running a report which has already been developed (i.e., if your browser in not working properly or if you are having trouble connecting to the Web site). If you require changes to a report or if a report is reporting information incorrectly, support will be provided by the technical area which developed the original report. If you don't know who (or what area) developed your report, contact the project manager in Database Systems who supports your general business area.
Prerequisites
When requesting the development of a report, offices with this reporting need should:
Warning: Complex reports require time to develop and what seems like a simple request can require reporting against complex data. Anticipate your need for a report well in advance (preferably months) of your need for it.
Reporting Need 3
The office that reports primarily from the integrated institutional
database and who needs to answer many ad hoc and what if questions about the
data.
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Environment
Some offices work with the same set of data but need to look at it from many different perspectives. These offices need the ability to retrieve predefined data and manipulate or modify it. For example, they may wish to look at a predefined type of employee and then select out only those who work part time. They may wish to add a new column of information or delete an existing column. Once they have selected the population they need, they then need to be able to print a report in detail or in summary.
Recommendation
For this environment we would recommend Oracle Discoverer. This is a tool that makes data manipulation relatively easy. Your office would need to work with a data administrator to define and secure the information that you need to be working with. (Each grouping of information is predefined and secured by a data administrator.) This tool also allows data administrators to take advantage of predefined (coded PL/SQL) logic that is used in the Datamart.
Training
Each major functional area (e.g.: Human Resources, Student, Admissions, Student Financial Services, Finance, Resources, and Alumni) would need to identify and send a Discoverer Administrator to five days of Oracle Training. Following this training, a Project Manager in Database Systems will assist the Discoverer Administrator to set up the functional area reporting environment. The set-up of this functional area is likely to take several weeks.
If a Discoverer functional area reporting environment already exists for your department, key individuals responsible for modifying existing reports or using the functional area to manipulate or query data would need Discoverer Plus training provided by Oracle (2 day course).
Problem Resolution
Discoverer Administrators will receive support for problems from Database Systems and from each other.* Report modifiers who have problems should first seek assistance from their Discoverer Administrator.
Prerequisites
Although, in some cases, Oracle Discoverer can be used against base Banner tables, it is not recommended. We would expect this reporting tool to be used primarily with the Datamart.
Reporting Need 4
The office that needs to produce very complex hard copy
reports.
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Environment
The three most common reasons a report is considered to be complex are:
Offices that need this kind of reporting are usually providing information to important constituents outside their own departments or are looking to do complex data analysis/summary. These kinds of reports would be developed by dedicated technical people who have complex report development as part of their job responsibilities. Complex reporting requires the skill-set of someone who not only understands programming logic, but also knows the functional data structures (for example, how a student¡¯s academic history is organized in Oracle tables).
Recommendation
The tool we recommend for the most complex report development is Oracle Reports. Not only is it a good tool when reporting against a complex data environment, but it also allows a report developer the greatest flexibility in the report layout. Although Oracle Reports comes with some report wizards developed to make report development simple, its real power is the ability to use imbedded PL/SQL and SQL*Plus code to handle the most complex requirements. Also because it is an Oracle Product, its interface to our Oracle databases is seamless and efficient.
Training
A report developer would require four days of Oracle Reports Training. A five day course which combines SQL*Plus and PL/SQL training would also be recommended.
Problem Resolution
Support will be provided by Database Systems or other campus report developers.*
Prerequisites
This tool is intended (at least initially) for report developers (dedicated technical staff who have report development as part of their Wellesley role).
Reporting Need 5
The office that needs to run (or develop) reports from off
campus using integrated institutional data.
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Environment
Although this has not been identified as a great administrative need, we suspect that some offices may soon require that reports be both accessible and executable from off campus. Examples might include admissions counselors who unexpectedly need information while traveling, development officers who are visiting potential donors and need access to data or would like to demo a drill down report on line, or managers who are at conferences and need access to key management reports. As talented technical staff continue to be in high demand, the need to allow staff to develop reports from off campus may also be a valuable future need/benefit.
Recommendation
We recommend the use of Oracle's WebDB (Portal) product. It can accommodate simple to moderate reporting requirements on its own, but it can also be used as the front end to make reports developed with Oracle Discoverer or Oracle Reports available over the Web. With the proper security set-up it will also allow technical staff to actually develop reports from off campus over the Internet.
Training
Training for WebDB will be provided by Information Services. A technology based training CD will be available for use as well as some Getting Started with WebDB at Wellesley documentation that will be obtainable through the helpdesk. More specific training on WebDB will be arranged by Information Services as needed.
Problem Resolution
Many of the students who staff the help desk (x3333) can help you resolve frequently reported problems. If a problem is more complicated or requires an office visit, it will be referred to a staff member from Database Systems who is dedicated to the support of WebDB.
Prerequisites
This use of WebDB is intended (at least initially) for report developers (dedicated technical staff who have report development as part of their Wellesley role). They will use it to create the departmental reporting environments that will be used by their staff who need to create or use reports. The departmental environments or portals they create will give the offices they support quick access to simple reports over the web or they will use it to provide an easy user interface for staff who wish to view or execute more complex reports. As explained in Reporting Need 6 (below), WebDB can also be used as a reporting tool for those who are looking to develop their own simple reports. These two needs are different and require a different set of prerequisites.
Reporting Need 6
The office (or employee) that has always relied on others
to do their reporting and would like to begin to understand the skills and the
tools without making a large resource commitment.
________________________________________________________________________________________________
Environment
We expect there are many offices that would like to be able to do a small amount of report development on their own without having to rely on IS or a technical support person in another office. They want to learn about a reporting tool and about reporting against a database without dedicating an entire position or person. Also, some of the tools recommended in Reporting Needs 3-5 require either a tool (the Internet Application Server), an environment (the Datamart) or a technical support person that may not be in place at the time this is needed.
Recommendation
In this situation we recommend Microsoft Access or Oracle WebDB. Microsoft Access is a very powerful reporting tool being used at thousands of colleges and universities. Although we don't recommend Microsoft Access as our primary tool against our Oracle administrative databases, the other tools we have recommended, with the exception of WebDB, require significant commitment both in training and in set-up time. Learning and using Microsoft Access is far less complex. It comes pre-installed as part of the Office 97 package on college-owned Windows computers and it is easy to learn if you are creating relatively simple reports. (It is especially effective against a simplified data structure like the Datamart). It can produce beautifully formatted reports. Lastly, it is widely used and widely supported. The downside to Microsoft Access is that it cannot be used by Macintosh computers and it requires a bit of front end work to link (or relink) to information in another database like Oracle (Banner, Datamart).
Oracle WebDB is also a tool which is relatively easy to learn and use. It can access Oracle data directly and like Microsoft Access only requires software (browser) that comes pre-installed on all Windows or Macintosh computers. The drawback to WebDB is that is does not produce well formatted hard copy reports. It is an excellent tool when used for on-line querying or reporting and it downloads very effectively into Microsoft Excel for data manipulation, but it does not have the hard copy reporting strength of Microsoft Access.
Training
Individuals who wish to write simple reports against the Datamart will find that Access is fairly intuitive and requires little formal training. Element K offers several levels of both self-study and instructor-led courses for Access 97. Extensive full-day training courses are available for Access at Harvard and elsewhere. Instructions on how to connect to Wellesley databases (both test and production) using Microsoft Access can be obtained through the helpdesk. Training for WebDB will be provided by Information Services. A technology based training CD will be available for use as well as some Getting Started with WebDB at Wellesley¡± documentation that will be obtainable through the helpdesk. More specific training on both WebDB and Microsoft Access will be arranged by Information Services as needed.
Problem Resolution
Many of the students who staff the help desk (X3333) can help you resolve frequently reported problems. If a problem is more complicated or requires an office visit, it will be referred to a staff member who is dedicated to the support of either software product
Prerequisites
Anytime you need to see or use central administrative data (Banner, Datamart, etc.), you must first be given written permission by your manager and a data role/class owner. This is also true for using Microsoft Access and WebDB. The forms required for this are obtainable on the Web. (See http://www.wellesley.edu/Banner/useraccess.html) Report writers who are just beginning to use a tool like Microsoft Access or Oracle WebDB will be given access to two practice tables and one practice view. Once they are comfortable using the tool against Oracle tables, they will then be given access to actual institutional data.
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