Understanding management data systems for enterprise performance management

Purpose – Managing enterprise performance is an important, yet a difficult process due to its complexity. The process involves monitoring the strategic focus of an enterprise, whose performance is measured from the analysis of data generated from a wide range of interrelated business activities performed at different levels within the enterprise. This study aims to investigate management data systems technologies in terms of how they are used and the issues that are related to their effective management within the broader context of enterprise performance management (EPM). Design/methodology/approach – A range of recently published research literature on data warehousing, online analytic processing and EPM is reviewed to explore their current state, issues and challenges learned from their practice. Findings – The findings of the study are reported in two parts. The first part discusses the current business practices of these technologies, and the second part identifies and discusses the issues and challenges the business managers dealing with these technologies face for gaining competitive advantage for their businesses. Originality/value – The study findings are intended to assist the business managers to effectively understand the issues and technologies behind EPM implementation.