All Terms
58 terms shown
A
AI for businessAI AgentAn AI agent is software that uses an AI model to plan and carry out multi-step tasks, choosing which tools or systems to use along the way.AI for businessAI GovernanceAI governance is the set of policies, roles and controls that governs how a company selects, uses, monitors and takes responsibility for AI systems.AI for businessAI HallucinationAn AI hallucination is a response from an AI model that sounds confident and plausible but is factually wrong, unsupported or invented.AI for businessAI Pilot PurgatoryAI pilot purgatory is an informal business term for AI projects that work as pilots or proofs of concept but never move into regular production use.AI for businessAI ReadinessAI readiness is how prepared a company's workflows, data, systems, people and governance are to adopt AI and get measurable value from it.AI for businessAI ROIAI ROI is the return on investment from an AI initiative, measured as its net financial benefit relative to the full cost of building and running it.AI for businessAI Use CaseAn AI use case is a specific business task or decision where AI is applied, defined by the process it changes, the data it uses and its expected result.Automation and connecting systemsAPIAn API, or application programming interface, is a defined set of rules for what data or actions one piece of software can request from another and what comes back.
B
Buying and running technologyBuild vs BuyBuild vs buy is the decision between developing custom software for a need and purchasing or subscribing to an existing product that already does most of the job.Reporting and BIBusiness Intelligence (BI)Business intelligence is the set of processes, tools and data practices a company uses to collect, combine and present business data so people can monitor performance and make better-informed decisions.
C
Buying and running technologyChange ManagementChange management is the structured approach to helping people adopt a new system, process or way of working so that the intended benefits of the change are actually achieved.AI for businessChatbotA chatbot is software that holds a conversation with a person in text or speech, answering questions or carrying out tasks through a chat interface.Buying and running technologyCustomer Relationship Management (CRM)Customer relationship management is the practice and software used to record and manage a company's interactions with prospects and customers across sales, marketing and service.
D
Reporting and BIData AnalyticsData analytics is the process of examining data to find patterns, explain results, forecast outcomes and support decisions, using methods from simple summaries to statistical and machine learning models.Data foundationsData CleansingData cleansing is the work of finding and correcting or removing inaccurate, incomplete, duplicated or inconsistently formatted records so people can rely on the data for its intended use.Data foundationsData DictionaryA data dictionary is a document or tool that lists the data items a system or report uses and records each one's name, meaning, format, allowed values, source and owner.Data foundationsData GovernanceData governance is the set of roles, rules and routines that decides who is accountable for a company's data, how people may use it and what standards apply.Data foundationsData IntegrationData integration combines data from different systems so people can use it together, either by copying it into one place or by connecting systems so they share it.Data foundationsData MigrationData migration moves data from an old system to a new one through selection, cleaning, mapping, transfer and checks, so the new system starts with correct records.Data foundationsData ModelingData modeling defines what data a business needs, how to organize it into records and fields and how those pieces relate, before or while building a system or report.Data foundationsData PipelineA data pipeline is an automated series of steps that moves data from one or more source systems to a destination, often checking and reshaping it along the way.Data foundationsData PrivacyData privacy is the handling of personal data in a way that respects people's rights: what is collected and why, and how it is used, shared and kept.Data foundationsData QualityData quality describes how well a set of data fits its intended use, commonly judged by whether it is accurate, complete, consistent, timely, valid and free of unwanted duplicates.Data foundationsData SilosData silos are collections of data held by one team or system that other parts of the business cannot easily see, combine or use.Reporting and BIData VisualizationData visualization represents data as charts, graphs, maps or other visual forms so patterns, comparisons and changes are easier to see and understand than in tables of numbers.Data foundationsData WarehouseA data warehouse is a central database that collects cleaned, consistently defined data from several business systems and keeps its history for reporting and analysis.Buying and running technologyDigital TransformationDigital transformation is the process of changing how a company operates, serves customers or makes money by redesigning its processes, systems and data around digital technology.
E
Buying and running technologyEnterprise Resource Planning (ERP)Enterprise resource planning is business software that runs core operations such as finance, purchasing, inventory, production and order management using shared data.Automation and connecting systemsException ManagementException management is the set of rules and steps for handling cases an automated process cannot complete on its own, so each case reaches the right person and gets resolved.
L
AI for businessLarge Language Model (LLM)A large language model is an AI model trained on vast amounts of text so it can understand instructions and generate human-like written responses.Buying and running technologyLegacy SystemA legacy system is an older software system or technology that a business still depends on, but that has become hard to maintain, change or connect to newer tools.Automation and connecting systemsLow-Code and No-CodeLow-code and no-code tools let people build applications, forms and automations through visual editors and settings, with little or no programming, so business teams can create simple software themselves.
O
AI for businessOpen-Source AI ModelAn open-source AI model is an AI model released under terms that let anyone use, study, modify and share it, including access to the components needed to change it.Reporting and BIOperational ReportingOperational reporting provides detailed, frequently updated information about day-to-day activities, such as open orders, stock levels or late deliveries, so people running a process can see what needs attention now.AI for businessOptical Character Recognition (OCR)Optical character recognition is technology that converts images of printed or handwritten text, such as scans and photos, into machine-readable text that software can search, edit and process.
P
Reporting and BIPredictive AnalyticsPredictive analytics uses historical data and statistical or machine learning models to estimate future outcomes or their likelihood, such as which customers may cancel or how much stock will sell.Automation and connecting systemsProcess MappingProcess mapping is the practice of drawing how work actually gets done, step by step, showing who does each step, in what order, with which systems and where decisions happen.AI for businessPrompt EngineeringPrompt engineering is the practice of writing and testing the instructions given to an AI model so it produces accurate, consistent and usable output.Buying and running technologyProof of Concept (PoC)A proof of concept is a small, time-limited test of whether a proposed technology or approach can actually work for a specific need before the company funds a full project.
R
Reporting and BIReal-Time ReportingReal-time reporting shows business data within seconds of an event happening in a source system, so the figures on screen reflect current activity.AI for businessRetrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG)Retrieval-augmented generation is a method in which an AI model first searches a defined document set, such as a company's approved material, then answers using the passages it finds.Automation and connecting systemsRobotic Process Automation (RPA)Robotic process automation is software that operates other applications through their screens the way a person would, clicking, typing and copying data, to carry out repetitive, rule-based tasks.
S
Buying and running technologyScope CreepScope creep is the gradual, uncontrolled expansion of a project's requirements or deliverables without matching changes to its budget, timeline or resources.Data foundationsSingle Source of TruthA single source of truth means everyone in a company uses one agreed source for each key figure or record, so reports and decisions start from the same numbers.Buying and running technologySoftware as a Service (SaaS)Software as a service is software delivered over the internet, usually for a subscription, with the provider running the application on cloud infrastructure it manages.Data foundationsStructured vs Unstructured DataStructured data sits in fixed fields and tables, while unstructured data, such as emails, documents, images and recordings, has no predefined fields.Automation and connecting systemsSystem IntegrationSystem integration is the work of connecting separate software systems so they share data and trigger actions in each other automatically.Data foundationsSystem of RecordA system of record is the system a company designates as the authoritative source for a particular type of data, where staff create, update and officially maintain that data.
T
Buying and running technologyTech StackA tech stack is the set of software, services and infrastructure that a company or application uses, layered together so each part supports or connects to the others.Buying and running technologyTechnical DebtTechnical debt is the future cost of extra work created when software or systems are built with shortcuts, outdated designs or incomplete understanding that will later need fixing.