The Challenge
Point Loma Nazarene University (Point Loma) needed a way to report from multiple sources across campus. They had information in PowerFAIDS, JICS and Blackboard, but no way to create reports from all of these sources at once. Point Loma also needed a solution that would work seamlessly with their Jenzabar CX software, which they use throughout their campus. An easy to use, customizable tool that can report from multiple solutions was the key to Point Loma’s reporting needs.
The Solution
Point Loma found it easy to switch to Argos from their previous reporting solution because of the pre-built features, intuitive Graphical User Interface of Argos and excellent support by Evisions. In just a few months, Point Loma had 4 Power Users create over 35 DataBlocks, which are used to create reports. These users took the free online training sessions offered by Evisions to learn about the DataBlock creation. Point Loma also finds the Evisions CO-OP user community to be a tremendous help. Through the CO-OP DataBlocks can be downloaded from other institutions as well as ideas shared about different ways to use Argos.
One of the features the Point Loma IT staff greatly appreciates is that Argos does not try to push the SQL generation to end users who do not understand database structures and joining requirements. This type of work is done only by the IT staff and selected end users, thereby ensuring that the data reported is always correct. An Analyst in the IT Department creates the DataBlock according to the needs of the Point Loma end users, and then the non-technical end users can easily generate their own reports using these IT-created DataBlocks. This way, each department can access the data they need quickly, in a readable fashion, without taking time and resources from the IT department.
Point Loma found the Enterprise License aspect of Argos to be very attractive. Because there are no increased costs to add more users, Point Loma easily expanded their use of Argos to users and departments campus wide. Pt. Loma currently uses Argos in a variety of departments including Institutional Research, Finance and Public Safety.
By implementing Argos, Point Loma has the solution to all of their reporting needs: multiple source reporting, custom DataBlocks for end users and seamless integration with Jenzabar CX.
“Evisions has hit the sweet spot of reporting needs with Argos and they have delivered on all of their commitments.We needed to improve our ability to produce ad hoc reports including dashboards for decision-makers. We wanted to empower our staff to easily generate any report that they needed to service our university and students.”
“A tremendous benefit of Argos for us is the ability to report across multiple databases. We are able to do reporting with Jenzabar CX information along with information from PowerFAIDS, JICS and Blackboard.”
“We have had many end users take advantage of the no additional charge web-based training and we love the CO-OP for sharing of DataBlocks.”