For example, if a company sold 10 shirts in January, five shirts in February, and 10 shirts in March, then the total balance sold for the quarter would be 25 shirts. Most companies would use an average balance. In the case of cash, most companies use an ending balance. The OLAP Council APB-1 performance benchmark contains examples of how time is used in OLAP applications. Smoothed sales are computed as a three month moving average.
Inventory is aggregated as an ending balance.
Benefits Successful OLAP applications increase the productivity of business managers, developers, and whole organizations. The inherent flexibility of OLAP systems means business users of OLAP applications can become more self-sufficient. Managers are no longer dependent on IT to make schema changes, to create joins, or worse. Perhaps more importantly, OLAP enables managers to model problems that would be impossible using less flexible systems with lengthy and inconsistent response times. More control and timely access to strategic information equal more effective decision-making.