SourceDay Data as a Service (DaaS) enables you to connect SourceDay’s procurement intelligence data directly into your business intelligence (BI) tools like Power BI, Tableau, and Looker. With these best practices, you’ll ensure a smooth connection, faster insights, and accurate reporting.
Start with SourceDay’s out-of-the-box views
DaaS includes pre-built schemas and tables designed for quick analysis:
Primary Entities – Raw transactional records (e.g., PO lines, suppliers).
Metrics – Calculated performance data (e.g., on-time delivery, buyer responsiveness).
Functional Tables – Aggregated or ranked performance views (e.g., supplier scorecards, item risk).
💡 Tip: Begin by exploring functional tables before building complex joins. They’re optimized for quick visibility into performance trends.
Connect using read-only access
Your DaaS account is a Managed Reader Account in Snowflake.
You can query, export, and join data, but not modify or create tables.
Perform transformations or calculated fields directly in your BI tool.
This ensures data integrity and prevents accidental changes.
Example: Build custom measures (e.g., Supplier On-Time Rate) within Power BI instead of editing base data in Snowflake.
Optimize queries for speed
Large datasets can slow dashboards if queried inefficiently. Follow these tips:
Select only the columns you need (
SELECT col1, col2instead ofSELECT *).Use filters to limit date ranges or supplier sets.
Schedule data extracts during off-peak hours.
Cache or refresh data periodically rather than on every dashboard load.
Automate high-value alerts
Leverage DaaS data to drive proactive decision-making:
Create scheduled reports that flag exceptions (e.g., “POs unacknowledged for 3+ days”).
Trigger alerts when supplier performance drops below thresholds.
Send automated summaries to teams via email or Slack using your BI tool’s automation features.
Goal: Turn your DaaS data into early warning signals, not just historical reporting.
Join SourceDay data with internal systems
Combine DaaS tables with your ERP or supplier master data for deeper insights:
Align SourceDay metrics (like delivery performance) with cost or quality data.
Identify correlations between supplier performance and budget overruns.
Link item-level predictability metrics to MRP accuracy.
This contextualizes your analytics and helps teams make more informed sourcing and planning decisions.
Maintain data security and governance
DaaS is built for secure, compliant access:
Protect credentials and private keys.
Expect automatic key-pair rotation every six months (managed by SourceDay).
Use role-based permissions to control who can query or export data.
Reminder: Never share credentials between users or store them in unsecured files.
Document and standardize your metrics
As you scale, establish a shared library of approved metrics and queries:
Maintain consistency across dashboards and teams.
Prevent metric drift (e.g., different “on-time delivery” definitions).
Make onboarding new analysts easier.
Review schema updates regularly
SourceDay periodically updates DaaS schemas and adds new metrics. Stay in touch with your Customer Success Manager or subscribe to release notes to:
Learn about new data fields or functional views.
Adjust your BI reports when schema changes occur.
Summary
Using SourceDay DaaS with your BI tools gives your team unparalleled flexibility and insight into procurement performance. Start simple, keep queries efficient, automate insights, and follow security best practices. With these habits, you’ll turn your SourceDay data into a trusted foundation for smarter supply chain decisions.