What is our primary use case?
My main use case for Alteryx is to automate quite a few ETL workloads, and Alteryx provides a great platform in bringing those data integration aspects. We have been using Alteryx as a self-service data and self-usability data integration tool as well.
A quick specific example of an ETL workload I automated with Alteryx is the recent automation of the PDX and patient care systems data coming out from some legacy ecosystems that are built in-house through Alteryx. This was a modernization aspect wherein we created a brand new ETL workplace and workflow, which got rid of Informatica and then brought Alteryx in that place in order to modernize the entire framework.
My main use case with Alteryx also includes working on another area where we are trying to bring in quite a few telemetry information as well. This has been a core centralization tool. The data we are bringing is from a diversified set of applications and sources, which includes several cloud sources such as Azure, as well as on-premise sources such as Salesforce and the information that we are getting from ServiceNow and SAP as well.
How has it helped my organization?
The positive impact Alteryx has had on our organization includes our ability to automate quite a few complex ETL or data integrations, reducing coding by around 75 to 80 percent. By utilizing the features of Alteryx, we have eliminated very complex and lengthy codes previously needed for data transformations. Now, using Alteryx's built-in features, we achieve this seamlessly, and getting additional features such as built-in AI and spatial analytics has been particularly helpful in automating many workflows that we previously managed manually.
The impact on my team after switching to Alteryx includes significant time savings and an improvement in ROI. After implementing Alteryx, we calculate our ROI to be more than 25 to 30 percent. From a time-saving perspective, we saved 60 to 75 percent of the human workforce needed and eliminated other disparate ETL tools, ultimately saving us over 600,000 dollars, which is a significant benefit from implementing Alteryx.
What is most valuable?
The best features Alteryx offers include quite a lot of areas. Typically, some of these core areas include the drag-and-drop data preparations that we are getting here. We also get the Generative AI and LLM integrations. Automated reporting is another area where it provides built-in dynamic dashboards which can be created for generating insights. Being from an analytics background, I benefit from the spatial and advanced analytical features provided by Alteryx, which perform location-based mapping, logistic optimizations, and predictive and machine learning algorithms. I find seamless data blending, which easily combines disparate data sets from spreadsheets, clouds, various applications, and APIs as well.
From a Generative AI perspective, we are using it for quite a few documentation purposes related to the data. We have also integrated quite a few of this prompt engineering in order to define the workflows. From an organizational perspective, we heavily rely on OpenAI. The integration that Alteryx provides securely connects to OpenAI, where we are running our massive data sets along with PDX and patient care systems integrations. From a data preparations point of view, using the drag-and-drop features, we utilized over 50 automated tools to clean and transform the structured data without complex scripting, which got rid of quite a few messy scripts.
Alteryx integrates very well with other tools and platforms in our environment such as ServiceNow, SAP, and Salesforce. We have a large number of applications defined using those platforms, and we haven't experienced major issues integrating them with Alteryx. There are built-in APIs and connectors provided by Alteryx that facilitate seamless connections, and we rarely see production outages, maintaining an SLA of more than 99.999 percent. The integrations don't require much time and are very seamless.
What needs improvement?
One area for improvement is in integrating mostly the data which comes from telemetry, where I can see some sort of improvisations can be made. It is a massive amount of unstructured data, and I believe Alteryx is able to handle it, but there can be some improvements.
Suggestions for improvements in Alteryx include areas for increasing efficiency, particularly in processing telemetry data, which involves dealing with large volumes of unstructured data. Additionally, I believe when we use filter tools immediately after the input source, there can be slowdowns when handling massive data.
The user experience of Alteryx is generally good, but there are areas for improvement from a user's perspective, particularly regarding user interface enhancements. I think there's always room for improvement, but otherwise, Alteryx has been a great tool for me.
We haven't experienced significant disruptions while increasing data volumes, though I sense there could be performance issues as data grows exponentially. This is an area that could use improvement in Alteryx.
For how long have I used the solution?
Alteryx is a tool I started using back in 2014, so it has been quite a few years now. It has been more than 10 to 12 years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
We haven't experienced significant disruptions while increasing data volumes, though I sense there could be performance issues as data grows exponentially. This is an area that could use improvement in Alteryx.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Suggestions for improvements in Alteryx include areas for increasing efficiency, particularly in processing telemetry data, which involves dealing with large volumes of unstructured data. Additionally, I believe when we use filter tools immediately after the input source, there can be slowdowns when handling massive data.
How are customer service and support?
Customer support from Alteryx has been amazing. I would rate it a perfect 10 out of 10.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We were using Informatica before adopting Alteryx.
The switch from Informatica to Alteryx was primarily based on usability, cost, and features. We found excellent use cases for automation through Alteryx, which provided the means to reduce operational costs and streamline the build of ETL pipelines without extensive coding.
How was the initial setup?
The ease of learning and adopting Alteryx by my team has been quite friendly. Alteryx provides various resources including its own library and documents. It relies more on tools than on coding, making it pretty much easy for my team to learn and implement simultaneously. Learning has been a very positive experience so far.
What about the implementation team?
The ease of learning and adopting Alteryx by my team has been quite friendly. Alteryx provides various resources including its own library and documents. It relies more on tools than on coding, making it pretty much easy for my team to learn and implement simultaneously. Learning has been a very positive experience so far.
What was our ROI?
The impact on my team after switching to Alteryx includes significant time savings and an improvement in ROI. After implementing Alteryx, we calculate our ROI to be more than 25 to 30 percent. From a time-saving perspective, we saved 60 to 75 percent of the human workforce needed and eliminated other disparate ETL tools, ultimately saving us over 600,000 dollars, which is a significant benefit from implementing Alteryx.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
From a pricing perspective, Alteryx is quite price-effective compared to other ETL tools we've used. We began with a starter edition and have now moved to an enterprise edition. We have add-ons that provide advanced capabilities such as server deployment and specialized integrations. Currently, we're working on an enterprise contract and liaising with the enterprise sales team, also evaluating various use cases with cost-saving factors in mind. We now hold about 30 user licenses as we transitioned into the enterprise edition.
The switch from Informatica to Alteryx was primarily based on usability, cost, and features. We found excellent use cases for automation through Alteryx, which provided the means to reduce operational costs and streamline the build of ETL pipelines without extensive coding.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
Prior to choosing Alteryx, we evaluated other options such as DataStage, Databricks, Integrate.io, Pentaho, and Talend, but ultimately selected Alteryx from that pool of tools.
What other advice do I have?
For those looking into using Alteryx, I advise that if you want to automate and bring in AI-powered data integration workflows, Alteryx can be a good product. It supports a wide range of easily integrated data sets and offers built-in custom APIs for legacy applications. From a pricing perspective, it is very cost-effective, especially for designing workflows from scratch using built-in tools. This makes large-scale data transformations much more manageable.
Alteryx is doing an amazing job of providing world-class integration tools and enhancing digital features on AI-powered workflows. I would like to see further improvisations in future releases and platform upgrades that Alteryx is regularly undertaking. I would rate this review a 9 out of 10.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Hybrid Cloud
If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?