Interview Bite

Introduction to Cognos Interview Preparation

IBM Cognos is a leading business intelligence (BI) and analytics platform used for enterprise reporting, dashboarding, and data visualization. Whether you’re interviewing for a Cognos Developer, Admin, or Analyst role, mastering these 50 Cognos interview questions will give you a competitive edge.

This guide covers:

• Cognos Basics & Architecture
• Framework Manager & Modeling
• Report Studio & Dashboarding
• Administration & Performance Tuning
• Latest Cognos Analytics Features
• Section 1: Cognos Fundamentals (10 Questions)
  1. What is IBM Cognos?
  IBM Cognos is an enterprise BI suite for:
  Interactive dashboards
  Ad-hoc reporting
  OLAP analysis
  Mobile BI
  AI-powered analytics (Cognos Analytics)
  2. What are the main components of Cognos?
  Cognos Connection (Web portal)
  Report Studio (Professional reporting)
  Query Studio (Ad-hoc queries)
  Analysis Studio (OLAP analysis)
  Framework Manager (Metadata modeling)
  Cognos Administration (Server management)
  3. Explain Cognos Architecture
  Cognos uses a 3-tier architecture:
  Web Server (IIS, Apache)
  Application Tier (Cognos services)
  Data Tier (Databases, cubes)
  4. What’s new in Cognos Analytics 11.x?
  AI-assisted dashboards
  Data modules (self-service prep)
  Enhanced storytelling
  Cloud deployment options
  5. Difference between Cognos 10 vs. Cognos 11?
  Feature
  Cognos 10
  Cognos 11
  UI
  Traditional
  Modern web-based
  AI
  No
  Yes (AI recommendations)
  Deployment
  On-prem mainly
  Cloud & hybrid
  Data Modules
  No
  Yes
  6. What are Cognos Namespaces?
  Namespaces provide authentication by connecting to:
  Active Directory
  LDAP
  Custom databases
  7. What is a Cognos Package?
  A package contains metadata from Framework Manager that report authors use to build reports.
  8. Explain Cognos Dispatchers
  Dispatchers route requests to appropriate services (report, batch, analysis).
  9. What is Cognos Gateway?
  Gateway acts as proxy between web server and Cognos application tier.
  10. What are Cognos Cubes?
  OLAP cubes (PowerCubes, TM1 cubes) enable multidimensional analysis with fast performance.
  
  Section 2: Framework Manager (10 Questions)
  11. What is Framework Manager?
  Cognos’s metadata modeling tool that:
  Creates business views of data
  Defines relationships
  Publishes packages
  12. What are Query Subjects?
  Logical tables containing:
  Data Source Query Subjects (direct from DB)
  Model Query Subjects (derived)
  13. Explain Determinants
  Determinants define unique identifiers to prevent fan traps/chasm traps.
  14. What is a Star Schema Grouping?
  Organizes query subjects into:
  Fact tables (measures)
  Dimension tables (attributes)
  15. How to handle Slowly Changing Dimensions?
  Use Type 1/2/3 SCD techniques in modeling.
  16. What is a Shortcut vs. Alias?
  Shortcut = Reference to object
  Alias = Alternate name for table (prevents SQL loops)
  17. How to implement security in Framework Manager?
  Object-level security
  Parameter maps
  Security filters
  18. What is a Cognos Stored Procedure?
  Pre-defined SQL logic executed at query time.
  19. How to improve Framework Manager performance?
  Use filters early
  Limit columns
  Optimize SQL generation
  20. What are Model Query Subjects?
  Virtual tables created by combining/transforming other query subjects.
  
  Section 3: Report Studio (10 Questions)
  21. What is Report Studio?
  Professional pixel-perfect reporting tool for:
  Complex layouts
  Conditional formatting
  Bursting
  22. Explain List, Crosstab, Chart Reports
  List = Tabular data
  Crosstab = Matrix with row/column dimensions
  Chart = Visualizations
  23. What is a Master-Detail Relationship?
  Links multiple reports (e.g., summary → drill-through details).
  24. How to create prompts in Cognos?
  Use Parameter and Prompt objects with value selections.
  25. What are Conditional Styles?
  Formatting that changes based on data values (e.g., red for negative values).
  26. Explain Report Bursting
  Automatically distribute personalized reports to different users.
  27. What is a Drill-Through Report?
  Clicking data navigates to related detailed report.
  28. How to use JavaScript in Cognos?
  Via HTML items (limited support in newer versions).
  29. What is a Report Template?
  Pre-defined layouts/styles for consistent reporting.
  30. How to schedule reports?
  Via Cognos Connection with delivery options (email, FTP).
  
  People Also Ask (20 Additional Questions)
  Administration
  How to troubleshoot failed reports?
  Check Cognos logs (dispatch.log, service.log)
  What is Cognos Audit?
  Tracks user activities for compliance.
  How to migrate content between environments?
  Use Deployment or Content Manager.
  Performance
  How to improve report performance?
  Add indexes
  Use query optimization
  Limit data
  What is Query Service vs. Report Service?
  Query handles data retrieval, Report handles rendering.
  Dashboards
  What is Cognos Dashboarding?
  Interactive visual analytics with drag-and-drop.
  Difference between dashboards vs. reports?
  Dashboards = visual summaries, Reports = detailed data.
  Advanced Features
  What is Cognos Mobile?
  Access reports on iOS/Android devices.
  How to use R in Cognos?
  Via Cognos Analytics R scripting.
  What is Cognos TM1?
  IBM’s OLAP/planning solution (now Planning Analytics).
  
  Conclusion
  This comprehensive Cognos interview guide covers 50 essential questions across:
  ✔ Architecture
  ✔ Framework Manager
  ✔ Report Development
  ✔ Administration
  ✔ Latest Features