What is it?

In its rawest form Business Analytics is a ‘tool’ that you use to analyse data using complex algorithms for the analysis and interpretation of data to reveal patterns, anomalies, key variables and relationships, leading ultimately to new insights and better answers faster.

The whole area of Business Analytics is where a significant proportion of the benefits or Return-on-Investment, tend to come from.

Companies who engage in Business Analytics have gone through the other areas of the information supply chain and their data is in good shape. They more than likely have a data warehouse facility and they would also have expert understanding of their BI Reporting tools.

A solid understanding of their markets and the ability to put together a realistic yet creative and dynamic strategy are also pre-requisites to achieving real results from BI Analytics.

Analytic Intelligence

Some of the business challenges that companies face are;

• Marketing Optimization
• Pricing Optimization
• Fraud Detection
• Stocking/Ordering/Distribution in ‘Real-Time’(Retail sector)

A key element in all of the above is the need to have ‘good’ Customer Intelligence. Companies who deploy Business Analytics as a part of the whole information supply chain are in control of the ‘Data’ on their customers and markets and their decisions are based in fact not fiction.