Business Intelligence

Business Intelligence

Current business and technology conditions that complicate effective application of business analytics to business intelligence and knowledge management data, and the prospects for improvement

Abstract

Companies have built their very businesses on their ability to collect, analyze, and act on data. Many companies offer similar products and use comparable technologies and business processes.

Everyone can learn from what these companies do. There are current business and technology conditions that complicate effective application of business analytics to business intelligence and knowledge management data, and the prospects for improvement. I will discuss some of those conditions that effect the applications.

In the past years companies have realized there is value in their data and have launched major Business Intelligence initiatives in their organizations. But most companies are making huge mistakes in how they are handling this challenge because they fail to realize data does not equal information. Most businesses generate a lot of data, but relatively few use it effectively to create a competitive advantage and enable high performance.

In order to turn data into information, companies need to follow a three-step process. First you'll need a Data Warehouse where companies need a place for data to reside and rules on how the data should be structured. Next you'll need a Business Intelligence. Companies need a way to slice and dice the data and generate reports. And last and probably the most important you need Business Analytics, companies need to extract the data, analyze trends, uncover opportunities, find new customer segments, and so forth.

The first condition that complicates effective application of business analytics to business intelligence and knowledge management data is that most companies fail to add the third step to their Data Warehouse and Business Intelligence initiatives and for that reason come up short on changing data into information. Companies that do not integrate Business Analytics in to their research can become in danger of losing their business. Using sophisticated data-collection technology and analysis, companies can collect and analyze date to come up with a product that everyone will like. Using these technics companies can seek ways to make people happy by offering products or services that will keep them come back for more. Business analytics, as written in Wikipedia, "refers to the skills, technologies, applications and practices for continuous iterative exploration and investigation of past business performance to gain insight and drive business planning. Business analytics focuses on developing new insights and understanding of business performance based on data and statistical methods. In contrast, business intelligence traditionally focuses on using a consistent set of metrics to both measure past performance and guide business planning, which is also based on data and statistical methods." Business analytics depends heavily on the use of data, statistical and measurable analysis, explanatory and predictive modeling, and fact-based management to drive decision making. Analytics cam be used as input for human decisions or may drive fully automated decisions. Business intelligence answers questions such as what happened, how many, how often, where the problem is, and what needs to happen next. Business analytics answers questions like why is this happening, what if these trends continue, what might happen happen next, what is the best outcome. Business analysis is the absolute most important ability for an IT organization. It is the most important item that IT has to offer to a business.

The second condition that complicates effective application of business analytics to business intelligence and knowledge management data is the Mobile, social, cloud, and big data technology considered the new generation of IT. As IT organizations and business users evolve their strategies, they need to ask themselves how they will handle this technology. An advantage of mobile-social-cloud is that it empowers businesses by allowing employees to access corporate data anywhere and improve communication with better social collaborative tools. A disadvantage is that IT is overwhelmed by security, compliance and rapid change. The force of cloud computing, social media and social networking, mobility and information management are evolving at such a rapid pace. Business leaders frequently identify the value of new technology before IT departments can master it. These technological developments in the workplace are happening despite the controls IT normally places on the use of technologies. For instance, the cloud offers new delivery styles and options