EDITOR ’ S QUESTION
STEPHEN GILL , ACADEMIC HEAD , SCHOOL OF
MATHEMATICAL AND COMPUTER SCIENCES , HERIOT –
WATT UNIVERSITY DUBAI
Business analytics is the process of applying Big Data , statistical analysis and data visualisation to extract meaningful insights needed to make informed business decisions . Business analytics is an indispensable tool in today ’ s highly competitive marketplace . Companies across most industries are spawning vast amounts of data which , in turn , has spurred the need for people who know how to interpret and analyse that data . Deploying the right business analytics strategy is not
Each type of business analytics provides a different kind of insight and choosing what to employ depends on the business situation at hand .
something that you can achieve overnight . However , there are specific best practices that can help ensure that organisations are successful with their business analytics implementation as much as possible . These best practices include : establishing the business use case and the goal before implementing business analytics . and choosing what to employ depends on the business situation at hand . Descriptive analytics is the interpretation of historical data to discover trends and patterns while predictive analytics is the usage of statistics to predict future outcomes . Prescriptive analytics on the other hand is the application of testing and other techniques to establish what outcome will produce the best result in a particular scenario . CIOs need to choose the type of business analytics based on the stage of the workflow and the requirement of data analysis . While the different kinds of analytics are usually implemented in stages , no one type of analytics is better than the other .
While a data-driven approach to business can provide incredible business opportunities , many companies still struggle with the lack of staff skilled in analytics . One way CIOs can help address the skills challenge is by taking the existing staff and training them in new methods , new processes and new skills . The other way is by acquiring new people who have the right skills to support the analytics transformation of a company . Degree programmes such as MSc Data Science help you learn how to model , store and process data sets using the latest algorithms and techniques , and help you acquire the skills applicable to business applications , industrial applications and also scientific data exploration .
Determining the specific criteria for success and failure , validating models using the chosen criteria for success and failure and designing a methodology , narrowing down data , and identifying the internal and external factors needed for making a precise projection .
That aside , the three primary types of analytics – descriptive analytics , predictive analytics and prescriptive analytics – are interconnected solutions that help companies leverage data . Each type of business analytics provides a different kind of insight
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