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Contact Natalie Hoyle at Natalie.Hoyle@sas.com or 919-531-9562.

What Is Business Analytics?

According to IDC, "business analytics" refers to the software used to access, transform, store, analyze, model, deliver and track information to enable fact-based decision making – and extend accountability – by providing all decision makers with the right information, at the right time, using the right technology.

Organizations use business analytics to gather and interpret data in order to make better business decisions and optimize business processes.

Ultimately, business analytics enable executive leaders to transform data into a competitive advantage – enabling strategic decisions that ultimately optimize performance. At the highest levels of organizations – across all industries – business analytics address the needs of executives faced with the unique challenges of a volatile economy, regulations, talent shortages and increased competition.

As a main component of business analytics, analytics is defined as the extensive use of data, statistical and quantitative analysis, explanatory and predictive modeling and fact-based decision making. Many organizations already use analytics in some form. Operating metrics and performance gauges such as the balanced scorecard are familiar to most managers. However, only a handful of companies are using analytics as a foundation for their business strategies.

Research by global management consultancy Accenture found that high-performance businesses – those that substantially outperform competitors over the long term and across economic, industry and leadership cycles – are twice as likely to use analytics strategically compared with the overall sample, and five times more likely to do so than low performers. For top companies such as Marriott International, Harrah’s Entertainment, Capital One, Amazon.com, NetFlix and the Boston Red Sox, business analytics create a competitive advantage.

"Certain high-performing enterprises are now building their competitive strategies around data-driven insights that in turn generate impressive business results. Their secret weapon? Analytics: sophisticated quantitative and statistical analysis and predictive modeling."

From Competing on Analytics: The New Science of Winning by
Thomas H. Davenport and Jeanne G. Harris

"Strategically astute companies know that an economic dip is the best time to make innovative IT investments that can create differentiation. If those investments are deployed when competitors are retrenching, they can grow the bottom line."

Thornton May, Computerworld, April 7, 2008