Experts Weigh in on Analytics

Nearly 100 C-level executives from across the United States gathered in New York for a symposium on analytics, presented by the Harvard Business School Press, SAS and Intel.

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The theme was "Competing on Analytics," and industry thought leader Tom Davenport, a professor of IT and management at Babson College, presented findings from a study he recently conducted on decision-making processes. 

Davenport surveyed companies that use analytics for competitive business advantage; his research, released last year (register for free report), concluded that leading organizations are focusing an increasing amount of attention on developing fact-based decision-making processes. The study also revealed that senior-level buy-in and involvement are critical to the success of enterprise business intelligence.

Analytics key to success
Panelists at the executive summit shared that they depend on enterprise-level analytics with BI when making a variety of multimillion dollar decisions: where to build new factories; how to increase market share; how to improve customer loyalty, etc.

Presenters, including Gary Loveman, CEO of Harrah's Entertainment, and Glenn Wegryn of Procter & Gamble, offered examples of how their companies rely on analytics in their day-to-day operations. Loveman described analytics as "the juice that makes the company go."

Keith Coulter, managing director of consumer cards and loans at London-based Barclays, reported that analytics was the foundation of a five-year plan the company launched in 2000 to take on emerging competitors MBNA and Capital One Financial and to bring in new customers. After implementing analytics in its supply chain and call center systems, Barclays acquired 1.5 million accounts through direct marketing from 2003 to 2004, three times the number of new accounts added between 2001 and 2003, said Coulter.

The initiative would not have been successful without a philosophy that relies on analytics, Coulter added, noting that most employees in marketing now are programmers and analysts.

"As businesses recognize the value of making important decisions that are based on facts rather than on 'gut feel,' the market for business intelligence will continue to increase. That trend represents significant opportunity for SAS," said Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer Jim Davis, who presented at the event. 

"Organizations making multimillion dollar decisions must make sure they're using all the tools at their disposal to reach those decisions," said Davis. "Davenport's findings validate the role of business intelligence across multiple industries."

Tom Davenport, president's distinguished professor and director of research, Babson College, presented at the event.