Data and Analytics Approach and Strategy – Business Intelligence

Data and Analytics Approach and Strategy

The strategy of an organization flows from business strategy to information strategy, which includes application and data strategy. It is essential that information strategy matches with business strategy. Information strategy consists of application strategy, data strategy, business intelligence strategy, and analytics strategy; all of these must align with the business strategy.

Generally, there are three areas of strategic focus for data and analytics strategy. Even though the definitions of utility, enablement, and driver change as the availability and capabilities of tools and technologies increase in the market, moving from utility to enabler to driver increases the organization’s capabilities. See the following:

•     Data and analytics as a utility: Providing utility services means providing analytics capability to all individuals across business domains and departments. This is about the basic functionalities provided to complete the intended business purpose. One of the examples is providing Excel and Access database capabilities.

•     Data and analytics as an enabler: Being an enabler means to resolve the pain points of business by providing modern tools and technology and creating processes to enable fulfillment of all current needs or to meet specific business goals. An example is providing advanced data warehousing, architecture, and metadata capabilities, as well as self-service capabilities, to business users.

•     Data and analytics as a driver: Being a driver is one step further than being an enabler. It generally means enhanced capability and future readiness, or a means to achieve new business goals. New tools can uncover new insights, and new data types can lead to new business questions; both drive new business ideas and revenue sources.

Core Strategy of Business

At a high level, there are four business focus areas, as follows:

1. Operational excellence: By focusing on operations, a business tries to bring value by reducing costs in business or IT operations to gain a competitive advantage; e.g., by focusing on new or modified business processes to make it robust, efficient, and effective.

2. Innovation: By focusing on innovation, businesses create value through designing and creating new products and services to grow or capture new markets.

3. Customer understanding: By focusing on the customers and their behavior, a business can focus on product and services that are fit to customers’ needs. Also, if a business does not have the best products, they are a good fit for a targeted segment of customers.

4. Risk management: By focusing on the Risk management, Business create value by reducing and managing the risk for customers and business.