GET SMART: ADVANCED ANALYTICS

APPLIED TO BIG DATA

August 2014

 Peter Krensky, Research Analyst,

Analytics & Business Intelligence

Report Highlights

p3 p4 p4 p6

The fast tools More pervasive More pervasive A stronger bottom

advanced minds analytics in the C- analytics at the line line
want and need suite of business

This Research Report examines organizations that leverage

advanced analytics and big data capabilities to generate insight
in the C-suite and at the line of business.
 Get Smart: Advanced Analytics Applied to Big Data

2
A Powerful Combination

Organizations with The best teams are greater than the sum of their parts. Such is
the case for the pairing of advanced analytics and big data.
advanced analytics
Aberdeen took its pool of 681 respondents to the 2014 Business
work with big data Analytics survey and identified organizations that had invested
faster and give users in both advanced analytics and big data capabilities. These 125
organizations (hereafter referred to as advanced data
the capabilities they
organizations) demonstrate how to get the most value out of big
want and need. data.

Fast Data for Advanced Analysis

According to the survey, investing in more powerful analytical

Aberdeen defines the decision
window as the period of time when
information is valuable for a choice
at hand.
tools is the top strategy of these organizations. They’ve already
invested to manage and integrate huge data volumes, and now
they want advanced analytics to help make sense of all that
information. Organizations with advanced analytics work with
big data faster and give users the capabilities they want and
need (Figure 1). These organizations obtained critical
information within the decision window 82% of the time,
compared to 63% of the time for all other organizations (see
sidebar). In other words, all other organizations are forced by
decision deadlines to act on gut instinct or incomplete
information significantly more often. The questions asked by
advanced analytics invariably lead to more questions and more
data demands. Big data capabilities, such as governance and
data quality tools, guide the right data down the proper
channels. Advanced analytics can also help users beat decision
deadlines by quickly revealing all the information that is needed.

www.aberdeen.com
 Get Smart: Advanced Analytics Applied to Big Data

3
Figure 1: Faster Decisions, Happier Users

n=681
Source: Aberdeen Group, July 2014

Advanced data organizations have 37% more users per capita

that are satisfied with the relevance of analytical capabilities to
their job role. Advanced analytical capabilities enable users to
answer tough and complex questions. But no matter where
decision makers reside in an organizational hierarchy, complex
problems will present themselves that can be addressed by
diving into the data. With access to the right data, users can
leverage advanced analytics to suit any job role. For example,
strategic decision makers can run what-if scenarios on risk
exposure to evaluate the merits of long-term plans. Tactical
decision makers can derive insight from operational data, such
as identifying consistent inefficiencies or wasteful spending. As
we will see in the next section, when users feel they have the  Related Research:
relevant capabilities, analytical adoption and use become more
pervasive. “Big Data
Sixty-two percent (62%) of advanced data organizations
Perspectives:
improved overall speed of decision making in the past year. Users vs. IT"
Advanced analytics help users get the data they need faster and
accelerate the decision process. Predictive models and pattern
recognition help analytical minds work with data more quickly
and efficiently. With large data sets to draw from and powerful
analytical capabilities to apply to them, decision makers can be

www.aberdeen.com
 Get Smart: Advanced Analytics Applied to Big Data

4
more confident in their insights and act faster. Aberdeen's
report, Big Data Perspectives: Users vs. IT, found that 43% of IT
personnel believe that faster, more complex analytics give their
organization a competitive advantage.

Analytical Proliferation

Use cases arise in every line of business for the insights

generated by algorithms fed by robust data. The survey data
shows that advanced data organizations achieve more pervasive
analytical adoption throughout the organization (Figure 1).
These organizations have operationalized big data and
advanced analytics. In-depth analysis is performed daily at the
line of business instead of limiting number crunching to IT or
holed-up data scientists.

Advanced data organizations are 63% more likely to have

achieved “strong” or “highly pervasive” analytical adoption in
corporate management. Analytically savvy executives can use
advanced analytics to run multiple what-if scenarios when
considering different strategies. By working from massive
customer, product, or operational data sets, executives can
By working from massive evaluate the efficacy and impact of new initiatives before any
customer, product, or resources are invested in them. Advanced models can also help
operational data sets, business leaders prepare contingencies for both positive and
executives can evaluate adverse events.
the efficacy and impact
of new initiatives before
any resources are
invested in them.

www.aberdeen.com
 Get Smart: Advanced Analytics Applied to Big Data

5
Figure 2: Departments with "Strong" or Highly Pervasive
Analytical Adoption

n=681
Source: Aberdeen Group, July 2014

Sixty-nine percent (69%) of big data organizations achieved

pervasive analytical adoption in their finance department. By
corralling and integrating financial data from multiple sources,
financial analysts can work from a comprehensive historical data
set to hone more accurate models. Advanced analytics enables
analysts to generate rolling forecasts with algorithms to allow
for new data and produce more accurate forecasts and budgets.
Financial executives can also visualize large volumes of risk data
and accurately evaluate the risk potential of different scenarios.
They can then weigh those predictions against the
organization’s appetite for risk at a given time.

Organizations applying advanced analytics to big data are nearly

twice as likely to have pervasive analytical adoption in sales.
Sales managers can use advanced analytics to identify the ripest
accounts for cross-sell and up-sell opportunities. Advanced
models can also alert reps if an account shows warning signs of
being dissatisfied or potentially leaving the business. Finally, big
data organizations are over twice as likely as All Others to have
pervasive analytics in marketing. Past Aberdeen research has

www.aberdeen.com
 Get Smart: Advanced Analytics Applied to Big Data

6
shown that advanced analytics applied to large volumes of
customer data can achieve fine-toothed customer segmentation.
Marketing executives can leverage this insight for offer
management and timely anticipation of customer behavior or
shifts in the market.

Advanced analytics and big data capabilities promote the

operationalization of advanced analysis across lines of business
and job roles. Analysts should seek out areas of the organization
where available data far outweigh analytical capabilities and put
this powerful combination to work.

The Numbers that Really Matter

What are all the myriad Organizations employing advanced analytics along with big data
ways advanced analytics capabilities reported superior improvements across several
can contribute to such financial metrics (Figure 3). There are far too many variables that
go into these bottom line metrics to attribute these levels of
enviable improvements? success to any single cause or technology investment. However,
the correlation is clear; the organizations that reported the
greatest improvements were the ones with advanced analytics
that can work with large, fast-moving data volumes. What are all
the myriad ways advanced analytics can contribute to such
enviable improvements? Advanced data organizations averaged
a 16% increase in revenue over the past year. Driving revenue
means focusing on customers. These organizations are able to
better leverage customer data to unearth new sales
opportunities. Customer analytics also drive stronger marketing
through smarter messaging and offer management. Advanced
analysis of customer feedback and sentiment will boost future
customer satisfaction and strengthen customer loyalty. Decision
makers can accurately anticipate market demand and align new
products accordingly.

www.aberdeen.com
 Get Smart: Advanced Analytics Applied to Big Data

7
Figure 3: Bottom Line Improvements

n=681
Source: Aberdeen Group, July 2014

An average increase in operating cash flow is achieved by

maximizing output. Advanced analysis of operational data can
reveal inefficiencies and generate ideas for improvement.  Related Research:
Predictive analytics can anticipate problems and help to resolve
them before they cause major setbacks. Shining a light on “Real-Time Data
patterns in the data can also help identify best practices to
optimize productivity. Visualization:
$%&# It! Do it
Finally, advanced data organizations averaged a 7% reduction in
operating costs. Advanced analytics can identify the source of Live!"
swelling costs within the organization and alert decision makers
before the loss of resources becomes painful. Automatically
recognizing recurring inefficiencies will also shave unnecessary
expenditure. Aberdeen's report, Real-Time Data Visualization:
$%&# It! Do it Live!, explores how instant analysis of operational
data can contribute to shrinking costs.

Key Takeaways

Combining advanced analytics with big data capabilities brings a

lot of firepower to the table. As organizations strive to manage
and distribute huge volumes of valuable information, they need
the tools to create actionable analysis from the data. Advanced
data organizations reap the following benefits:

www.aberdeen.com
 Get Smart: Advanced Analytics Applied to Big Data

8
 Superior speed of decision making and user
engagement. Advanced data organizations obtain key
information within the decision more often and their
capabilities accelerate the overall speed of decision
making. Users are demanding advanced analytical
capabilities, as those that have them are 37% more likely
to be satisfied with the relevance of their analytical tools.

 More pervasive analytical adoption across the

organization. Advanced data organizations proliferate
analytics and achieve more pervasive adoption in
corporate management, finance, sales, and marketing.
An analytical culture will encourage individuals to come
up with more uses for advanced analytics in their job role.

 Desirable bottom line results. Advanced analytics and

big data alone will not guarantee joyful earnings calls and
happy shareholders. However these technologies do
contribute to revenue growth, better operational cash
flow, and reduced operational costs by revealing
opportunities and identifying target areas for
improvement.

www.aberdeen.com
 Get Smart: Advanced Analytics Applied to Big Data

9
For more information on this or other research topics, please visit www.aberdeen.com.

Related Research
Three Pillars of Big Data Strategy: Trust, Big Data Perspectives: Users vs. IT; April 2014
Availability and Speed; May 2014 Predictive Analytics is Delivering Results, so what
Executive Brief: The Payoff of Analytical are BI Adopters Waiting For?; March 2014
Proliferation; May 2014

Author: Peter Krensky, Research Analyst, Analytics & Business Intelligence

(peter.krensky@aberdeen.com)

About Aberdeen Group

For 26 years, Aberdeen Group has published research that helps businesses worldwide improve performance. We
identify Best-in-Class organizations by conducting primary research with industry practitioners. Our team of
analysts derives fact-based, vendor-agnostic insights from a proprietary analytical framework independent of
outside influence. The resulting research content is used by hundreds of thousands of business professionals to
drive smarter decision making and improve business strategy.

Aberdeen's content marketing solutions help B2B organizations take control of the Hidden Sales Cycle through
content licensing, speaking engagements, custom research, and content creation services. Located in Boston, MA,
Aberdeen Group is a Harte Hanks Company.

This document is the result of primary research performed by Aberdeen Group. Aberdeen Group's methodologies provide for objective fact-based research and represent the best
analysis available at the time of publication. Unless otherwise noted, the entire contents of this publication are copyrighted by Aberdeen Group, Inc. and may not be reproduced,
distributed, archived, or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written consent by Aberdeen Group, Inc.

www.aberdeen.com