Summary

Data Age 3

Business Analytics x Business Intelligence 5

The different business 8

analytics methodologies

How data is impacting business 14

Advantages of having a
Business Analytics Strategy 16

How to prepare your company for the

21
analytical culture

The methodologies of MJV

25

The Power of Analysis

28
About MJV
30
Data Age
Today, we live what experts are calling the “Data
Age.” The information world has changed radically,
transforming itself into a universe of digital data of
the most varied formats.

In the data age, the volume of information

produced and shared every second is so large that
traditional methods used to process them are no
longer adequate. So there is a real rush in the IT
industry to develop techniques and tools that can
find useful insights efficiently.

It is in this new scenario that the concepts of

Big Data, Analytics, Internet of Things, etc. have
appeared. All of these are terms to describe
phenomena, methodologies, tools, and services
related to this new world. In this context, the most
competitive organizations are those that are data
driven and therefore treat their information as very
valuable assets.

Artificial Intelligence, which is no longer futuristic, is

now a reality present in the lives of ordinary people
and within reach of companies of all sizes and in the
most varied market segments.

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 3

The increasing the capacity to make intelligent
systems and equipment also creates many
possibilities - and in many cases, needs - of
expanding the analytical power of data of
organizations. This is where the concept of Business
Analytics gains strength.

Let us help you reflect on this with this e-book.

In the chapters that follow, you will see what is
Business Analytics, what advantages your company
can get by implementing it as a strategy and much
more.

Enjoy your reading!

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 4

Business Analytics
x
Business Intelligence

A good way to begin this reflection is by making

it clear that Business Analytics is not Business
Intelligence, although these two concepts intersect
in many moments.

Business Intelligence can be seen as the use of

business data to understand the past and present
of a company, while Business Analytics aims to
estimate - working hard in uncertain environments -
future scenarios that can be found by a company.

Understand in detail:

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 5

Business Intelligence
Business Intelligence is the process of acquiring,
storing, retrieving, and interpreting data to stay
informed about how the business is operating and
how it compares to the way it has operated in the
past.

A Business Intelligence strategy - made up of

solutions and methods - helps the company make
better decisions by understanding what happened
and how it happened. It guides business planning
and execution by providing insights and reporting
on the status of key metrics and how they are
progressing.

Business Analytics
Business Analytics is the process of getting data
and applying mathematical models and tools to
explore which trend presented by this data has
the potential to change the future, as well as
the impact it will have on business and what the
company can do to operate these changes.

A Business Analytics strategy - business analysis

conducted with specific technology methods and
solutions - helps companies to ask and answer
questions such as “why did this happen?” and “what
can happen”.

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 6

By implementing a Business Analytics strategy,
organizations can develop more effective action
plans with the ability to identify standards,
anticipate possibilities, and determine the best way
to achieve or prevent the expected result.

With data mapping, companies can better prepare

for the future and thus take advantage of new
opportunities that offer competitive advantages.

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 7

The different
business analytics
methodologies
Now that we know where the concept of Business
Analytics is different from Business Intelligence, we
can continue.

Here are the different methods used in a Business

Analytics strategy.

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 8

Descriptive analysis
Descriptive analysis is a preliminary stage of data
processing that creates a summary of historical data
to generate useful information and possibly prepare
the data for further analysis.

At this stage, data mining techniques are employed

to organize information and identify patterns and
relationships that would otherwise not be visible.
Queries, reports and data visualization techniques
can also be applied to generate more insights.

Sometimes the descriptive analysis provides

information about the history of a business’s events.
You can see, for example, an increase in Twitter
followers after a particular tweet.

Diagnostic analysis
Diagnostic (or diagnostic) analysis is a form of
advanced analysis that examines data or content
to answer the question “why did this happen?”.
It is characterized by techniques such as:

É caracterizada por técnicas como:

1. Breakdown
2. Discovery
3. Mining
4. Correlation of data

Also highly employed in business intelligence

strategies, diagnostic analysis analyzes the data
in more depth to try to understand the causes of
events and behaviors.

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 9

Diagnostic analysis allows you to understand the
data more quickly to answer critical questions about
the workforce. In it, interactive data visualization
tools are employed so that, for example, managers
can easily search, filter, and compare people by
centralizing information across the unified talent
management pool.

Predictive analysis
Predictive analytics is a form of advanced analysis
that uses new and historical data to predict activity,
behavior, and trends.

It involves the application of statistical analysis

techniques, analytic queries, and automated
machine learning algorithms to data sets to create
predictive models that place a numeric value - or
score - on the probability of a given event occurring.

Predictive analytics software uses variables that

can be measured and analyzed to predict the likely
behavior of individuals, machines, or other entities.
For example, an insurance company will likely take
into account possible driving safety variables such
as age, sex, location, vehicle type and driving history
when pricing and issuing automobile insurance
policies.

Multiple variables are combined in a predictive

model capable of evaluating future probabilities
with an acceptable level of reliability. Thus, the
system relies heavily on advanced algorithms and
methodologies such as logistic regression models,

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 10

time series analysis and decision trees.

Predictive analysis grew in prominence along with

the emergence of Big Data systems. As companies
have accumulated larger and larger data sets in
Hadoop clusters and other Big Data platforms, they
have created greater data mining opportunities for
predictive insights.
Increasing the development and marketing of
machine learning tools by IT vendors has also
helped expand predictive analytics capabilities.

Marketing, financial services and insurance

companies have been notable in adopting predictive
analytics as well as large search service providers
and online services. Predictive analysis is also
commonly used in sectors such as health, retail, and
manufacturing.

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 11

Business applications for predictive
analytics include:

online ad targeting

analysis of customer
behavior to determine
purchasing patterns

signaling of potentially
fraudulent financial
transactions

identification of patients at
risk of developing certain
medical conditions

detect failures of imminent

parts in industrial equipment
before they occur

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 12

Prescriptive analysis
The prescriptive analysis is the area of Business
Analytics dedicated to finding the best course
of action for a given situation. It is related to
descriptive and predictive analysis.

Although descriptive analytics aims to provide

information about what happened and predictive
analysis helps to model and predict what may
happen, prescriptive analysis seeks to determine
the best solution or outcome among various
options, given known parameters.

Prescriptive analysis can also suggest decision

options on how to seize a future opportunity or
mitigate future risk and illustrate the implications
of each decision option.

In practice, prescriptive analysis can continuously

and automatically process new data to improve
prediction accuracy and provide better decision
options.

An intensive process task, the prescriptive approach

analyzes the potential decisions, the interactions
between decisions, the influences that influence
those decisions, and the impact of everything that
was said above on a result to ultimately prescribe
an ideal course of real-time action.

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 13

How data is
impacting business
We might also wonder why we have come to this
level of sophistication in business analytics - a
sophistication that does not stop growing.

And the most appropriate answer is: data is the

new currency; they are strongly impacting
people’s lives and, consequently, business.

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 14

A burst of consumer data enables companies and
brands to form segmented relationships more
easily, offering personalized experiences and
recommendations to customers.

The internet, which is one of the most

transformative innovations of the modern era,
was the catalyst for this. Consumers leverage
connectivity for purposes such as entertainment,
education, knowledge, social sharing, and
shopping.

With regard to shopping, in particular, the web

has put more power in the hands of consumers.
Brands no longer control information about their
products and services. Instead, informed users
enter into business transactions with information
about what they want and what they should pay.

As a result, the most valuable companies are no

longer like Standard Oil and Texaco, but Apple,
Google, Amazon and others in the so-called big
tech group.

In this movement, the ability to make sense of the

avalanche of data is what distinguishes winners
from losers; the companies that assume the data
as assets tend to be part of the winning team.

Artificial Intelligence, which refers to technologies

capable of performing tasks that normally require
human intelligence, took off at the turn of the
century and enhanced the cognitive capabilities
of machines and technological applications.

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 15

Now the confluence of three powerful boosters
- exponential data growth, more sophisticated
distributed networks, and smarter algorithms
- has boosted the potential for business data
analysis, elevating competitive intelligence to a
much higher level.

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 16

Advantages of
having a Business
Analytics Strategy
With data being the new currency, any company
that really wants to stay competitive and secure the
future must have a Business Analytics strategy.

No matter how complex this initiative may seem, if

with many applications and techniques employed or
with solutions more within everyone’s reach, what
organizations can no longer afford is to stay out of
business analysis.

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 17

 Here’s a list of the practical benefits a Business
Analytics strategy can offer your business:

• improving the decision-making process (quality and relevance)

• accelerate the decision-making process

• better alignment with strategy

• achieve cost efficiency

• respond to users’ needs to make data available on time

• improve competitiveness

• produce a single view and unified company information

• synchronization of the financial and operational strategy

• increase revenue

• share information with a wider audience and

relate better to specific audiences

• empower capacities to innovate

See now, in detail, the positive impacts of building a

Business Analytics strategy.

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 18

Business Analytics helps you quantify
company values
Most companies have a mission statement and train
employees on the core values that lead to success.
What many fail on, however, is to quantify these
values.

With a Business Analytics strategy, organizations

can measure how these values translate into
numbers. Using quantifiable data, broad values,
and mission statements, they take control of the
interpretation of their values. So they can focus on
working with processes that stay in line with what
really matters.

For example, a company can identify its return

measures, both tangible returns (such as profits)
and intangible returns (such as returning to the
community). These can be quantified to clearly
define expectations for employees. This should
improve the processes, because everyone will be
working towards the same clear goal.

Encourages smart decision-making in

corporate culture
With more information at your fingertips, it is easier
to empower the team to make quick decisions.
Rapid movement and development are important
to a business that wants to stay ahead of the
competition. Equally important is the careful
consideration of each decision.

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 19

Nothing can derail a business faster than going the
wrong way. Making quick decisions is easy, but the
most important thing is to make smart decisions in
a short amount of time.

With so much data available, it is possible for

everyone - not just leaders - to make informed
decisions. That’s why every department needs
access to the various modules of a Business
Analytics system. The practice should be rooted in
corporate culture.

Provides a wider one in a timely manner

Have you ever heard the expression “a picture is
worth a thousand words”? Words and numbers
are great when you need to delve into detail, but
visualizing data can be a better and faster way to
distinguish clear trends.

Using visual data can make companies more

agile, help them find faster insights, and make
decisions without having to spend so much
time to understand what’s really going on in the
marketplace.

With graphics and other visuals, decision makers

make choices in a timely manner.

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 20

Helps the company not to be left behind
Today’s world moves faster than ever. The way
people buy consumer goods is changing. The way
companies communicate is changing. The way
organizations reach customers is changing.

With so many changes happening at such a fast

pace, it’s easy even for the biggest and smartest
companies to be left behind.

A good Business Analytics strategy can prevent

business obsolescence. Using analytics allows the
company to create continuous business and market
forecasts.

Keeping abreast of the latest forecasts can spark

innovative ideas, bringing more depth to the brand.
Improving processes paves the way for launching
innovative products and services.

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 21

How to prepare
your company
for the analytical
culture
There are some steps that companies that have not
yet taken control of their data can give to implement
an analytical culture. Check out as follows.

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 22

Work to consolidate the
“Mindset Data-first”
Organizations are, in general, already in digital
transformation and therefore already working with
data culture. However, not all consciously develop
this line of thought - at least not at all levels of the
hierarchy.

Have you ever heard of “mindset data-first”? It is

basically the thought that puts the data also as
protagonists in the company strategy.

This effort is based on the realization that digital

transformation does not just involve gathering
more data. Companies are transformed to
modernize, and modernity means taking
advantage of all possible knowledge about the
data - internal and external.

To achieve long-term success, therefore, one must

prioritize the infrastructure and resources needed
to leverage and extract data to its full potential.

It is also necessary to make all employees

understand the power of the data and have
the capacity to take better advantage of them.
There, it is important to create communications
and promote lectures, encourage courses, hire
specialists, etc.

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 23

Put your hands on all possible data
Next, you have to make decisions based on data.
This implies having data.

Considering how cloud-based software platforms

are cheap, there is really no excuse for not
collecting, storing and analyzing as much data as
possible.
You should analyze the internally generated data
(in tools like Google Analytics, CRM, ERP, BI etc.) and
those collected from external sources (social media,
competitors, market data, among others).

As we’ve seen, today’s data collection tools and

data analysis techniques allow you to turn anything
into data. So if the data-first mindset is really
encouraged, let the team’s imagination run wild.

Set measurable goals

Setting goals that are measurable forces you to
analyze why you failed to achieve a goal. The only
way to prove what went wrong is to look at the data.

This should help you see which variables affect

which parts of your business. Everything you do
should have some measurable output.

These “goals” are not only high-level, they should

also be used for projects considered minor in
the day-to-day business. This not only helps you
evaluate performance, but should help your
employees feel they are contributing to the end
result of the company.

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 24

Make sure the data is available to all
After collecting and storing all this data, you need
to make sure that they are available to everyone in
your organization.

The data should not only be in the hands of

data scientists in the IT department. To foster a
data-driven culture, each department needs to
appropriate the information it needs to make
timely, relevant decisions.

For this to be possible, train employees to be

more educated. In terms of data, this is highly
recommended.

Seek expert help

Finally, a very important tip, especially for
companies that are starting this journey:
seek specialized assistance.

Tech-innovation companies can help you create

a Business Analytics project, guide you in hiring
qualified professionals, point out tools, and insert
innovative methodologies into your day-to-day
business.

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 25

The methodologies
of MJV
Before we come to the conclusion of this matter, we
would like to introduce you to the methodologies
that MJV Technology and Innovation combine to
guide organizations in implementing Business
Analytics strategies. Check out as follows.

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 26

Design Thinking
Design Thinking is basically a structured approach
to innovation that has the human being as a focus
and seeks to generate solutions that align the
desire and needs of the consumer user with the
generation of value for the business.

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 27

Gamification
Gamification is nothing more than the use of
game mechanics to influence performance, solve
problems, and/or arouse engagement.

It is not simply the act of playing, but the use of

gaming techniques to evade traditional approaches
when it comes to shaping or encouraging specific
behaviors in people (familiarizing with new
technologies, streamlining learning processes,
training, engaging in tedious activities, change
management, etc.).

Agile Development Methodologies

Aimed at supporting project development (not only
in Information Technology), agile methodologies
manage and execute projects by providing more
productivity, quality and speed in project deliveries
through lean dynamics.

This approach guarantees agility and frequency

in deliveries, from the adoption of the Scrum
framework, a tool that helps the development of
projects. The Advantage
is in the spiral format of its structure, which allows
the steps to occur and be validated gradually, which
generates more agility to the project as the faults
are adjusted as soon as they arise and not at the
end of the project.

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 28

User Experience (UX) and User Interface
In general terms, User Experience is what product
users feel about every interaction they have with
what’s in front of them at the time they’re using it.

In conjunction with the User Experience strategies,

we also work on User Interface techniques.

It is important to distinguish the user experience

from the user interface (UI), although the user
interface is obviously an extremely important
part of the design. For example, consider a site
with movie reviews. Even if the UI to find a movie
is perfect, UX will be poor for a user who wants
information about a small independent release if
the database contains only movies from the big
studios.

BI Services and Applications, Big Data and

Internet of Things
We have also combined our background in
innovation and technology methods with the agile
methodologies of Business Intelligence, Big Data
and Internet of Things applications development.
All this range of capabilities, products and services
allow us to help companies from a wide range
of segments create and drive Business Analytics
strategies.

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 29

The Power
of Analysis
As you’ve seen throughout this reading, the
Business Analytics concept unites strategy, tools,
and disruptive methods to elevate the power of
data analysis of organizations.

Business Analytics is a methodology or tool for

making sound decisions. Therefore, it affects the

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 30

functioning of the whole organization. It can help
improve business profitability, increase market
share and revenue, and provide better return to
shareholders and/or shareholders.

A good Business Analytics strategy facilitates better

understanding of the primary and secondary data
available, which affect operational efficiency. It also
provides significant competitive advantages.

In this era of data that we live in, the flow of

information is almost equal for all the players
of a certain market. Thus, they highlight those
enterprises that turn their data into assets and
employ really effective techniques and methods to

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 31

analyze them, turn them into relevant insights and
new business.

A Business Analytics strategy combines available

data with multiple models and approaches
designed to improve business decisions; and makes
the analysis of data incorporated into the culture of
organizations.

What we brought in this e-book was the

conceptualization of Business Analytics and some
initial steps that can be taken from now on. And we
put ourselves at your disposal to go further: create
a Business Analytics strategy that will revolutionize
your business! Contact us and see how we can help
you in this endeavor!

> Download the Design Thinking and Agile e-book

now in the context of Digital Transformation!

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 32

About MJV:
people transforming business

For over 20 years, MJV Technology & Innovation

has helped influence innovation and solve
business challenges with some of the world’s
largest companies. With offices in Europe, the
United States and Latin America, the consultancy
counts on a multidisciplinary team, comprising
more than 700 professionals divided among
designers, engineers, anthropologists, data
scientists, developers, entrepreneurs and more.
We believe in collaborative work and apply Design
Thinking and Agile Methodology as a guide for all
the projects we develop.

Mauricio Vianna Ysmar Vianna

CEO, PhD Chairman, PhD
mvianna@mjvinnovation.com yvianna@mjvinnovation.com

Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 33

MJV is composed of four pillars, structured in
complete synergy:

BUSINESS INNOVATION: Development and

deployment of innovative solutions to reduce costs,
increase profits and generate new business models.

CONSULTANCY OF TECHNOLOGY: Development

and deployment of personalized services of Business
Intelligence (BI), IT and Internet of Things.

DIGITAL STRATEGY: Development and deployment

of corporate strategy and user experience so that
“being digital” and “digital thinking” become intrinsic
to the business model.

OUTSOURCING OF PROFESSIONAL PROFILES:

Allocation of professionals from UX, UI, Marketing
and IT with the full support of MJV with regard to
work performed and quality control.
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Atlanta Londres
atl@mjvinnovation.com ldn@mjvinnovation.com

Houston
Portugal
hou@mjvinnovation.com
Lisboa
lis@mjvinnovation.com
SOUTH AMERICA:
Italy
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Rio de Janeiro
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Business Analytics: The Data Age has already started 36