Few companies doubt the power of data to establish their position in the market and achieve the best possible results. In the last decade, data has been gaining prominence in corporate strategy and has been positioned as a key element in responding to the competitive challenges of the modern world.
The latest study on companies already indicates that big data has increased. This must be added that labor market trends confirm that the demand for professionals specialized in this technology is advancing. Companies are integrating more and more into their IT strategies big data and disciplines linked to data analytics.
However, there are still certain doubts and, at times, confusion about what each thing entails and what exactly each of the terms is used to talk about the potential of the data. Over the years, expressions in English have been incorporated into the technical language that encapsulates the boom in data analytics. But what do they mean, and, above all, what are the differences between big data, Business Analytics and Business Intelligence?
What Is Big Data?
Big Data is, right now, the basis on which the data strategy rests and the first step to having an efficient method. In itself, big data is the accumulation of data generated daily by all the sources of information to which a company has access. These are the data created by the company itself with its activity, those caused by its users or workers, and those added by its partners.
What Separates And What Unites Business Intelligence And Business Analytics
Both Business Intelligence and Business Analytics are based on the large masses of data companies now have at their disposal. In other words, Big Data is the basic piece on which they are found for both functionalities. Despite starting from the same elements, the two disciplines are different. In both cases, the data is used to find leads for the business, but those leads are found differently.
In the case of Business Intelligence, what is done is to analyze the data generated by the company to detect patterns and draw conclusions. An analysis is made based on what has happened, and the real state, so to speak, of things, are analyzed. For example, you can explore the sales figures obtained and determine in which markets the company is currently strong and in which it is not.
On the contrary, in Business Analytics, projections are made, and it starts from the same information flows, but they are used to get ahead of the market. Continuing with the example of sales data, in Business Analytics, they would be used as a scale to anticipate when the company will have more demand or to detect what will set the agenda.
In short, Business Intelligence focuses on the specific, describing the state of the market in real-time, while Business Analytics specializes in predictive and projections. One helps to see the company’s position, and the other allows it to anticipate problems, consumer demands, and trends.