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July 28, 2010

The Analytics Surge

The Economic Times presents a run-down, in slideshow form, of the impact that a surge of interest in and uptake of analytics is having on the business climate in India. For industries as diverse as financial services, retail and consulting analytics is becoming an integral part of how business decisions are made.

One of the trends cited is one we talk about often at Sybase — the “democratization” of data and, by extension, of analytics.  Our answer to democratized data is summed up in our vision for the unwired enterprise, which we define as one that:

Breaks down information technology barriers and delivers critical information and applications to employees, partners, and customers, to any platform, device or network, anytime, anywhere.

Is more efficient, more productive, and better able to capitalize on new opportunities because information is moved to the point of action, increasing its relevance and enhancing the power of decisions and transactions.

The idea of moving information to the point of action is integral to this surge of interest in and use of analytics. Success in business has always depended on putting the right information into the hands of a key decision-maker, or perhaps a few key decision-makers. In today’s environment, the amount of information is vast, the timeframe in which decisions must be made is fleeting, the factors driving those decisions are growing ever more complex, and the decision-makers are no longer an elite few, but a growing percentage of the day-to-day workforce.

It’s the fundamental shift in how business is done that represents the real surge. Technological solutions designed to deliver such capabilities are the result, not the cause, of these disruptive changes.

This distinction is summed up quite well in the Economic Times article by a spokesperson from ICICI Bank *:

Analytics has emerged as a key differentiator in times of volatility in the external macro environment. The ability to provide customer level strategies while dealing with large masses emerges as a big force multiplier for large organisations.

Businesses are not looking for new technologies to adopt. They are looking for ways to differentiate their offerings, to manage volatility, to increase customer satisfaction. Those are the true drivers behind the analytics surge.

* We should note here that ICICI Bank has a great story to tell about its own success with analytics.

Posted by Sybase IQ at July 28, 2010 1:16 AM