What data analytics can do for you
Choices, choices, and more choices. For many organisations, this is the daily reality. Of course, you always want to make the right choices, but this is often easier said than done. After all, many choices depend on a large number of factors, which can bring unexpected outcomes. You therefore want as much insight into all the factors as possible, so that your choice is as balanced as possible and offers the best possible outcome. But how can you get an overview of all the factors that (may) influence your choice? Two words: data analytics.
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What is data analytics?
Before we give you an insight into what data analytics can do for you, you need to know what exactly it entails. In a nutshell, data analytics involves examining data sets in order to draw conclusions from the data. Sounds simple, but often there is so much data that you quickly get lost in it. This is where specialised software helps you. Good software can go through all the data a lot faster than the human eye. The software draws conclusions from the jumble of data and then offers starting points for a well-considered choice. But in what way does data analysis help you make choices?
- Overview through distinction
Data analytics software thinks in patterns. From the jumble of data, it makes a diagnosis of the whole and classifies data automatically. The software differentiates the data, for example by date, age, quantity, whatever you want. The results give you a clear overview of your data: you gain insight into the trends within your organisation. This insight not only shows you the current state of your organisation, it also offers a useful handle choices about the future. - Finding relationships
As mentioned, data analytics software thinks in patterns. And when you put patterns side by side, you can look for connections. What is the relationship between the amount of sales and the number of sales people? Data analytics software calculates the relationship and answers these kinds of questions for you. This not only gives you better insight into the current state of affairs, it also gives you something to go on when making important choices. For example, you can better understand whether it might be wiser to hire a new employee or to fire someone. - Predicting the future
Again, patterns are at the root of this. This is because good data analytics software not only looks for relationships in the data, it also looks for conclusions it can draw from it. In this way, it makes expectations about what the data might look like in the future. You can make good use of this information to make important choices. However, be careful here: data analytics software only tells you 'what is likely to happen'. It remains an expectation - after all, the future always remains uncertain.
Creativity is human
Data analytics software is therefore very good with patterns. It uses patterns to get a better overview, to uncover relationships and to make appropriate predictions about the future. However, as strong as this pattern recognition is, it also has a weakness. The data patterns sketch a framework within which the software acts, and it cannot act outside this framework. What this means in concrete terms is that the software can think arithmetically, but not creatively. For a creative solution, you really need (at least) two human eyes.
Are you curious how data analytics can ensure that you make the best choices for your organisation? We would be happy to talk to you about the possibilities and help you further with the development of customised software. Contact Us and discover the benefits.
