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<p>Preface ix</p> <p>Acknowledgments xiii</p> <p><b>Chapter 1 Introduction and Background 1</b></p> <p>The Power of Information 1</p> <p>Modern-Day Magicians 3</p> <p>The Secret of Success 5</p> <p>Notes 7</p> <p><b>Chapter 2 The Importance of Business Analytics 9</b></p> <p>Introduction 9</p> <p>Business Analytics: A Definition 10</p> <p>Role of the Organization 13</p> <p>Reasons behind Strategic Planning 17</p> <p>Business Analytics and the Traditional View 25</p> <p>Business Analytics and the External View 28</p> <p>Business Analytics and the Internal View 35</p> <p>Business Analytics and the Customer View 39</p> <p>Fostering Innovation and Invention 44</p> <p>Delivering Value through Renewable Return 46</p> <p>Summary 51</p> <p>Note 51</p> <p><b>Chapter 3 The Challenges of Tactical Delivery 53</b></p> <p>Introduction 53</p> <p>Core Vocabulary 54</p> <p>Common Team Structures 66</p> <p>Roles and Responsibilities 68</p> <p>Challenges of Applying Business Analytics 83</p> <p>Finding the Path to Profitability 85</p> <p>Selling the Value of Analytics 86</p> <p>Meeting and Overcoming These Challenges 90</p> <p>The Four-Step Framework 97</p> <p>Note 97</p> <p><b>Chapter 4 Defining the Value of Business Analytics 99</b></p> <p>Introduction 99</p> <p>Why You Need to Define the Value 100</p> <p>Different Types of Value 103</p> <p>Role of the Business Case 108</p> <p>Identifying Tangible Value 115</p> <p>Identifying Intangible Value 131</p> <p>Simulating Business Cases 134</p> <p>Practical Example: Reducing Churn in Telecommunications 140</p> <p>Summary 143</p> <p><b>Chapter 5 Communicating the Value Proposition 147</b></p> <p>Introduction 147</p> <p>Why You Need to Plan Your Communication Strategy 148</p> <p>Need for a Communication Strategy 154</p> <p>Awareness and Information Relevancy 158</p> <p>Organizational and Societal Cultural Considerations 163</p> <p>Conceptual Relevancy 172</p> <p>The Path to Persuasion 178</p> <p>Practical Example: A Forecasting Model for Planning 182</p> <p>Summary 185</p> <p>Note 187</p> <p><b>Chapter 6 Creating the Execution Plan and Delivering Value 189</b></p> <p>Introduction 189</p> <p>Why You Need an Execution Plan 190</p> <p>Role of the Execution Plan 194</p> <p>Establishing Direction 195</p> <p>Delivering to the Plan 215</p> <p>Dealing with Resource Constraints 216</p> <p>Planning for Success 220</p> <p>Practical Example: Social Network Analysis 229</p> <p>Summary 231</p> <p><b>Chapter 7 Delivering the Measurement Framework 235</b></p> <p>Introduction 235</p> <p>Why a Measurement Framework is Essential 236</p> <p>Role of the Measurement Framework 241</p> <p>Measuring What is Important 247</p> <p>Establishing a Measurement Framework 260</p> <p>Delivering the Measurement Framework 263</p> <p>Advanced Measurement Concepts 268</p> <p>Practical Example: The Ongoing Growth of an Analytics Team 278</p> <p>Summary 281</p> <p><b>Chapter 8 Bringing it All Together 285</b></p> <p>Introduction 285</p> <p>Sarah’s Challenges 286</p> <p>The Light-Bulb Moment 288</p> <p>Transforming the Organization 292</p> <p>Summary 296</p> <p>Glossary 299</p> <p>About the Author 317</p> <p>Index 319 </p>

<p><b>EVAN STUBBS</b> is the Regional Product Manager for Analytics at SAS Australia/New Zealand. A key champion for innovation and improvement, he advises organizations across multiple industry sectors and assists companies in achieving best practice in analytics. He has successfully applied analytics in a highly varied range of situations, from implementing an analytics-based policy planning toolkit within a large government department to creating the vision, market specifications, and demand forecasts for a concept car.

<p><b>THE VALUE OF BUSINESS ANALYTICS</b></br> IDENTIFYING THE PATH TO PROFITABILITY <p>Dealing with the data deluge has become the albatross of the twenty-first century. For the first time ever, we have more data than we have storage capacity. Yet, competitive advantage comes from capitalizing on what makes you unique, which means leveraging your single biggest resource: your data! Developed for senior management who want to change from a "gut feel" to a fact-driven corporate environment, <i>The Value of Business Analytics</i> provides an integrated framework for launching and communicating the value of business analytics in your organization. <p>This groundbreaking resource defines what business analytics is, the immense value it brings to an organization, and how to harness its power to gain a competitive edge in the marketplace. Author Evan Stubbs provides managers with the tools, knowledge, and strategies to get the organizational commitment you need to get business analytics up and running in your company. <p>In <i>The Value of Business Analytics</i>, you'll discover how to successfully extract the maximum amount of useful information from your ever-increasing data repositories. The book explores how mapping tactical activities to strategic outcomes makes it easier not only to create a vision, but also to get management to align with it. Stubbs demonstrates how to set a vision, deliver it, and avoid common execution issues. He also reveals why it's not the technical details that are important, but rather an understanding of how organizational dynamics can help or hurt your success. <p>Providing a strategic plan to help you implement a successful business analytics program, <i>The Value of Business Analytics</i> shows you how to: <ul> <li>Use analytics to create a competitive advantage</li> <li>Help teams understand and overcome tactical challenges</li> <li>Define the value of analytics</li> <li>Overcome challenges and communication breakdowns</li> <li>Build a successful execution plan and deliver returns</li> <li>Establish a measurement framework</li> <li>Bring everything together by applying the real-world lessons to your own organization</li> </ul> <p>Translating massive amounts of data into real insight is beyond magic—it's competitive advantage distilled. Nothing else offers an equivalent level of agility, productivity improvement, or renewable value. Whether you're looking to quantify the value of your work or generate organizational support, learn how to leverage advanced business analytics with the hands-on guidance found in <i>The Value of Business Analytics</i>.

<p><b>PRAISE FOR THE VALUE OF BUSINESS ANALYTICS:</b></p> <p>“An army of statisticians and clever analysts equipped with the most sophisticated tools is not enough to allow a business to truly compete on analytics. Unless management understands how to deploy all that brainpower, much of it will go to waste. In this business-oriented book, Evan Stubbs explains the value proposition for business analytics and shows how to achieve quantifiable results that can easily be communicated.”—<b>Michael J. A. Berry</b>, Founder and Principal, Data Miners, Inc., Adjunct Professor of Marketing Analytics, Carroll School of Management at Boston College, co-author of <i>Mastering Data Mining</i> and <i>Data Mining Techniques</i></p> <p>“Excellent discussion of the competencies required to create competitive advantage with business analytics. This is a second-to-none articulation of the dynamics and skill sets associated with successful analytic teams.”—<b>Thornton May</b>, Futurist and Executive Director, IT Leadership Academy, author of <i>The New Know: Innovation Powered by Analytics</i></p>

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