Identify the stakeholders in your organisation that need to be convinced of the value of advanced analytics
It's essential to identify the internal stakeholders who need to be convinced. These are the naysayers, the skeptics, and perhaps the decision makers or those who carry out the actions.
Not having them on board can derail any project. Having a business case that demonstrates the value is, of course, necessary, but it may not be enough on its own.
The hardest task is to change people's beliefs and how they see the world - to get them to understand why they need to think or act differently.
“Frequently, the success of advanced analytics initiatives comes down to the ability not only to deliver the analytics or communicate their value, but also to create a data-driven culture,” Kart adds.
Decide If you want to build the skills and tools internally
Businesses that achieve best-in-class advanced analytics solutions typically do so through a build strategy.
However, building the skills and tools internally isn't for everyone, and it's often not the best way to start.
It makes sense for an organisation to build advanced analytics internally if (a) analytics is a critical differentiator in its industry or if the area is of strategic importance, (b) a high level of agility and granularity of control is required, and (c) there are many opportunities across the organization to apply analytics in multiple use cases or lines of business.
BI and analytics leaders that do decide to build must have the three core skills needed for advanced analytics:
•Business skills: Apply analytics to the right problems and ask the right questions.
•IT skills: Access the data, identify the required infrastructure and execute the insights.
•Data science and quantitative skills: Take the right analytic approach to the data.
“Unfortunately, this skill set is rarely found in one person, but it's essential to have all three skills within a team,” Kart adds.