4. The Business Analytics (BA) Field: An
Overview
The Essentials of BA
Analytics
The science of analysis.
Business analytics (BA)
The application of models directly to business data.
▪ BA involves using MSS (Management Support System)
tools, especially models, in assisting decision makers;
essentially a form of OLAP decision support
6. Online Analytical Processing (OLAP)
Online analytical processing (OLAP)
Online analytical processing technology that
creates new business information through a
robust set of business transformation and
calculations executed upon existing data
7. Online Analytical Processing (OLAP)
Online analytical processing (OLAP)
The use of a set of graphical tools that
provides users with multidimensional views
of their data and allows them to analyze the
data using simple windowing techniques
8. Online Analytical Processing (OLAP)
OLAP versus OLTP
OLTP concentrates on processing repetitive
transactions in large quantities and conducting
simple manipulations
OLAP involves examining many data items
complex relationships
OLAP may analyze relationships and look for
patterns, trends, and exceptions
OLAP is a direct decision support method
9. Codd’s 12 Rules for OLAP
1. Multidimensional 7. Dynamic sparse matrix
conceptual view for handling
formulating queries 8. Multiuser support rather than
2. Transparency to the user support for only a single user
3. Easy accessibility: batch 9. Unrestricted cross-
and online access dimensional operations
4. Consistent reporting 10. Intuitive data manipulation
performance 11. Flexible reporting
5. Client/server architecture: 12. Unlimited dimensions and
the use of distributed aggregation level
resources
6. Generic dimensionality
10. Reports
Routine reports
Ad hoc (or on-demand) reports
Multilingual support
Scorecards and dashboards
Report delivery and alerting
▪ Report distribution through any touchpoint
▪ Self-subscription as well as administrator-based
distribution
▪ Delivery on-demand, on-schedule, or on-event
▪ Automatic content personalization
11. Ad hoc query
A query that cannot be determined prior to
the moment the query is issued
Structured Query Language (SQL)
A data definition and management language
for relational databases. SQL front ends most
relational DBMS
12. Multidimensionality
The ability to organize, present, and analyze
data by several dimensions, such as sales by
region, by product, by salesperson, and by
time (four dimensions)
Multidimensional presentation
Dimensions
Measures
Time
13.
14.
15. Multidimensional tools and vendors
Tools with multidimensional capabilities often
work in conjunction with database query systems
and other OLAP tools
16. Limitations of dimensionality
The multidimensional database can take up significantly
more computer storage room than a summarized
relational database
Multidimensional products cost significantly more than
standard relational products
Database loading consumes significant system resources
and time, depending on data volume and the number of
dimensions
Interfaces and maintenance are more complex in
multidimensional databases than in relational databases
17. Efraim Turban. Business Intelligence. Prentice
Hall.2008.