Business Analytics, on the other hand, deals with predictive and prescriptive analysis. This type of analysis aims to predict what will happen next or what a company should do next. Business intelligence tends to be a more specialized activity because it requires a good explanatory and diagnostic foundation from BI.
Some definitions of BI and business analytics differentiate between the two based on analytical techniques or strategies, but the distinction between past and present or future is fairly standardized. This separation of business intelligence and business analytics helps narrow down what types of features you need from your BI tool and what you can leave out.
The overall goal of business intelligence is to help businesses make informed decisions. Businesses with an effective BI strategy have accurate, complete, and well-organized data. Business intelligence can uncover historical patterns that help stakeholders assess the health of the organization and alert them to problems or potential improvements.
Business intelligence also helps keep teams organized and up-to-date on key performance indicators (KPIs). Knowing your KPIs through dashboards and reports helps keep your team aligned and focused on your goals. Easy access to metrics and KPIs also frees up time and energy to complete tasks that impact business performance.
Business intelligence tools can be used by all teams within a company, including sales, marketing, and customer support. Team members and managers can use the results of BI tools. Data engineers and data analysts can also take advantage of the practical benefits of BI tools when conducting their own research.
A key driver of modern business intelligence is making data analysis more accessible to more users. Traditionally, a dedicated data expert or team was needed to calculate metrics and create reports. This created a significant bottleneck between a user noticing an interesting or concerning trend and their ability to diagnose that observation.
