What is Big Data?

Big Data refers to the vast amounts of structured and unstructured data generated from various
sources, including social media, sensors, IoT devices, transactions, and more. Its
characteristics include high volume, high velocity (fast generation and processing), high variety
(diverse data types), and low veracity (variable accuracy).

Q2: How does Big Data support decision making?

Big Data enables data-driven decisions by providing real-time insights, predictive analytics, and
improved accuracy. It allows organizations to analyze large datasets, identify patterns, and
make informed decisions.

Q3: What are the key benefits of Big Data analytics?

Big Data analytics drives business innovation, operational efficiency, personalized customer
experiences, new revenue streams, and competitive advantage. It helps organizations optimize
processes, improve customer satisfaction, and stay ahead in the market.

Q4: How does Big Data impact customer understanding?

Big Data provides detailed customer insights, enabling personalized experiences, targeted
marketing, and improved customer satisfaction. It helps organizations understand customer
behavior, preferences, and needs.

What is the role of predictive analytics in Big Data?

Predictive analytics uses statistical models and machine learning to forecast trends, behaviors,
and outcomes from Big Data. It enables organizations to anticipate customer needs, detect
potential risks, and capitalize on opportunities.

Q6: How does Big Data drive business innovation?

Big Data enables new product development, service innovation, and business model
transformation. It helps organizations identify new opportunities, improve existing products,
and create innovative solutions

Q7: What are some common Big Data sources

Common Big Data sources include social media, sensors, IoT devices, transactions, logs, and
external data providers. These sources generate vast amounts of data, which can be analyzed
for insights

How does Big Data improve operational efficiency?

Big Data optimizes processes, reduces costs, and enhances supply chain management. It helps
organizations streamline operations, improve productivity, and increase efficiency.

What is the importance of data quality in Big Data?

High-quality data ensures accuracy, reliability, and trustworthiness of insights and decisions. It
is crucial to ensure

How does Big Data create new revenue streams?

Non-Financial Information (NFI) Helps Businesses

- Predict future success

- Make informed decisions

- Use data from outside the business (like weather, reviews, traffic)

Examples:

- Wine quality predicted by weather

- Hotel bookings predicted by online reviews

- Economic growth predicted by road traffic

Big Data: 4 Key Points

- Lots of data (Volume)

- Fast-paced data (Velocity)

- Different types of data (Variety)

- Accurate data (Veracity)

Businesses Use Big Data:

- Supermarket: Orders ice cream based on weather and sales

- Electricity: Fixes issues and serves customers using smart meter data

- Car data: Builds new business ideas

NFI and Big Data help businesses:

- Predict what might happen

- Make good decisions

- Use data from different sources

- Be prepared for the future

Businesses Use Big Data to Make Decisions

- Collect data from customer interactions, websites, and sensors

- Use data to predict future sales, detect issues, and improve services

- Finance teams use big data to gain a competitive edge

4 Key Aspects of Big Data

1. Variety: Different types of data (customer interactions, website views, sensor data)

2. Velocity: Fast-paced data (real-time monitoring, high volumes)

4. Volume: Large amounts of data (too big for single machines to handle)

Examples of Big Data

- Website analytics to predict sales

- Sensor data from smart meters, equipment, and social media

- Customer behavior data from call centers and e-commerce

- Transactional data from banking and finance

Benefits of Big Data

- Improved decision-making

- Predictive capabilities

- Enhanced audit quality

- Insights for improvement

Four Types of Analytic

1. Descriptive Analytics

- What happened?

- Looks at past data

- Reports and dashboards

2. Diagnostic Analytics

- Why did it happen?

- Analyzes data to find reasons

- Identifies problems

3. Predictive Analytics

- What might happen?

- Forecasts future events

- Uses models and statistics

4. Prescriptive Analytics

- What should we do?

- Recommends actions

- Optimizes decisions
1. Descriptive Analytics: Looks at past data to understand what happened.

2. Diagnostic Analytics: Finds reasons why something happened.

3. Predictive Analytics: Forecasts what might happen in the future.

4. Prescriptive Analytics: Recommends actions to take.

And here are the additional explanations:

Analytics Maturity Model: Helps organizations improve their analytics skills, step by step.

BI Tools and Accounting Systems: Now offer advanced analytics capabilities, like predictive
modeling.

Descriptive Analytics
- Looks at past and current data

- Summarizes data using basic statistics:

- Count, - Maximum, - Minimum - Mean (average) - Top-N (top values) - Percentage

- Helps understand what happened

- Commonly used by CFOs and finance teams

- Available in spreadsheets (e.g., Excel)

Example: A company uses descriptive analytics to see:

- Total sales last quarter

- Highest-selling product

- Average customer age

- Top 10 customers by revenue

This type of analytics provides a snapshot of past and current data, helping businesses
understand what has happened
 Diagnostic Analytics

- Analyzes data to find patterns and reasons for past events

- Answers: "Why did it happen?"

- Example: Machine sensor data analysis to predict failures

Predictive Analytics

- Uses statistical models to forecast future events or values

- Answers: "What is going to happen?"

- Example: Audit risk detection, fraud detection, and quality improvement

Prescriptive Analytics

- Provides suggested courses of action from available options

- Answers: "What can we do to make it happen?"

- Example: Optimizing supply chain, logistics, cross-selling, and strategic decision-making

four pillars
- Proactive Behaviour: Be proactive, anticipate client needs, and predict scenarios to maximize
opportunities and limit risks.

- Predictive Models: Utilize predictive tools and applications to extract insights from big data
and inform decision-making.

- Use of Big Data: Master big data analytics and online tools like Google Trends to evaluate
opportunities and understand customer intent.

- Online Professional Services: Provide remote advisory services and leverage technology to
enhance client experience and accessibility.

future of analytics:
1) Combining Analytics Types

- Diagnostic, predictive, and prescriptive analytics will be used together for decision-making.

2) Growing Need for Predictive Analytics

- CFOs must adopt predictive analytics to enable organization-wide decisions.

- Only 43% of respondents currently use predictive analytics.

Competitive Advantage

- Predictive analytics reduces time-to-market, giving companies a competitive edge.

- Acting in advance, rather than reacting, is crucial for success.

- Automation and prescriptive analytics can help smaller practices compete with larger ones.

- Cloud services provide access to advanced tools and processes.

"Three-in-One" financial analysis system:

1. Hierarchy: Analyze data from top-to-bottom and bottom-to-top, covering:

- Company level

- Division level

- Smallest units (e.g., representative offices, product lines, projects)

2. Finance Function: In-depth analysis of risks from different finance perspectives:

- Performance management

- Accounts receivable

- Budget

- Inventory

- Taxation

3. Timeline: Investigate past, present, and future data:

- Past (experience): Learn from historical data

- Present (current situation): Monitor and stay on track

- Future (predictive): Navigate and support sustainable business

One Set of Reports:

- Unified managerial accounting reports

- No separate "business" and "finance" languages

- One story, one set of data, for informed decision-making

This system provides a comprehensive framework for financial analysis, supporting strategic,
operational, and predictive decision-making.

Leveraging Analytics in Your Business: Key Takeaways

- Focus on use cases and cost of inaction

- Highlight non-financial benefits like avoiding reputational damage

- Use one-page infographics to visualize costs and benefits

- Positive return on investment

- Quick achievement of goals

3. Choose the right approach:

- Tools-led approach (e.g., Microsoft Power BI)

- Functional area funding (aligned with analytics priority)

4. Consider your organization's maturity:

- Greater maturity = more prevalent enterprise funding and resourcing

5. Funding models:

- Consumption model (small internal charge)

- Flexible funding adjustments as needed

6. Big data audit benefits:

- Comprehensive testing for high-risk transactions

- Better understanding of clients and their businesses

- Greater assurance and benefits for clients

7. SME considerations:

- Savings in time (threshold: 2 hours/month)

- Consultants can help create efficiencies