Key business analytics the 60+ business analysis tools every manager needs to know

What it’s about

Key Business Analytics demystifies the overwhelming world of data analytics for the non-technical manager, offering a comprehensive toolkit of over 60 practical analysis techniques organized into seven business areas: bare analytics techniques, data collection methods, financial, market, customer, employee, and operational analytics. Rather than teaching advanced statistics, Bernard Marr provides a high-level, accessible overview of what each tool is, when and why to use it, what business questions it answers, and how to apply it—complete with real-world examples, tips, and traps. The book empowers managers to cut through the big data hype, join the analytics conversation, and make smarter, data-driven decisions about where and how to deploy analytics across their organization to unlock commercially relevant insights, reduce risk, and drive competitive advantage.

The through-line

Who it’s for

A manager or business professional who wants to stay competitive in a data-filled world and make better, data-driven decisions.

The problem

There is confusion and hype around analytics, big data, and business intelligence, and the manager doesn't know which tools to use, when, or how. The manager feels vulnerable, overwhelmed, and excluded from today's business analytics conversation, unsure where to start or how to catch up.

The plan

1. Understand the basics of analytics and dispel the fear around it.
2. Get clear about your key strategic questions and the data types available to you.
3. Focus on the analytics sections most relevant to your current business need.
4. Select the right tool, learn when and how to use it, and note the tips and traps.
5. Collect the appropriate data (or use data you already have) and test some techniques out.

The payoff

You engage in more informed discussions about analytics and join the conversation. · You make better strategic decisions about where and how to apply analytics. · You unlock commercially relevant insights that uncover new markets, reduce costs, and improve performance.

See our guide

• Practice Business Intelligence & Data Science →

Related profiles we’ve built

• A Practical Guide To Conjoint Analysis →
• Analytics at Work: Smarter Decisions, Better Results →
• Big Data: A Revolution That Will Transform How We Live, Work, and Think →
• Big Data_ A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions) →
• Business Adventures →
• Business Intelligence Guidebook: From Data Integration to Analytics →
• Data Mining for Business Analytics: Concepts, Techniques, and Applications →
• Data Warehouse and Data Mining →

Additional reading

• Data Mining: Practical Machine Learning Tools and Techniques · Witten, I.H., Frank, E. and Hall, M.A.

  Recommended for readers who want a deeper, more technical understanding of data mining methods.

• Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make the Competition Irrelevant · Kim, W.C. and Mauborgne, R.

  Provides the foundational theory for the chapter on 'Non-Customer Analytics,' explaining how to find new markets instead of competing in existing ones.

• Predictive Analytics: The Power to Predict Who Will Click, Buy, Lie, or Die · Siegel, E.

  Suggested for more information on predictive analytics, particularly in the context of sales forecasting.

• Statistics For Dummies · Rumsey, D.

  Listed as a reference for foundational statistical methods like Correlation and Regression Analysis, aimed at a non-technical audience.

Featured in these guides

• Practice Business Intelligence & Data Science →Cited source