<s>
Business	B-Algorithm
analytics	I-Algorithm
(	O
BA	O
)	O
refers	O
to	O
the	O
skills	O
,	O
technologies	O
,	O
and	O
practices	O
for	O
iterative	O
exploration	O
and	O
investigation	O
of	O
past	O
business	O
performance	O
to	O
gain	O
insight	O
and	O
drive	O
business	O
planning	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Business	B-Algorithm
analytics	I-Algorithm
focuses	O
on	O
developing	O
new	O
insights	O
and	O
understanding	O
of	O
business	O
performance	O
based	O
on	O
data	O
and	O
statistical	O
methods	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
contrast	O
,	O
business	B-General_Concept
intelligence	I-General_Concept
traditionally	O
focuses	O
on	O
using	O
a	O
consistent	O
set	O
of	O
metrics	O
to	O
both	O
measure	O
past	O
performance	O
and	O
guide	O
business	O
planning	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
other	O
words	O
,	O
business	B-General_Concept
intelligence	I-General_Concept
focusses	O
on	O
description	O
,	O
while	O
business	B-Algorithm
analytics	I-Algorithm
focusses	O
on	O
prediction	O
and	O
prescription	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Business	B-Algorithm
analytics	I-Algorithm
makes	O
extensive	O
use	O
of	O
analytical	O
modeling	O
and	O
numerical	O
analysis	O
,	O
including	O
explanatory	O
and	O
predictive	B-General_Concept
modeling	I-General_Concept
,	O
and	O
fact-based	O
management	O
to	O
drive	O
decision	O
making	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Analytics	O
may	O
be	O
used	O
as	O
input	O
for	O
human	O
decisions	O
or	O
may	O
drive	O
fully	O
automated	B-General_Concept
decisions	I-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
Business	B-General_Concept
intelligence	I-General_Concept
is	O
querying	B-Library
,	O
reporting	O
,	O
online	B-Application
analytical	I-Application
processing	I-Application
(	O
OLAP	B-Application
)	O
,	O
and	O
"	O
alerts	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
other	O
words	O
,	O
querying	B-Library
,	O
reporting	O
,	O
and	O
OLAP	B-Application
are	O
alert	O
tools	O
that	O
can	O
answer	O
questions	O
such	O
as	O
what	O
happened	O
,	O
how	O
many	O
,	O
how	O
often	O
,	O
where	O
the	O
problem	O
is	O
,	O
and	O
what	O
actions	O
are	O
needed	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Business	B-Algorithm
analytics	I-Algorithm
can	O
answer	O
questions	O
like	O
why	O
is	O
this	O
happening	O
,	O
what	O
if	O
these	O
trends	O
continue	O
,	O
what	O
will	O
happen	O
next	O
(	O
predict	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
what	O
is	O
the	O
best	O
outcome	O
that	O
can	O
happen	O
(	O
optimize	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Descriptive	O
analytics	O
:	O
gains	O
insight	O
from	O
historical	O
data	O
with	O
reporting	O
,	O
scorecards	O
,	O
clustering	B-Algorithm
etc	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Supply	B-Algorithm
chain	I-Algorithm
analytics	I-Algorithm
,	O
an	O
area	O
noted	O
for	O
its	O
"	O
growing	O
importance	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
DeAngelis	O
refers	O
to	O
multiples	O
interpretations	O
of	O
the	O
term	O
"	O
supply	B-Algorithm
chain	I-Algorithm
analytics	I-Algorithm
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Westerveld	O
notes	O
that	O
the	O
significance	O
of	O
supply	B-Algorithm
chain	I-Algorithm
analytics	I-Algorithm
lies	O
in	O
the	O
importance	O
of	O
aligning	O
corporate	O
strategy	O
and	O
supply	O
chain	O
execution	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
But	O
analytics	O
began	O
to	O
command	O
more	O
attention	O
in	O
the	O
late	O
1960s	O
when	O
computers	O
were	O
used	O
in	O
decision	B-Application
support	I-Application
systems	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
later	O
years	O
the	O
business	B-Algorithm
analytics	I-Algorithm
have	O
exploded	O
with	O
the	O
introduction	O
of	O
computers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Business	B-Algorithm
analytics	I-Algorithm
depends	O
on	O
sufficient	O
volumes	O
of	O
high-quality	O
data	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Now	O
business	B-Algorithm
analytics	I-Algorithm
is	O
becoming	O
a	O
tool	O
that	O
can	O
influence	O
the	O
outcome	O
of	O
customer	O
interactions	O
.	O
</s>
