Data is like blood flowing through an organization. Data helps organisations monitor and improve their performance. In this article, we will discuss in detail business analytics vs business intelligence and current market trends. Data management becomes more convenient when organisations implement these principles, as it helps to identify trends, helps in decision-making processes, and simplifies day-to-day operations. It helps transfer and manage massive amounts of data into meaningful insights that could be easily analysed and evaluated later. People who aspire to become business analysts always have this question in their minds. Business analytics vs business intelligence, and in this article, we will give a vivid description so that it gives you clarity on choosing your career path. Many industry experts don’t buy the idea of a comparison between business analytics vs business intelligence, and it is considered that eventually, you are working with data. These two terms are used interchangeably, but let us discuss every single aspect in detail to have a better understanding.

 

BUSINESS ANALYTICS VS BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE

Let us know more about Business Analytics vs Business Intelligence below.

 

What is Business Intelligence?

Let’s understand with a simple example: There is a guy named Rahul; he will be thirty years old in 2024, and we have all thirty years of data on him, which includes personal, academic, and medical reports, hobbies, interests, and goals. It also includes his marks, achievements, and things that he excelled at. Considering all the data, we can very well answer the following questions:

  • What were his marks in physics, chemistry, and math in the 12th-grade board exams?
  • How many awards has Rahul won in college?
  • What is the current job profile?
  • In which company is he working?
  • In which company did he get a campus placement?

Business intelligence is all about working on past and present data and what and how you did it. That’s how you understand the pattern and gather information. Business intelligence works on your existing data.

Companies and organisations use a variety of business intelligence tools, which include spreadsheets, customer behaviour pattern monitoring software, data mining software, and other tools.

Another example of business intelligence is the medical report of Rahul. He has a chronic condition called juvenile diabetes, and to control his blood sugar level, the doctor recommended a treatment plan. By identifying the pattern of his blood sugar levels, doctors can recommend similar treatment to other juvenile diabetic patients to get the kind of results they have achieved for Rahul. Here, business intelligence is used to extract information from personal medical reports.

To manage day-to-day operational operations and business decisions, we use BI tools to generate informative reports.

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What is Business Analytics?

Now, if you want to go a step further and compare business analytics vs business intelligence to predict information about Rahul for 2030, like what will be his salary and what role he will be playing in his professional life, that’s where business analytics comes into play.

Therefore, analytics answers the why of your current data. Based on current data, you can predict what future data will be. If Rahul is working as a data analyst in 2024, most probably by 2023 he will be working as a senior data analyst or as a team leader. If he is getting a salary of 5,000 USD, by 2030 he will be getting a salary of 12,000 USD.

Business analytics is about using past data extracted from BI tools to analyse the future trend of growth.

 

Comparison Between Business Analytics Vs Business Intelligence

At times, it becomes confusing to understand the difference between two keywords. To simplify the process of learning and comprehension, We will take another real-time business use case. There is greater hype, and companies are investing crazy money in business intelligence and analytics tools. At times, these terms are used interchangeably because of the lack of clarity. Therefore, the comparison between business analytics and business intelligence plays a significant role.

  • Business intelligence applies to large-scale industries. To run present business operations and understand future growth and productivity, it is important to focus on business analytics.
  • Business intelligence comes under business analytics, whereas business analytics consists of data warehousing, information management, etc.

For example, there is an online retail outlet that observed an increase in sales in the UK region in September 2020. Exploring further, they found that under the product category, fitness products have observed some growth in sales, and further in the fitness category, they found an increase in the sales of yoga mattresses.

Now to do a predictive analysis of whether yoga mats will continue with sales in the December 2020 quarter, how can you do that? It is important to understand how and why it has experienced an increase in sales. This is where analytics comes into play because it goes into the why part of the problem statement.

So, over here, we need to analyse the demographic data. The first analysis over here is that, because of the lockdown and increase in the number of COVID cases in the UK, people are exercising at home and are not going out to do any physical workouts. That’s the essence of business analytics vs business intelligence.

The second analysis for the comparison of business analytics vs business intelligence is that winter is approaching and people want to stay inside, so outdoor exercise will not be possible, especially for people who are older than sixty.

That’s how we have analysed why yoga mats are selling exponentially. That’s the significance of the comparison between business analytics and business intelligence.

  • Business intelligence analyses past and present data to drive and predict current business requirements. Business analytics works on past data to drive current business.
  • Business intelligence is about processing current business operations. Business analytics is about changing and updating current business operations and improving productivity.
  • Business Intelligence Tools: Power BI, QilkSense, and IBM SAP Business Objects. Business Analytics Tools: Word Processing, MS Visio, Google Docs, MS Office Tools

There is a subtle difference between business analytics and business intelligence. Business intelligence comes under business analytics, so at the end of the day, you will be working with the data. Making smart and tactful business decisions and generating reports that will eventually lead to a big profit margin, which further leads to actionable insights to present data management solutions.

Now, we will be discussing the difference between business analytics vs business intelligence in detail in various aspects.

1) Career Outcomes

As a layman or a newbie, which career option is better in terms of getting good job opportunities? It is quite human of us to feel overwhelmed about choosing the right career option in this era, where the internet is overloaded with so many options and courses.

Comparing business analytics with business analytics to make the right decision becomes critical. It completely depends on the training programme, the certification you would be doing, and your job role. Many working professionals, including directors, data analysts, and project managers, use business intelligence tools to improve processes, workflow, and productivity, and minimise operating costs.

To work as a successful professional in this field, it is important to be well-versed in communication skills, as you will be interacting with your clients regularly, ensuring you are completing your work before the deadline. Business intelligence analysis is one of the most in-demand jobs in the world, as it aim to work on historical data to predict future trends and maximise profits.

Considering the current scenario and market trends, companies will continue to invest in business analysts, so it is important to get a good mentor who can guide you to learn and acquire skills that will help you become a subject matter expert. Learning MS Excel, Tableau, SQL, Power BI, and other transferable skills. Once you get a genuine mentor who is an industry expert, attracting work opportunities becomes super easy.

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2) Present and Future Scenario

Before choosing the right career path, we consider the current market trend and the future scope. As discussed in the article, business intelligence plays a critical role in decision-makers understanding the current market trend and taking relevant action to mitigate the pain points of the organisation in terms of business operations, workflow, and customer needs and behaviour.

However, if any organisation wants to diversify their business model and change its functioning, then business analytics provide more useful and impactful insights.

Organisations have understood the importance and are exploring more strategies that can maximise the scope of business intelligence and analytics. Over LinkedIn and other job portals, you will find abundant job opportunities and openings where recruiters are hiring freshmen as well as those with experience.

 

3) Size of the Organisation

The use of business intelligence and business analytics is also dependent on the size of the organization. Bigger organizations dealing with large data sets are required to use analytical tools. Certain organisations need planning and execution to enhance their operations so that they can deliver promising results.

Business intelligence and analytical tools are helpful in a start-up where a firm has experienced certain statistical changes. Business analytics vs. business intelligence is a comparison and understanding of the present and future goals of the firm.

For start-ups and well-recognised organisations, to monitor the progress and work of an employee, BI tools are quite handy, as they provide the most appropriate information that helps organisations categorise the attributes in a well-structured way to make decisions.

This is the significance of business analytics vs business intelligence.

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Skills Required to Become Business Intelligence Analyst and Business Analyst

While gaining knowledge on the topic of Business Analyst vs Business Intelligence, it is important to discuss the journey, the path to success in this field, and the tools required to become a subject matter expert in BI and business analytics. It is important to understand the problem-solving skills you need to learn that will help you establish yourself in an industry.

The need and demand for business analysts are increasing in the industries, and it has become imperative to understand the processes and skills required to become successful in this niche.

Business intelligence and business analysts are involved in every aspect of business, from laying out the strategy to creating innovative enterprise architecture.

1)Data Preparation

The data should be well prepared and organised, considering that you are a professional who is ambitious about your career goals. Data is everything, and having a good understanding of data will help you deliver reports and results most effectively.

2) Data Mining

You must learn and implement concepts of machine learning and algorithms, and your fundamentals about mathematics and line progression should be crystal clear.

IBM Cognos, Microsoft Power BI, etc. are used in daily operations and activities.

3) Statistical Analysis

Standard deviation, mean, median, range variance, etc. are some of the parameters that need to be considered while working on data.

BI analysts and business analysts thrive on working on such tools and technologies, as this is their bread and butter, without which they can’t have a competitive edge over others. SAS, Hadoop, Spark, and Hive are some of the most important tools used by professionals.

4) Data Visualisation

To identify data patterns and simplify the process of data visualization it is essential to understand Area Charts, Bar Charts, Gantt Charts, Heat Maps, Tree Maps Scatter plots etc. It helps decision-makers to streamline the process and recognize future trends.

5) Understanding of Business and Customer Psychology

It is important to have a good understanding of the business model of the company and how to leverage the database to gain maximum profit for your organization. A deep understanding of short- and long-term goals is important for BI analysts and business analysts to thrive in the organisation.

6) Microsoft Excel

This is a fundamental skill that every analyst should have, as it is one of the most prominent skills you need to learn to become a successful BI analyst and business analyst. Specifically for business analysts, advanced Excel and macros are important to learn.

To create revenue growth analysis and models,  Excel is the most important skill that helps analysts work if you want to present information in a well-structured and systematic way.

7) Presentation and Communication Skills

Analysts need to document their work, the data they have created and worked upon, and project findings very clearly and concisely. In front of stakeholders, their presentation of the work is going to determine whether investors are going to collaborate with them or not.

With the help of structured information and data, analysts can communicate their ideas effectively and explain technical concepts to laymen quite comfortably.

If you are passionate enough to build your career in the field of analytics, it is essential to understand business analytics vs. business intelligence, and before that, understanding the importance of creating and maintaining data and presenting your work in the form of data is important. The most important skill to start learning that will kick-start your journey would be MS Excel.

 

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1) Which job role is ideal for a fresher: business analyst or business intelligence analyst?

It is important to have a good understanding of your strengths. Most people make career decisions based on the future scope of their skills and profiles without doing thorough analysis and taking feedback. For freshmen with analytical skills, relevant certifications and skills are ideal to opt for this career choice.

That’s the relevance of comparing business analytics with business intelligence. The best way to kick-start your career is by taking internships or live projects that will help you figure things out and gain clarity about whether you are the right fit or not. Also, focus on learning necessary skills like Excel, Power BI, Tableau, Python, R, and SQL.

After going through the internships, you will gain clarity on the kind of profile that suits you the best. For now, start acquiring new skills, building networks with industry experts and mentors, staying active on LinkedIn, and searching for case studies. This will help you understand the journey and challenges of this path and whether you want to become a BI analyst or a business analyst.

Q2) Do I need any certification and Degree to become a BI analyst or Business Analyst?

You don’t need any degree or have to go through the process of formal education, where you would be investing 3–4 years and paying lakhs of rupees to get job opportunities.

A certification programme or relevant online boot camps will help you acquire the skills to become a successful analyst. Building a strong portfolio, creating a resume, and showing your online presence play significant roles in becoming a subject matter expert.

There are so many institutions and coaching centres that are providing mentorship programmes with 100% placement support. This is the most in-demand job in 2024, and organisations are actively seeking working professionals and freshmen who are well-versed in this profile. The above article on Business Analytics vs Business Intelligence provides insightful information about the work and practical relevance of this profile.

So, professional certification is a must, as it increases your credibility, and you will also get a structured learning experience and a mentor with whom you can ask your doubts and questions. It will help you work on live projects and internships, and eventually, you will see the transformation. The pitfall of learning from free resources is that it does not provide accountability and mentorship, and there is no structured learning involved.

Q3) What is the starting salary for a BI analyst and business analyst?

As per the record and data of PayScale, freshers can expect salaries ranging from 4 lakhs to 14 lakhs; however, it varies from profile to profile and various other attributes like experience, location, roles and responsibilities, the policy of the organisation, and expectations from the recruiter. This profile offers lucrative job opportunities; therefore, you can easily experience exponential growth once you get the knack of your work. Therefore, it is important that you also focus on your negotiation skills and be aware of the value that you can bring to the table.

Q4) Do I need to have good coding skills?

Yes, you need to be good and well-versed in programming languages like Python; however, you don’t have to learn advanced and hard-core programming. A good understanding of the fundamentals of SQL algorithms is essential.

If you have made up your mind to start or switch your career to BI analytics or business analytics, you must have an understanding of dashboards, flowcharts, logical concepts, and data visualisation software. Data analysts collect, interpret, analyse, and then prepare comprehensive reports. Therefore, you will not be hired as a coder, and your work will include the basic level of coding.

 

Conclusion

The comparison between business analytics and business intelligence plays a crucial role in determining the roles and responsibilities of a working professional and the scope of growth. You can easily find content on YouTube and Google on Business Analytics vs Business Intelligence.

However, we endeavour to make you understand the expectations in terms of skills, work, and lifestyle. Business intelligence is all about working with big data, and business analytics is about accessing big data. It is advisable to start working on your creativity and analytical skills, as at the end of the day, you will be working on data and how to effectively handle it.

For that, it is important to get the right mentorship and guidance and attain a state of heightened awareness about the current market demand and skills required for you to become a successful working professional.

The comparison between business analytics and business intelligence is never-ending, but eventually, you need to take action and start implementing your learnings. If you read an article and you learn that MS Excel is a prerequisite skill to have to become a data analyst, just start implementing. Start with simple illustrations and practical projects.

Also, trying to figure out business analytics vs business intelligence is not a productive approach to understanding the concept of data management. Understanding the objective of your work and business is the most critical step to becoming successful in this niche.

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