Insights from Data

The development of technology and the explosive growth of data have created entirely new services, products, and even industries. Mathematician and entrepreneur Clive Humby stated in 2006 that data is the oil of this century. Whether it's preventive healthcare solutions, consumer behavior on social media, or mobile networks in manufacturing, digitization and data are everywhere.

What opportunities and value does leveraging data bring and for whom? What even is this data? There is talk about the platform economy, there is talk about the data economy. Sustainable development also requires the support of data. We, as individuals, leave data traces everywhere—even in real-time. The rapid development of artificial intelligence offers new opportunities but also presents a frightening specter. Where are we heading?

Peter Sondergaard, former Vice President of Gartner, continued in 2011, saying that information is the oil of this century, and analytics is the combustion engine. It's crucial to remember that, like oil, data is valuable, but raw data cannot be used as is. In order for raw data to be a source of new knowledge and provide insights, it needs to be organized, processed, and context-dependent.

The International Master's Program in Business Analytics began at the University of Oulu in 2021 as a result of collaboration between Oulu Business School and the Faculty of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering. This year, Oulu Business School has expanded with both a doctoral program and studies included in the Bachelor of Business Administration. Thus, we have already achieved the status of an official discipline.

At the University of Oulu, the Master's Program in Business Analytics uniquely combines information technology, computer science, and business studies in an interdisciplinary manner. All three perspectives are needed to access the right information—information that we understand and can trust. Nobel laureate in economics, Ronald Coase, has stated that if you torture data long enough, it will confess!

In an ever-changing world, business analytics provides tools for proactive—and perhaps even predictive—decision-making support. While technology is the backbone of our digitizing society, business analytics is its nervous system. Business analytics emphasizes data-driven decision-making, strategic management, and the responsible use of data in various areas of organizational operations—both in the private and public sectors, regardless of industry or size.

The Heath brothers, Chip and Dan, have noted that "Data are just summaries of thousands of stories - tell a few of those stories to help make the data meaningful." This encapsulates the essence of business analytics as an enabler of meaningful stories in the future.

This article is based on a speech given by Adjunct Professor Marika Iivari at the University of Oulu Gala in 2023.

Text: Marika Iivari
Photograph: University of Oulu