Page 127 - DCAP208_Management Support Systems

Management Support Systems

Notes Each step that is required to move product from supplier to customer is referred to as the supply
chain strategy. To provide business analysis of a supply chain an individual would not only
have to collect data from the manufacture but also from the trucking companies and retailers.
And there are other the areas like production that would need a separate analysis as well.
The majority of businesses are not capable of conducting their own analysis. A company interested
in improving how their products get from them to their customers would need to seek the
advice of supply chain consultants. Supply chain consultants are experts who provide their
expertise to businesses and individuals in order to help them become successful. Supply chain
consultants have what it takes to investigate past procedures and data to make the informed
decision to make things better.
It can be very costly for a company to hire a supply chain consulting firm or any other kind of
consulting firm. But the value of business analytics far outweigh the cost. Thorough analysis
means more profits. An experiences consulting firm can help a company increase their profits
threefold. If you are starting a business, surely you have thought about all of the normal cost:
supplies, staff, utilities, etc. You should also include business analytics as well. The number one
reason companies aren’t as successful as they could be is because they don’t put enough emphasis
on analysis and consulting.

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Caution Business analytics is crucial to the success of any company and if you have a
business it is suggested to add that to your to-do list.
The five most popular benefits include:

1. Improving the decision-making process.
2. Speeding up the decision-making process.
3. Better alignment of resources with strategies.

4. Realizing cost efficiencies.
5. Responding to user needs for availability of data on a timely basis.

8.2.2 Benefits of Data Visualization

Data visualization is the practice of representing data in graphic or abstract form in order to
concisely demonstrate information and results. Data visualization greatly enhances not only
data comprehension, it allows for a greater coverage of trends and patterns within data.
For example, billing and medical debt collectors have been using data visualization in order to
best understand how to impact billing operations and increase efficiency.
David Stodder explains and clarifies the numerous benefits of using data visualization through
the article. One of the top benefits is that data is easier to understand and is more accessible in
this format such that people can better interact with the data and analyze it. Normally data is
used for mining and reporting. A few ad-hoc data visualization tools, however, can take your
data analysis to a whole new level.

Example: According to Stodder, it is possible to quickly understand trends, patterns, and
outliers that would not have been noticed with traditional reporting.
A huge benefit of having greater visibility and accessibility allows more better insight into
your business.

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