In spite of high requirements, 'analytics' remain a differentiated service - having barriers to scalability and productization.
The two focus questions The differentiated aspect of analytics and why analytics is a 'consulting' service will be best answered based on the three key pillars
Business Requirements: At this level of maturity in the industry, the requirements vary so much and even for very similar requirements the solutions would require heavy customization. The 'the single solution fits all' product slogan may be a far fetched thought. Living closely with the data and requirements is another main characteristic which gives analytics the flavor of consulting service.
Data Availability: Even when the objectives and need are specific and urgent, data for the analysis may not be present or available in the required format. Legacy systems, format of capture, and availability on the analysis platforms are the biggest barriers to analytics intervention in any business.
People (Tools may not matter): Skills and expertize required to analyze data, and at the same time understand requirements from a business and analysis perspective still remain scarce. This is another factor that limits packaging of analytics solutions.Analytics as a business may be easy to start, but very difficult to scale up mainly because of the people factor.
For a focused analytics business or opportunity the right way to begin is to ensure data availability, start with understanding the data (reporting aspects), grow up the value chain through analysis and real time dashboards and reach higher levels of maturity through predictions and forecasting.
(disclaimer: this article reflects only authors view on the topic)
