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In the current business environment, companies must optimize their increasingly complex internal processes and supply chain operations to achieve a competitive advantage. Utilizing analytics offers solutions to challenging problems and enables the maximization of business value. Although analytics methods have been extensively studied, practical benefits have been less addressed. Marjut Hirvonen examines the impact of analytics on organizational performance, the benefits of analytics, and best practices for deploying analytics in her doctoral thesis ‘’.

‘The results show that in companies, it is important to consider not only technical issues but also the management of analytics and the training of staff in the use of analytics to fully benefit from analytical solutions,’ says Marjut Hirvonen.

Three studies – from general insights to specific details

The doctoral thesis includes three separate studies, progressing from a general level to a more detailed level. The first study is a comprehensive meta-analysis of previous literature, examining the relationship between the use of analytics and organizational performance. The importance of analytics skills and management is emphasized in the results to achieve the best possible benefits from analytics.

The second study of the doctoral thesis focuses on the most advanced form of analytics, namely prescriptive analytics, which provides decision recommendations based on data. The study identifies key enablers for the successful deployment of prescriptive analytics based on interviews conducted in several organizations. These key enablers include leadership, sufficient resourcing, and user engagement. In addition to the importance of management support, it is essential to understand that merely implementing analytics technically does not yield the greatest benefits for organizations. Instead, investment should also be made in developing the skills of analytics users.

The third study analyzes the benefits of advanced analytics in optimizing the supply chain for renewable fuels. It identified both monetary and less tangible benefits, such as improved data management. This study encourages the use of analytics across various applications, and similar benefits can be expected to be gained in other industries as well.

The doctoral thesis demonstrates the usefulness of analytics for organizations and helps to succeed in the deployment of prescriptive analytics. The results support the integration of analytics into the company's strategy and emphasize the importance of developing employees' analytics skills.