Big Data isn't a technology initiative to be left entirely to data scientists and IT departments. It's a strategic business opportunity that requires technical savvy and organizational coordination. To succeed, companies need to embed Big Data and analytics deep into their organizations to ensure that information and insights are shared across business units and functions.

Companies looking at Big Data often seek the power of new external datasets. While these new datasets can be valuable and are often leveraged in Bain casework, we find that there is frequently a wealth of untapped opportunity for companies to more effectively use the data at their fingertips:

• We begin by setting the strategic rationale for a company's analytics journey.
• Next, we identify the analytics use cases that present the highest value opportunities.
• With the strategy clearly articulated, we bring analytical rigor through the expertise of our AAG team, which can support a multitude of analyses, including: predictive modeling, customer segmentation, experimental design, pricing optimization and more.

As with any change program, embedding analytics within an organization requires a well-structured and carefully orchestrated approach. At Bain, we call that Results Delivery^®. Results Delivery predicts, measures and manages the risk associated with change. As applied to analytics, Results Delivery ensures that our clients are able to develop the internal capabilities and culture to act on the insights they uncover by identifying the critical behaviors that allow data to be factored into decision making.