Business Intelligence and Analytics Research

Abstract

The tremendous growth of data of all forms has led to an increase in research on the uses and outcomes of Business Intelligence and Analytics (BI&A). Much of the current research however, focuses on the technological aspects. The process of decision making with data is treated more or less like the proverbial black box. If one is to better understand how BI&A can help managers make informed decisions, then more effort is needed to explore the decision making process. This paper argues that decision-making in organizations is enacted by a sociotechnical system in which human information processing forms the key constraint. By considering the stages of cognition and the use of rules-based versus heuristic-based decision making, the paper identifies a number of core questions related to the contribution of a BI&A system to the decision making process in organizations.