Moneyball: How businesses are using data to outsmart their rivals

Edwin Lane, for CNN
Updated 10:02 AM EDT, Mon October 13, 2014
Big business taking tips from the sports industry? Billy Beane, author of MoneyBall and played by Brad Pitt in the film, used statistical information to revolutionize the game of Baseball, now major firms across the world are also looking to score big. By mindfully collecting and analyzing data, businesses can expect to improve their strategy and elevate profits.
Big data revolution —
Big business taking tips from the sports industry? Billy Beane, author of MoneyBall and played by Brad Pitt in the film, used statistical information to revolutionize the game of Baseball, now major firms across the world are also looking to score big. By mindfully collecting and analyzing data, businesses can expect to improve their strategy and elevate profits.
Courtesy of Columbia pictures
Football clubs are also looking to use data to give their teams a competitive edge. Manchester City football club has a strategic performance manager who studies statistical insights.
Competitve edge —
Football clubs are also looking to use data to give their teams a competitive edge. Manchester City football club has a strategic performance manager who studies statistical insights.
Courtesy of ANDREW YATES/AFP/Getty Images
Large firms such as Amazon have been gathering huge amounts of information on their customers in order to offer recommendations on purchases.
Reading minds —
Large firms such as Amazon have been gathering huge amounts of information on their customers in order to offer recommendations on purchases.
Courtesy of ANDREW YATES/AFP/Getty Images
Major banks such as HSBC are using big data to monitor and predict fraudulent behavior by cardholders and staff.
Scam busting —
Major banks such as HSBC are using big data to monitor and predict fraudulent behavior by cardholders and staff.
Courtesy of BEN STANSALL/AFP/Getty Images
Investment bank, Morgan Stanley, uses statistical models to measure the impact market events have on the bank in real time.
Measuring impact —
Investment bank, Morgan Stanley, uses statistical models to measure the impact market events have on the bank in real time.
Courtesy of STAN HONDA/AFP/Getty Images
Delivery firm UPS have invested $1bn per year monitoring it's trucks. By gathering data about the various journeys taken, UPS can work out the quickest and most efficient delivery routes.
Cutting corners —
Delivery firm UPS have invested $1bn per year monitoring it's trucks. By gathering data about the various journeys taken, UPS can work out the quickest and most efficient delivery routes.
Courtesy of Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
Billy beane

Editor’s Note: Smart Business explores the ways companies are thinking smart to thrive in our digitized world.

Story highlights

Big data deemed as the 'new oil' according to experts

Businesses who ignore the power of big data may fall behind

Amazon and Netflix are leading the big data revolution, analyzing customer data to predict what they'll want to buy in the future

CNN  — 

When Billy Beane, the subject of the 2004 book ‘Moneyball’, took over as the general manager of the Oakland Athletics in the late 1990s, he revolutionized the way baseball teams were run.

At a time when other managers and scouts relied on their experience to identify promising new players, Beane successfully used ‘sabermetrics’ – the statistical analysis of baseball – to see value in players other teams had passed over, turning the Athletics into a team capable of competing with the biggest names in the sport.

Now industry watchers say a similar statistics revolution is going on in the business world.

Technological advances are giving rise to huge amounts of data – about consumers, supply chains and world events – that businesses can use to make better decisions and gain a competitive edge.

It’s called ‘big data analytics’, and those who ignore it are being warned they risk being left behind.

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The rise of big data

“Big data is the new oil,” says Andy Cutler, director of strategy at SAS, a consulting firm specializing in big data analytics.

“The folks who are going to get good value are those who are going to be able to refine it and turn it into useful products.”

Firms like Amazon and Netflix are at the forefront of this revolution, gathering the huge amounts of data generated by their customers and analyzing it to predict what customers will want to buy or watch in the future.

This goes beyond personalized purchase suggestions; Amazon is currently working on technology that will deliver products to you before you’ve even ordered them, or at least keep them in warehouses nearby in anticipation, says Phil Simon, author of “Too Big to Ignore: The Business Case for Big Data.”

Netflix has effectively built its entire business model on analyzing customer data, he says.

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“Netflix track every view, every click, all in an attempt to understand what their customers want.”

The development of smartphone technologies and near-field communication means analyzing customer data is no longer limited to the online world.

Tailored buying experience

Arne Strauss, analytics professor at the Warwick Business School, says retailers are developing ways of monitoring customers as they enter physical stores, allowing them to optimize store layout and even change on-shelf promotions depending on which customer is walking by.

But predicting customer behavior is just one application.

Major banks including HSBC use big data to monitor and predict fraud – both by cardholders and staff – by setting up data-mining systems that collect patterns and look for anomalies.

The investment bank Morgan Stanley uses statistical models to measure the impact market events have on the bank in real time.

Improving the efficiency of large logistical operations is another use.