The Implications of Big Data Analytics on Business Intelligence: A Qualitative Study in China

Social media has brought about a revolution and dictated a paradigm shift in the operational strategies of firms globally. It has resulted in collection of massive data from a variety of social media channels, necessitating use of this data for business intelligence purposes. Despite its importance, little research exists on the implications of the use of Big Data analytics for business intelligence purposes. This study fills this gap in knowledge by examining the role and implication of Big Data analytics on business intelligence for the data collected from Social media channels in China. Given the exploratory nature of the research, the study takes a qualitative approach to data collection and analysis. Based on an extensive literature review, the study has developed a robust semi-structure questionnaire. We plan to conduct approximately 35-40 interviews with respondents such as IT managers, IT consultants, and Senior Business managers among others from a wide range of industries including retail and manufacturing settings. The data will be analysed using Nvivo to identify issues that are critical for creating value through Big Data analytics for business intelligence purposes. The results have significant impact for both theory and practice to devise plans and strategies to optimise the benefits of social-media channels for business value.