Advanced BI Tools Aim to Democratize Data Science in Brazil

April 24, 2024

60 3 minutes read

Self-service capabilities such as natural language queries and narrative-based data models are increasingly becoming the norm for business intelligence (BI) tools, according to a new research report published today by Information Services Group (ISG) (Nasdaq: III), a leading global technology research and advisory firm.

The latest ISG Provider Lens™ Analytics Platforms report for Brazil finds “citizen data scientists” are the principal target audience for BI and data governance platforms. The term refers to engineers, business administrators and economists who have good analytical skills, a basic understanding of statistics and knowledge of the businesses in which they operate but little or no programming skills or formal training in data science, the ISG report says.

“Platforms are key to democratizing the entire data journey,” said Loren Absher, ISG director, Enterprise AI Advisory. “Providers in the Brazilian market are offering functionalities such as integration, data catalogs, data quality, data anonymization, and masking and access control.”

Data governance platforms are gaining traction in Brazil as companies go beyond data integration and engineering fundamentals to ensure data reliability and availability, the ISG report says. Without sufficient data governance, data model building will be unproductive, the report says. In fact, many projects aimed at democratizing access to data in the past have failed due to difficulties encountered during governance, such as duplicate data, lack of data lineage and difficulty in visualizing the entire data landscape, the ISG report says. Poor-quality data generates poor-quality models, ISG says.

To be effective, data governance must be carried out continuously and internally. That requires empowering non-technical users, such as citizen data scientists, the ISG report says. To that end, the application of graphical interfaces, based on the drag-and-drop mechanism, can play an important role in the adoption of data platform tools, ISG says.

Some providers have already incorporated GenAI into their platforms, especially when it comes to allowing users to interact with it in natural language, the ISG report says. According to the report, another role for GenAI involves using meta data to identify the category of data based on its format and value.

“Most Brazilian enterprises recognize the need become more data oriented, but not all of them have access to qualified data scientists,” said Jan Erik Aase, partner and global leader, ISG Provider Lens Research. “Low-code platforms and automated ML can offer important shortcuts on their data-driven journey.”

The report also examines some of the drawbacks of relying on GenAI for business analytics, including hidden costs and concerns regarding data privacy.

For more insights into the data analytics challenges facing enterprises in Brazil, such as promoting data literacy and determining the limits of AI, along with ISG’s advice for addressing them, see the ISG Provider Lens™ Focal Points briefing here.

The ISG Provider Lens™ Analytics Platforms report for Brazil evaluates the capabilities of 26 providers across two quadrants: Data Governance Platforms and Embedded Analytics and Business Analytics Platforms.

The report names Qlik as a Leader in both quadrants. Alteryx, Assesso, GoodData, Informatica, KNIME, Microsoft, SAS, Semantix and Tableau are named as Leaders in one quadrant each.

In addition, Alteryx and Atlan is named as a Rising Star — a company with a “promising portfolio” and “high future potential” by ISG’s definition — in one quadrant.

A customized version of the report is available from Assesso.

The ISG Provider Lens™ Analytics Platforms report for Brazil is available to subscribers or for one-time purchase on this webpage.

About ISG Provider Lens™ Research

The ISG Provider Lens™ Quadrant research series is the only service provider evaluation of its kind to combine empirical, data-driven research and market analysis with the real-world experience and observations of ISG’s global advisory team. Enterprises will find a wealth of detailed data and market analysis to help guide their selection of appropriate sourcing partners, while ISG advisors use the reports to validate their own market knowledge and make recommendations to ISG’s enterprise clients. The research currently covers providers offering their services globally, across Europe, as well as in the U.S., Canada, Brazil, the U.K., France, Benelux, Germany, Switzerland, the Nordics, Australia and Singapore/Malaysia, with additional markets to be added in the future. For more information about ISG Provider Lens research, please visit this webpage.

About ISG

ISG (Information Services Group) (Nasdaq: III) is a leading global technology research and advisory firm. A trusted business partner to more than 900 clients, including more than 75 of the world’s top 100 enterprises, ISG is committed to helping corporations, public sector organizations, and service and technology providers achieve operational excellence and faster growth. The firm specializes in digital transformation services, including AI and automation, cloud and data analytics; sourcing advisory; managed governance and risk services; network carrier services; strategy and operations design; change management; market intelligence and technology research and analysis. Founded in 2006, and based in Stamford, Conn., ISG employs 1,600 digital-ready professionals operating in more than 20 countries—a global team known for its innovative thinking, market influence, deep industry and technology expertise, and world-class research and analytical capabilities based on the industry’s most comprehensive marketplace data. For more information, visit www.isg-one.com.