Big Data Analytics in Management Reporting: A Systematic Literature Review

Data are sometimes referred to as the new oil (Humby & Palmer, 2006) since it is assumed to have similar characteristics. Its value is particularly connected to its refinement as, otherwise, data cannot be used effectively. In principle, this is like crude oil, a commodity that must be refined into gas, chemicals, plastic, or similar outputs of higher value. Data must similarly be broken down and transferred to create a valuable output as well (Palmer M, Data is the new oil. ANA Marketing Maestros. https://ana.blogs.com/maestros/2006/11/data_is_the_new.html , 2006). The reference of data to oil is also mentioned in practice in the context of its overall value in the economy, whereby digital data are characterized as the most valuable resource (Economist, The world’s most valuable resource is no longer oil, but data. The Economist. https://www.economist.com/leaders/2017/05/06/the-worlds-most-valuable-resource-is-no-longer-oil-but-data , 2017). Also, the availability of data for analysis is expected to show strong growth in the future, thanks to advances in technology and data-gathering techniques, which are applied across a diverse range of industries. This development is particularly driven by the large growth of data segments, especially in connection to social media as well as to data from applications in the realm of the Internet of Things. Currently, data growth is expected to exceed the growth in data storage capacity, as stated by the International Data Corporation or IDC (Hariri RH, Fredericks EM, Bowers KM, J Big Data 6(44):1–16, 2019; IDC, Data creation and replication will grow at a faster rate than installed storage capacity. According to the IDC Global DataSphere and StorageSphere Forecasts. https://www.idc.com/getdoc.jsp?containerId=prUS47560321 , 2021). Given the increase in the availability of large amounts of data, the data analytics market revenue is also projected to show strong growth in the near future as well (Statista, Big data analytics market global revenue 2025. Statista. https://www.statista.com/statistics/947745/worldwide-total-data-market-revenue/ , 2020). As a result of advancing digitization, a very large basic spectrum for data-driven decisions of all kinds has been created. In addition, the storage of data has become very cost-effective with the current state of the art. Coupled with today’s vast amount of data, there is enormous potential for companies to transform data into information to generate significant competitive advantages and build valuable knowledge that can support companies. This implies that data management and decision support systems are of great importance to corporate management and corporate management reporting, and this importance can be expected to grow in future (Seufert A, Treitz R, von Dacke M, Control Mag 07/08:48–53, 2017).