“Data is the new Oil” – Mathematician Clive Humby in 2006.
“The world’s most valuable resource is no longer oil, but data” – The Economist in 2017.
Similar to how Oil has to be refined to make valuable components which drive profitable activity, Data needs to be broken down and analyzed/visualized for it to have value (which is information)
To solve the purpose of converting or transforming raw data into valuable information, there exist multiple Data Analytics tools in today’s world. The information could be vital in making data-driven business decisions. Data is being generated everyday, and is vital in helping us make any sort of business decisions. A data analyst’s key responsibility is to gather insights from data, and to do so, they must make use of the various data analytics tools available to them.
So which data analytics tool should I choose? This is one of the most sought after questions for many data analysts. Below I would like to discuss a few popular data analytics tools.
- R
- Python
- Excel
- Tableau
- Qlikview
- Power BI
- SAS
1. R Programming Language
R is one of the most popular languages for statistical modelling, visualization, and data analysis. It is an open-source programming language. With the help of R, it is easy to perform data manipulation with packages such as plyr, dplyr, and tidy. It is excellent when it comes to data visualization and analysis with packages such as ggplot2, lattice, plotly etc. And it also has a huge community of developers for support. R is free to download from it’s official website.
Companies using R –
A few of the multinational companies such as Google, ANZ, and Firefox are making use of R as their programming language.
2. Python
Python is one of the most powerful Data Analytics tools that is available to the user. It comes with a wide set of package/libraries. Python is a free, open-source software that can be used for a high level of visualisation and comes with packages such as Matplotlib, Seaborn. Pandas is one of the widely used data analytics library that comes with Python. Most programming prefer to learn Python as their first programming language due to its ease and versatility. It is a high-level, object-oriented programming language.
Companies using Python –
A few of the multinational companies such as Netflix, YouTube, and Facebook are making use of Python as their programming language.
Also Read: Python Tutorial For Beginners
3. Excel
Microsoft Excel is a simple yet powerful tool for data collection and analysis. It is a part of the Microsoft Office tool suite, and is readily available, widely used and easy to learn. Microsoft Excel can be considered as a great starting point for data analysis. The Data Analytics Tool pack in Excel offers a variety of options to perform statistical analysis of your data. The charts and graphs in Excel give a clear interpretation and visualization of your data. It offers products for three main categories, namely:
- For Home
- For Business
- For Enterprises
Companies using Excel –
Every major organization makes use of Excel in some form or the other. Be it a small organization or an MNC. McDonald’s, Marriot, IKEA are a few of the organizations making use of Excel.
4. Tableau
Tableau is a Business Intelligence Tool developed for data analysts where one can visualize, analyze, and understand their data. Tableau provides fast analytics, can explore wide types of data like spreadsheets, databases, data on Hadoop and cloud services. It is easy to use, as it has a powerful GUI. It can build effective interactive dashboards with less effort. Tableau is a market leader, and lets you work on live-data rather than spending too much effort on data wrangling. The products that are included under Tableau are as follows- Tableau Desktop, Tableau Server, Tableau Online, Tableau Reader, and Tableau Public. Another plus point of using Tableau is that it is free.
Companies using Tableau –
Citibank, Skype, Deloitte, and Audi are a few of the companies that are making use of Tableau for their Data Analytics needs.
Also Read: Top 15 Tableau Interview Questions with Answers for 2021
5. Qlikview
QlikView is a Self-Service Business Intelligence, Data Visualization, and Data Analytics tool. It aims to accelerate business value through data by providing features such as Data Integration, Data Literacy, and Data Analytics. It offers a variety of products for its users, out of which, a few of them are available for a free 30-day trial period. QlikView is trusted by over 50,000 customers worldwide.
Companies using QlikView –
A few of the companies that are using QlikView are NHS, CISCO, and SAMSUNG.
6. Power BI
Power BI is yet another powerful business analytics solution by Microsoft. You can visualize your data, connect to many data sources and share the outcomes across your organization. With Power BI, you can and bring your data to life with live dashboards and reports. Power BI can be integrated with other Data Analytics Tools, including Microsoft Excel. Some of the products under Power BI are as follows-
- Power BI Desktop
- Power BI Premium
- Power BI Pro
- Power BI Embedded
- Power BI Mobile
- Power BI Report Server
Companies using Power BI –
A few of the widely known companies that are using Power BI are Heathrow, Adobe, and GE Healthcare.
7. SAS
SAS is a statistical software suite widely used for data management and predictive analysis. SAS is proprietary software, and companies need to pay to use it. A free university edition has been introduced for students to learn and use SAS. It has a simple GUI. Hence, it is easy to learn. However, a good knowledge of the SAS programming knowledge is an added advantage to use the tool. SAS’s DATA step (The data step is where data is created, imported, modified, merged, or calculated) helps inefficient data handling and manipulation.
Companies using SAS –
Commonly known companies that are using SAS are Google, Twitter, Accenture, and Genpact.
Contributed by: Lalit Pavan
This brings us to the end of the blog on top Data Analytics Tools in 2021. We hope that you found this helpful. If you wish to learn more such concepts, you can upskill with Great Learning Academy’s free online courses today!
0 Source: GreatLearning Blog
