Business intelligence based customer experience information utilization in strategic decision making

Abstract

In the competitive and increasingly global environment, the way to stand out and achieve competitive advantage is often done by other means than the offered product alone. The experience factor plays an increasing role in determining customers’ preferences that guide their purchasing decisions and opinions about a company. In this perspective, this study seeks to understand how customer experience information can be efficiently collected and through business intelligence (BI) converted into actionable intelligence to support strategic decision making. The focus of the study is also on issues resulting from the nature and characteristics of customer experience information (such as variety and reliability) that should be considered when basing decisions on the information.

This study was conducted as a qualitative case study of six companies, and the empirical contribution was based on six semi-structured interviews with the representatives of the case companies. The aim of the interviews was to understand the prevailing thoughts and perceptions behind customer experience information collection, processing and utilization so possible barriers, problems and other notable aspects could be assessed and the business intelligence based decision making process facilitated. The results have been divided into three categories by the researcher based on the empirical findings of the study. The categories include essentials, to be considered and to be emphasized and their contents depend on the decision making phase at hand. The decision making phases include information collection, processing and utilization and were divided based on the theoretical frameworks of the study.

Based on the results, it can be concluded that essential for the decision making process is that information collection techniques are comprehensive, systematic and continuous so they complement each other as well as facilitate data integration and reduce the likelihood of barriers resulting from information reliability. Due to the volatility of the current competitive environment, importance should also be placed on methods that allow a fast or even an immediate reaction time, and essential for the process is the ability to forward information quickly and efficiently to the one who is able to act and make decisions based on the information. The findings suggest that issues to be considered during the decision making process are extensive and also vary depending on the size and structure of the company and of the nature of the industry at hand. Therefore, recommended is that the results are considered by all but scaled and adapted to the company to respond the needs of the organization and to produce the maximum utility for the company and its customers.