Chapter List

Part Overview

• Industry Descriptions

• Industry Challenges

• General Data Mining Applications by Industry

• Industry Case Studies

14.1 Data Mining in Practice

One of the most attractive facets of data mining is the development of insight into a business process. This enables the development of predictive models. In competitive markets, there are numerous areas that can benefit from the use of predictive models, for example: niche selection, product release timing, and marketing focus. Predictive models can be based on conventional methods or on advanced predictive modeling capabilities, such as neural networks, radial basis functions, decision trees, fuzzy-logic, time series, or other techniques.

In Part I, the value of Business Intelligence and specifically, data mining, was discussed. In Part II, the information technology and mathematical techniques involved in Business Intelligence applications and data mining were covered. Here in Part IV, several case study examples demonstrate ways that data mining is providing valuable benefits in various industries. Because custom Business Intelligence applications provide high-value key insights that can be used to enhance an organization's competitive position, many organizations are unwilling to divulge the secret details...