Our world moves so fast now that everyone needs to be able to adapt quickly to rapidly changing market conditions. We also have to be hyper-alert to avoid cybersecurity threats and other risks. 

Data helps all of us when used ethically. It helps businesses enhance your customer experience and improve their operational efficiency which can lower your costs.

Most businesses use data to understand their customers better. Businesses that analyze customer data use what they learn about customer needs, preferences, and behaviors to personalize customer experiences, increase customer satisfaction, and create more effective marketing campaigns. 

They also analyze their operation to make things run more smoothly, reduce costs, and increase productivity. This helps them develop effective long-term strategies to increase their growth and profitability.

At left Arina (Vlasova) Curtis, the CEO of DataGPT speaks about practical business solutions. She is the author of the book “Economic power of e-retailers via price discrimination in e-commerce” and several other notable publications. At right audiences were fascinated by the topics and speakers in the 48 concurrent sessions offered at the IBAC.

Businesses and governments use data to identify trends and patterns. This helps them predict what might be needed in the future and what they need to do to get better results at a lower cost.

This year’s International Business Analytic Conference, once again held at SUNY Fredonia on May 8 and 9, was designed to address these issues and to bridge the gap between academic scholarship and industry practice. Building partnerships was also a primary goal.

People from around the world, from Brazil to Japan and Toronto to Massachusetts, shared their knowledge at sessions or came to learn from the experts. Attendees chose from 48 specialized sessions on topics ranging from the cryptocurrency market to election and crime analysis to phishing to accident prevention in autonomous cars to Artificial Intelligence (AI) in healthcare and so much more. Panel discussions, roundtables, fireside chats, and other presentations were conducted in between those sessions. New this year were Undergraduate Poster Sessions, featuring 18 presentations, and an Analytics Career Fair.

Panel Discussions with leaders from industries we all recognize like Wells, Rich, Fastenal, and Buffalo Solar Solutions, Inc. came together to explain how to make the best use of data analytics in business decision-making.

Featured keynote speakers included Ryan Rosenberg, from the Fastenal organization, who spoke about the evolution of analytics throughout the manufacturing industry. He discussed data-driven decision-making, touching on business process change initiatives, performance improvement programs, go-to-market strategy shifts, and the adoption of modern data analytics architecture.

Susan Morrissey from Boston College spoke about building capacity for AI and the organizational upskilling needed in schools. She has been exploring the intersection of human intelligence and technological innovation in educational and leadership settings.

Scott Root is a Principal Cloud Solution Architect specializing in App Innovation with AI at Microsoft. He talked about the scalable, secure applications he’s designed to enhance business performance and drive digital transformation. An expert in AI integration, he has led significant advancements in automation and data-driven decision-making.

Arina (Vlasova) Curtis, CEO at DataGPT, focused on practical business solutions. Having managed significant projects for major energy, media & entertainment, banking, and telecommunications corporations, she’s overseen post-merger integrations, consolidated digital assets, developed long-term investment plans, implemented visualization dashboards, and driven digital strategies. She spoke about strategic go-to-market approaches, establishing key partnerships, and enhancing brand visibility.

The final speaker was the vibrant and passionate Ernest Fokoue, PhD. Currently a professor in the school of mathematics and statistics at Rochester Institute of Technology, he specializes in Statistical Machine Learning and Statistical Learning Theory but left conference attendees with many pearls of wisdom that all of us can appreciate, regardless of our feelings about data. Among them was his advice to remember that, “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care,” “If you’re humble and grateful you have infinite power,” and “Fear is false evidence.”

Over 100 papers were submitted to IBAC from 14 countries. All IBAC conference proceedings will be published in the Journal of Empirical Economics Letters and a special issue will publish submitted articles in August.

Highlights included a session featuring a representative from Siena College discussing undecided voters. FiveThirtyEight has described the Siena College Poll as the most accurate pollster in America for the past two years. You have probably seen their poll results on television or read them in The New York Times where they are regularly published.

Another speaker explained wash trading which is illegal in most places. It’s a type of market manipulation involving buying and selling the same asset over and over. It misleads investors and inflates prices. It creates a false impression of market activity without incurring market risk. New techniques to better protect investors from this form of manipulation and to improve the credibility of the cryptocurrency market were discussed.

In another session, the dynamic nature of cyber threats and deep fakes was explained by a retired CIA Analyst.

This diverse group of business leaders, scholars, experts, and students examined academic research, innovative ideas, real-world applications, and best practices at this exceptional event. There is no doubt the relationships developed and the knowledge shared will result in improved applications for business analytics that are likely to produce positive impacts throughout the world.

Organizing a conference of this scale takes nearly a year of planning. It would not have been possible without the dedicated conference planning and organizing teams composed of SUNY Fredonia faculty and staff and led by Dean Kaustav Misra.

In addition to business and academic professionals, graduate, undergraduate, and community college students attended this event. It offered an outstanding opportunity for students to engage and connect with global leaders from across the country. It may have opened doors to employment opportunities for many of them.

The Northern Chautauqua Community Foundation was one of the numerous local and regional sponsors that stepped forward to contribute, providing generous support to this world-class event. That’s because we realize a vibrant global analytics community is essential to our economic prosperity. The collaboration and knowledge exchanged at this event will help build connections between local, regional, and international communities that are sure to make all of our lives better.