Centre for Business Analytics in Practice

The Centre for Business Analytics in Practice is a multi-disciplinary research centre with the vision of using analytics for better decision-making. Our focus at the Centre is to investigate how data of any size can help organisations succeed through fact-based, data-driven, proactive decision-making.

About

Our Centre brings together research into the methods and applications in key areas, including:

Business analytics
Artificial intelligence (AI) and big data
Efficiency and productivity
Health analytics
Operations and supply chain analytics
Sustainability and net-zero analytics.

The need for data-driven, better and faster solutions is more critical now than ever before.

Using analytics for better decision-making has grown exponentially over the past decade. Driven by business and societal needs, decision analytics has become one of the most active research areas in academics and in industry.

The tools, techniques, and algorithms used for big data projects leverage the most current, state-of-the-art methods applied in a wide variety of fields that include business and management science, computer science, statistics, data science, engineering, and mathematics.

Meet the team

Professor Ali Emrouznejad

Director of the Centre for Business Analytics in Practice

Ali Emrouznejad is a Professor and Chair in Business Analytics at Surrey Business School, UK. He also serves as the director of the Centre for Business Analytics in Practice, leading research efforts in various fields, including performance measurement and management, efficiency and productivity analysis, as well as AI and big data. Prior to his current position, he held the rol...

Professor James Aitken

Co-Director of the Centre for Business Analytics in Practice

Professor James Aitken began his career within a manufacturing environment where he gained success in the logistics and operation fields. The knowledge and experience accrued supported his part-time PhD studies and provided the platform for the development of the UK’s first manufacturing operations based on combining lean and agile. His continued interest in innovative operati...

Members experts

At the Centre for Business Analytics in Practice (CBAP), our experts excel in diverse analytics domains, fostering informed decision-making and driving innovation. We specialize in AI, Machine Learning, Big Data, and Sentiment Analysis to unlock profound insights and optimize business strategies. Additionally, our expertise includes Causal Analytics for assessing business strategy impacts, Circular Manufacturing Analytics for sustainability, and Data Privacy Analytics to enhance customer trust.

Our comprehensive capabilities extend to Crime Prediction, Digital Strategy, Holistic Sustainable Systems, and Immersive Technology Analytics. We also focus on Performance and Production Optimization, Regulatory Economics, Risk Analytics, and Simulation & Operations Analytics.

We invite academic and industry partners to collaborate with us, leveraging our cutting-edge analytics to solve complex challenges and drive growth in a data-driven world.

Dr Abdolreza Roshani (Production Optimization Analytics)

Production Optimization Analytics maximizes manufacturing efficiency and minimizes costs by applying analytical techniques to scheduling, assembly line balancing, lot sizing, and energy efficiency.

Dr Abhijit Sengupta (Market and Behavioural Models)

Innovation and technology management, applied econometrics, complex systems and network analysis, agent-based modelling.

Dr Andrew Hill (Risk Analytics for Decision Makers)

Risk Analytics for Decision-Makers includes quantitative techniques for analysing and managing business risks, for example schedule risk management and inventory forecasting, to offer tailored insights for stakeholders’ decisions.

Dr Athina Ioannou (Data Privacy Analytics)

Data Privacy Analytics analyses customer interactions, preferences, and behaviours to enhance consumer experiences, optimize performance, and drive business growth, while respecting privacy and fostering trust in a data-driven world.

Dr Christopher Turner (Circular Manufacturing Analytics)

Circular Manufacturing Analytics involves the systematic analysis of data from digital manufacturing processes to optimize resource utilization, minimize waste, and enhance sustainability within an Industry 5.0 circular economy framework.

Dr Dimitris Giraleas (Regulatory Economics and Statistical Analysis )

Regulatory economics and Statistical Analysis, specialising in the Utility sector (energy, water, waste, rail and air transport), using econometric and statistical methods to measure productivity and inform decision-making.

Dr Masoud Fakhimi (Simulation & Operations Analytics)

Simulation & Operations Analytics refers to the utilization of simulation techniques alongside analytical methods to optimize operational processes and inform decision-making within various domains.

Dr Mehdi Toloo (Performance Analytics)

Given the limitations on resources, managers are deeply concerned with their optimal allocation. Performance analytics tools utilize mathematical modelling to evaluate efficiency, effectiveness, and productivity within organisations.

Dr Mahdi Tavalaei (Digital Strategy Analytics)

Digital Strategy Analytics analyses data related to an organisation's digital ecosystem to inform decision-making and optimise business models, strategies, processes, and customer experience for competitive advantage.

Dr Rosanna Cole (Qualitative supply chain analytics)

Qualitative supply chain analytics includes any non-quantitative methods employed to analyse supply chain performance such as efficiencies, process management, procurement, logistics and sustainability.

Dr Tammi Sinha (Holistic Analytics Sustainable Systems )

Holistic Analytics for Sustainable Systems applies systems thinking, lean principles, circular economy, doughnut economics, and sustainability analytics to optimize processes for long-term viability

Dr Vikas Grover (Crime Prediction & Offender Profiling)

Advanced machine learning and AI techniques in crime prediction and offender profiling can revolutionize law enforcement by predicting crime locations, enabling proactive prevention.

Dr Wolfgang Garn (Immersive Technology Analytics)

Immersive Technology Analytics involves the application of data analysis techniques to virtual reality, artificial intelligence, and game engine data, enabling insights for optimizing user experiences and enhancing immersive technologies.

Dr Xun Zhou (Causal Analytics)

Causal analytics utilizes randomized experiments or non-experimental techniques to identify the causal effects of business strategies/programs on operational outcomes, providing essential estimates for making well-informed business decisions.