In today’s dynamic business landscape, data is the driving force of successful decision-making. Business analysts (BAs) are crucial in gathering, identifying and analysing vast data. However, the acceleration in the growth, complexity and sheer scale of data has made it seem more challenging for BAs to easily extract insights and make informed decisions.

ChatGPT, an AI-powered language model by OpenAI is the current topic of the day. From feelings of excitement to doomsday visions, this blog will explore a) how BAs can harness ChatGPT alongside statistics to transform everyday conversations into data-driven insights and b) whether the AI-powered language model will become an invaluable ally or a dangerous adversary to business analysts.

Time taken for different platforms to Reach 1 million Subscribers;

On November 30, 2022, San Francisco-based OpenAI released ChatGPT, and in just 5 days, ChatGPT surpassed 1 million users (Source 1). By comparison, it took Instagram approximately 2.5 months to reach 1 million downloads. Similarweb says chat.openai.com was visited about 1.8 billion times over the last 30 days. That's an increase of 180% from February 2023's 1 billion. And around 7 times more than December 2022's 266 million visits (Table 1).

Leveraging ChatGPT’s skills

According to Forbes, ChatGPT can create many opportunities for companies that leverage it strategically (Source 2). When given data from the user, the language model was created to produce natural language responses, making it valuable for a range of business processes where having human-like conversations with prospects or clients is essential. BAs can leverage ChatGPT’s skills in the following ways;

1) Predictive analytics and forecasting

BAs rely heavily on predictive analysis and forecasting to anticipate future trends and make proactive decisions. ChatGPT, a master in processing capability and statistical expert, can help BAs run predictive models and obtain forecasts about future trends. By leveraging this, BAs can improve predictions' accuracy, resulting in well-informed and data-driven solid decision-making.

2) Automation of routine tasks

As Bill Gates told Handelsblatt, the German newspaper, AI can "change our world" by making work more efficient (Source 3). That being said, BAs can increase the efficiency with which they work by employing the AI tool. For instance, at the onset of a project, BAs spend a significant amount of time on monotonous tasks such as data cleaning, report generation and data visualisation. ChatGPT can automate such repetitive tasks allowing BAs to dedicate their time and expertise to activities that require critical thinking and problem-solving. As the simple tasks are automated, BAs are more likely to have even more diverse job roles requiring them to invest in themselves and expand their skillsets once again (Source 4).

3) Analysis of customer interactions

Analysis of customer interactions is vital to understanding customer needs and driving business success. BAs can wield the language model's abilities to extract valuable insights from customer interactions through trend identification and predictive analysis. Employing the AI tool's analytical skills will allow BAs to make data-driven decisions to enhance customer satisfaction, which, in turn, is a competitive advantage in today's customer-centric business landscape.

4) Stakeholder communication and management

Effective stakeholder communication and management are crucial for the success of any business analysis project (Source 4). By leveraging this AI tool's conversational interface and analytical capabilities, analysts can enhance communication clarity, engage stakeholders actively, gather and validate requirements effectively and manage stakeholder expectations more effectively. This may make managing stakeholders and communicating with them more accessible and more efficient.

Potential Dangers of ChatGPT

1) Misinformation and manipulation: Misleading content

ChatGPT is trained on vast amounts of data. However, it needs the ability to verify the accuracy of its data. Therefore, in the case of inaccurate data or missing information, the responses generated will only be partially accurate. This may propagate incorrect information and be ineffectual in the event of one-of-a-kind requests.

2) Privacy and security risks

Security and confidentiality of the personal data required to train and improve AI language models are often questioned. User data and sensitive information is retained, which may be dangerous if the data is utilised improperly.

3) AI-Generated phising scams

According to the FBI's 2021 Internet Crime Report (Source 5), phishing is the most prevalent IT threat in America. Most phishing scams are simple to spot as they frequently contain typos and poor syntax. However, because of ChatGPT's ability to communicate with users without making spelling, grammar, or verb tense issues, it appears as though a real person may be on the other side of the chat window. Hackers worldwide can use ChatGPT to improve their phishing attacks thanks to their near-fluency in English.

4) Malware development

Research shows that generative AI tools can assist in malware development. Although ChatGPT rejects overtly unlawful or malicious requests, users have discovered that they can get around its restrictions. Some hackers can produce code for penetration testing by asking ChatGPT to modify and repurpose the code for use in online assaults (Source 6). Further, according to certain studies, ChatGPT may be used by malware developers to create sophisticated software, such as polymorphic viruses that alter their source code to avoid detection (Source 7).

Can ChatGPT replace BAs?

There is no doubt that ChatGPT can be an asset to BAs. However, ChatGPT and other AI tools will only partially replace BAs. After all, BAs possess the one thing AI does not – the human touch. While it can provide support, insight, and guidance to help streamline the analysis process, it cannot replicate the critical thinking, creativity, and interpersonal skills necessary for practical business analysis.

In addition to this, business analysts work in a dynamic environment. This elicits a deep understanding of the business domain and the latest technological trends across various industries, coupled with the ability to communicate effectively with numerous stakeholders globally. ChatGPT can provide general guidance but lacks the depth that a BA brings.

Conclusion

ChatGPT has the potential to revolutionize the way BAs work by augmenting their capabilities and efficiency. From data exploration to report generation, predictive analytics to decision support, and collaborative problem solving, ChatGPT can serve as an invaluable ally for BAs. By leveraging its conversational interface and advanced analytical capabilities, business analysts can extract deeper insights from data, automate mundane tasks, and make more informed, data-driven decisions (Source 4). Embracing ChatGPT empowers BAs to navigate the complex business landscape with confidence and deliver actionable insights that drive organisational success.

Sources:

1. Exploding Topics (May 2023): https://explodingtopics.com/blog/chatgpt-users

2. Business Analyst Mentor: https://businessanalystmentor.com/chatgpt-in-business-analysis/#:~:text=Will%20ChatGPT%20Replace%20Business%20Analyst,completely%20replace%20a%20business%20analyst

3. Business Insider (March 2023): https://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-bill-gates-business-leaders-quotes-on-chatgpt-ai-2023-2#bill-gates-american-business-magnate-and-cofounder-of-microsoft-1

4. LinkedIn (April, 2023): https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/chatgpt-how-can-help-you-business-analyst-mark-bruins/

5. Harvard Business Review (April, 2023): https://hbr.org/2023/04/the-new-risks-chatgpt-poses-to-cybersecurity

6. Malwarebytes: https://www.malwarebytes.com/cybersecurity/basics/chatgpt-ai-security

7. TechTarget: https://www.techtarget.com/searchsecurity/tip/ChatGPT-security-risks-in-the-enterprise