Analysis needs to be easy 

• Analyse data interactively -- no need to look through pre-defined tables and reports

• Use standard software like Microsoft Excel -- no need to learn specialised software
• Receive tailored training -- no need to figure out how to do things without help

These three features are explored in more detail in the sections below

If analysis is really this easy, then anyone should be able to analyse data, not just analysts. This has major benefits:

• Empowers all staff, to rapidly and flexibly answer questions
• Frees analysts to focus on the most complex problems
• Gives organisations a competitive advantage. Listen to this Harvard Business review podcast to find out how 

Analyse data interactively

• Statistics a mathematical science pertaining to the collection, analysis, interpretation or explanation, and presentation of data. Statistics are used for making informed decisions – and misused for other reasons – in all areas of business and government. It is possible to pre-specify the statistic that is needed, if the decision to be informed is known in advance.
• In many cases, however, there are follow-on questions that cannot be answered by the original statistic. For instance, if we find that in a country 70% of the population is male, we may want to know why that is the case, whether it is true for all age groups, etc. The fundamental problem is that many detailed questions cannot be known in advance and therefore cannot be pre-specified. We thus have a situation where we have answers to questions we're not specifically interested in. In an age before computers, calculating a specific statistic was a potentially time-consuming task, done by experts. The result of this was often, that end-users were frustrated that they did not have the right analysis at their finger tips. Often the effort and time required to create the statistic, stopped the analysis from being done in the first place.
• Two fundamental changes have occurred in the digital age, which enable anyone in principle to create their own statistics and improve their own decisions, without having to rely on other experts:
  1. Any statistic can be calculated by computers instantaneously if the raw data is available
  2. Anyone can do such analyses interactively using standard software such as Microsoft Excel -- the magic function is called a pivot table , which is explained by e.g., microsoft or here, homeandlearn
• In practice, however, this has not occurred on the scale that would be possible for two reasons
  1. Often the raw data is not available. The intention for the health system in Abu Dhabi is to create the transparency to overcome this hurdle. See the definitions of the Abu Dhabi health data sets to know what is in principle available from the Health Authority
  2. Often, people do not know how to do the analysis. This can be overcome, by providing the awareness, resources and training to enable people to analyse themselves (see section Receive tailored training below). 

Use standard software like Microsoft Excel

Many analytical questions can be addressed with standard software, such as Microsoft Excel. This has many advantages

• The software is already installed on most computers -- no need to buy or install new software

• Many people are already familiar with the software  -- no need to learn a new software package
• One programme can be used for analysis and creating reports and charts. The latest version of Excel has many new features, which make analysing and reporting data even easier
• With the right training, the vast majority of analyses and reports can be created by anyone. Listen to this podcast to find out how Excel could become an integral part of Web 2.0 solutions. 

Receive tailored training

There are many ways in which to receive tailored training and support for Excel-related questions

• There are many free training resources on the internet. These include Excel training websites, podcasts as well as videos. The magic pivot table function is described in many places, including microsoft or here, homeandlearn

• In addition, there is free support on the internet. Many questions that arise during analysis are generic, and have been asked by thousand of other people in similar situations. Frequently, there are message boards or discussion groups on the internet that post the questions and their solutions. Typing the question into Google often delivers an answer in under five minutes. If the question hasn't been addressed yet, the question can be posted on a message board.

• There are a number of great books that provide analytical and excel training, such as Jay Walkenbach's Excel Bible and Timothy Zapawa's Excel Advanced Report development

• Finally, there are probably thousands of organisations that provide training courses, many of which can be found on Google.