Leveraging Data Analytics in Federal Organizations: “Data analytics is a powerful tool that can help government agencies reduce fraud, waste and abuse. The commercial sector has used data analytics for years to improve decision making, achieve better financial outcomes and improve customer service. The use of data analytics is growing at a rapid rate. The International Data Corporation, a provider of market intelligence in the information technology field, estimates that the business analytics market for software, hardware and consulting services is expected to grow at an 8 percent rate worldwide, reaching nearly $33 billion in 2012. AGA set out to determine how the federal government is using data analytics and what it is doing with the resulting information. We interviewed eight agencies and surveyed a broad spectrum of federal financial officials. From this, we learned that some federal agencies have embraced data analytics and have demonstrated the benefits of integrating analytics tools into their operations. As a result, the federal government is in a position to build on the analytic advances it has already made. Some organizations are poised to share their capabilities with other federal organizations and possibly with other levels of government that implement federally funded programs. However, there is no clear plan to leverage the government’s investment in data analytics.”