6.3. Cost reductionBig data reduces operational costs for many firms. According to Accenture (2016), firms that use data analytics in their operations have faster and more effective reaction time to supply chain issues than those that use data analytics on an ad-hoc basis (47%vs. 18%). Big data analytics leads to better demand forecasts, more efficient routing with visualization and real-time tracking during shipments, and highly optimized distribution network management (House, 2014).