What is Alteryx Used For: 6 Common Use Cases

Alteryx is an analytics automation platform that helps collect, prepare, and blend data. It can use this data to speed up or automate processes and can provide actionable business insights. Its purpose is to help companies answer business questions quickly and with confidence. The answers to these questions can help provide business insights, automate processes, produce predictive modeling, and more.

What is Alteryx Used For?

Alteryx is used to automate data processes more quickly and efficiently. It collects, prepares, and blends data that may otherwise be time-consuming or impossible to combine using other tools. Through this, Alteryx provides answers to complex business questions and can help to simplify or automate data processes. This not only saves a significant amount of time, but also helps to prevent errors that may have occurred if the process were done manually.

Alteryx can be used for a wide range of data needs. We’ve listed some of the most common uses below:

1. Data Analytics Automation

One of Alteryx’s main purposes is to automate data analytics. It automates the process of collecting, cleaning, preparing, and blending information from a variety of other disparate sources. It works similarly to the way an SQL or ETL tool—or even pivot tables in Excel—would do, but in a more user-friendly way (and, in the case of Excel, in a more efficient, less manual way). It can also provide data to build reports, charts, or dashboards, usually through a visualization tool such as Tableau or MicroStrategy.

2. Data Preparation

Alteryx automates the collection, cleansing, preparation, and blending of data from a variety of different sources. This helps to connect sources of data that would otherwise be difficult—or impossible—to connect. It helps to mitigate or eliminate manual entry and double-entry in many cases, helping to reduce entry and save a significant amount of time. This data can be queried or manipulated directly in Alteryx or can be connected to other databases, files, and APIs, including visualization tools.

3. Automated Workflows

For most companies, there are certain reports or processes that you would like to be recurring. Alteryx helps to create workflows that automate these processes. Users can choose from pre-built workflows or can create their own. Automated workflows may include accounting closes, reconciliations, the creation of forecasts, audits, and more.

4. Predictive Modeling

Alteryx allows for predictive modeling to help project future outcomes to inform business decisions or outcomes. This modeling can be used in an exploratory environment or can be used to eventually publish these models into production. Alteryx offers a variety of pre-built models and has the ability to customize these models with unique code. This makes it a great option not only for those with little programming expertise, but also for those with coding experience who would like to simplify the process of data access, preparation, and blending.

5. Geospatial Analysis

If you dig into the history of Alteryx, you’ll find it was originally created as a GIS, or Geographic Information System. This means it’s great at providing analysis related to locations and distance. Alteryx will allow you to geocode, plot, and map anything with a location—such as customers, competitors, trucks, suppliers, etc. This information can be used to calculate distances, drive times, calculate best routes, and more.

6. Accessible Reporting

Businesses like Alteryx because it is considered a low-code or no-code option. Not only is it simpler and faster than most manual processes, but it is also easier to learn and use for a variety of users, including those without SQL knowledge. This means it provides powerful information to a wider breadth of individuals across the organization.

Get a No-Obligation Alteryx Strategy Consultation

If you’re unsure whether Alteryx is the right solution for your business or would like to speak with an expert to learn more about Alteryx’s capabilities, please reach out! Data Meaning has a team of certified Alteryx experts and consultants that can help answer questions, customize dashboards, help with an Alteryx implementation, optimize your Alteryx platform, and more. Contact us today to schedule a free strategy consultation.