by Angela Guess
Michael Upchurch writes in ITProPortal, “Today, new, powerful data warehouse systems using in-database analytics can quickly ingest and process big data wherever it resides. What’s more, business users can now sift through data using familiar reporting tools, gaining easy access to powerful on-demand analytics and allowing data scientists to focus on building models instead of running reports. Best of all, these new solutions generally cost around 20 per cent less to build than traditional platforms and perform more than ten times faster. Not only does this keep costs down for the enterprise, this time saving means the data being analysed is, by definition, more accurate. So how can you ensure the benefits of big data analysis are paying off across your entire organisation?”
Upchurch goes on, “(1) Ask yourself ‘Why’ – Data analysis is more accessible than ever, and it can solve many problems – but not all of them. The key to identifying which problems to tackle is to start with ‘why.’ Why are we analysing Big Data? First, assess your strategic goals. These could be growing market share, controlling cost and risk, or understanding customer behaviour. Then, determine if using analytics will deliver value. There are two important questions to answer: Can the company use data models to derive insight, and can it act on the results? Working through this process will help determine where your organisation can realise value from Big Data analytics.”
He continues, “(2) Changing company culture – You may have a focused plan, great execution, the right technical platform, and the ability to operationalise the results of analysis; but without accompanying cultural change, those things will only deliver a fraction of the potential value of big data analysis. Let’s go back to the diamond mine one more time. They have new sifting equipment that tells the miners where the highest-value diamonds are, but the miners aren’t authorised to react to the information.”
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