
Big data is proving to be a crucial part of business growth thus far, transforming businesses and offering opportunities for insights like never before. In a global race, increasingly dominated by the fastest players, data is the key to building a more agile, responsive, and productive business. So it’s no surprise that a recent survey conducted by Vanson Bourne revealed that 86 per cent of organisations are already using some form of big data analytics, with a further 11 per cent planning to adopt it as a business tool in the future.
This confirms that soon, big data will play an integral role in the operations of every organisation in the world; it is no longer an opportunity, it’s a necessity. Organisations are investing considerable amounts of time and money into analytics services. From helping banks track real-time trends to offering retailers the insights that help them better understand consumers’ shopping habits, analytics can unlock new opportunities across every industry. Furthermore, this survey confirms my experience that organisations are now more receptive to new technologies that build on big data analytics infrastructure and methodologies.
When we look at big data implementation, the results suggest the US is leading the way while the UK is still playing catch up with only 23 per cent of UK organisations using big data, compared to 56 per cent in the US. However this is set to change as the UK looks set to make significant strides in the future, with more than half already employing big data in pockets of their organisation and 16 per cent stating they have plans in place to incorporate big data into their strategies.
Industries that are adopting and benefiting from big data
Financial services is an industry that could benefit most from big data analytics. Although often seen as conservative, banks are starting to take note of the transformational effect big data analysis could have for the industry. In contrast to other emerging technologies, banks have bought into big data analytics, with an above average response of 67 per cent citing it as a necessity to stay competitive. It may come as no surprise that organisations are primarily viewing the opportunities of big data as coming from trend analysis (67 per cent), but banks value real time analysis (70 per cent) as they move from the laborious end of day number crunching of the past, to identifying risk and opportunity as it happens.
Financial institutions are under increasing pressure to close the gap between the experiences they provide and what consumers have come to expect. More than any other industry, knowledge can provide a competitive edge that can drive millions in added revenue. For the financial sector, big data is an important part of meeting an increasing client demand for a faster and more accurate service. Banks, especially, have been forced to take their cue from customers, as well as learning from other industries, such as media, mobile and retail, and are setting expectations based on their experiences in those other industries.
The manufacturing industry shares a similar view on the importance of big data, with 60 per cent agreeing that big data analytics is a necessity. IT industry folks were focussed on the significant cost reductions of modern data architectures, with 80 per cent reflecting their awareness of licensing and commodity hardware savings.
Retail pioneers such as Amazon are known to benefit from big data, however a cross section of retailers were shown to be lagging behind with only 29 per cent of retailers using big data to support their existing strategies. That being said, I’d suggest drawing a clear line between aspiration and implementation as we are increasingly seeing retailers implement big data analysis, as it brings valuable insights to trigger business growth. These benefits include insights on user journeys, industry forecasts and customer records to predict demand, pinpoint customers, optimise pricing, and monitor real-time trends.
Harnessing new technologies
Over the next decade we will see big data, machine learning, and artificial intelligence being integrated seamlessly into the structure of many different organisations.
Businesses are discovering that when they take the plunge and implement machine learning techniques they can access a wealth of insights in a short period of time, moving from understanding what customers are doing to why. Machine learning is a new concept for many businesses, but if properly applied it has huge potential to address real-world business problems. One of its main benefits is the ability to analyse large amounts of data at a speed and efficiency that would otherwise require a large team of humans. Having seen the outcomes clients can achieve, I am delighted to find that these benefits are already being recognised by organisations globally with 62 per cent of respondents expecting to implement machine learning for business intelligence within the next two years. This is an extremely positive response considering machine learning technologies only entered the Gartner Hype Cycle in 2015.
Next steps for businesses
To become a big player in the big data game, an organisation needs to take three steps towards big data adoption maturity. The first relates to the data itself: make sure your information is collected and stored in a format that allows for easy access and query (i.e. Data Lake). Most large companies already have this – in fact, they generally have more than they can use.
The second is uncovering business value from data with the help of business intelligence and data visualisation. Beneficiaries of this analytics can be both – customers and internal corporate users. Modern UX design and mobile technologies allow for creating effective systems of engagements, and in today’s corporate world a corporate user demands the same experience as an external user.
And the third step, advanced analytics, elevates organisation’s competitive advantage to the next level by boosting user business efficiency in the same way that an exoskeleton suite intensifies physical strength.
From the technology perspective both proprietary and open-source tools and platforms are widely available these days – however you need experts capable of putting them to work. Big Data analytics requires staff with state-of-the-art skills in data architecture, technologies, and data science. So, selecting a proven partner in corporate Big Data journey is one of the key success elements.
Overall, the future of big data applications looks bright. From data-driven marketing to guiding smart city operations, big data is fuelling innovation, efficiencies, and new revenue opportunities for every type of organisation.
This article was originally published on www.itproportal.com and can be viewed in full here


Archive
- October 2024(44)
- September 2024(94)
- August 2024(100)
- July 2024(99)
- June 2024(126)
- May 2024(155)
- April 2024(123)
- March 2024(112)
- February 2024(109)
- January 2024(95)
- December 2023(56)
- November 2023(86)
- October 2023(97)
- September 2023(89)
- August 2023(101)
- July 2023(104)
- June 2023(113)
- May 2023(103)
- April 2023(93)
- March 2023(129)
- February 2023(77)
- January 2023(91)
- December 2022(90)
- November 2022(125)
- October 2022(117)
- September 2022(137)
- August 2022(119)
- July 2022(99)
- June 2022(128)
- May 2022(112)
- April 2022(108)
- March 2022(121)
- February 2022(93)
- January 2022(110)
- December 2021(92)
- November 2021(107)
- October 2021(101)
- September 2021(81)
- August 2021(74)
- July 2021(78)
- June 2021(92)
- May 2021(67)
- April 2021(79)
- March 2021(79)
- February 2021(58)
- January 2021(55)
- December 2020(56)
- November 2020(59)
- October 2020(78)
- September 2020(72)
- August 2020(64)
- July 2020(71)
- June 2020(74)
- May 2020(50)
- April 2020(71)
- March 2020(71)
- February 2020(58)
- January 2020(62)
- December 2019(57)
- November 2019(64)
- October 2019(25)
- September 2019(24)
- August 2019(14)
- July 2019(23)
- June 2019(54)
- May 2019(82)
- April 2019(76)
- March 2019(71)
- February 2019(67)
- January 2019(75)
- December 2018(44)
- November 2018(47)
- October 2018(74)
- September 2018(54)
- August 2018(61)
- July 2018(72)
- June 2018(62)
- May 2018(62)
- April 2018(73)
- March 2018(76)
- February 2018(8)
- January 2018(7)
- December 2017(6)
- November 2017(8)
- October 2017(3)
- September 2017(4)
- August 2017(4)
- July 2017(2)
- June 2017(5)
- May 2017(6)
- April 2017(11)
- March 2017(8)
- February 2017(16)
- January 2017(10)
- December 2016(12)
- November 2016(20)
- October 2016(7)
- September 2016(102)
- August 2016(168)
- July 2016(141)
- June 2016(149)
- May 2016(117)
- April 2016(59)
- March 2016(85)
- February 2016(153)
- December 2015(150)