‘Big Data’ is a fairly new buzz word in the IT world. In this day and age there is a wealth of data
available and many resources available to store all of this data. The problem with raw data is that it does not
help with decision making. People must
know how to manipulate and use the data in order to make it useful. On Forbes website I read an
interesting article called “Four Step To Turn Big Data Into Action”. Click here
for a link to the website. According to
the article there are four steps to turn big data into something useful and
they are as follows:
- Decide what to produce
- Source the raw materials
- Produce insight with speed
- Deliver the goods and act
This article takes the view of a factory where insights are
products, data is the raw material and the front-line operators are the
consumers of the product.
In the first step the article states that it is important to
have a clear understanding of what you want to achieve and what questions need
to be answered. The questions that
answer the largest economic opportunities should be the highest priority.
In the second step the article emphasizes that it’s
important to start with the best data that is immediately available. This data set can often times be small and
not necessarily the best data set but this gives a good start with immediate
feedback. Then over time it is important
to start adding other data sets to it and begin getting a better insight.
In the third step the article emphasizes speed. Early on the ‘insight factory’ will not
produce perfect information but it’s important to have rapid bursts or
output. The product will get better with
time but it’s important to have the speed early on.
Finally in the last step the article states that the
information that is available now should be used now to inform specific
actions. This means put this information
into action now and see the actual results instead of waiting for more data or
other options. In this step there will
also need to be acceptance from managers which will take time. It is important to remember that this factory
idea is a cultural change that will need to evolve over time and should not be
one large change.
Reference:
Forbes.com
Posted by: Leslie P
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