I had an opportunity to hear Krish Krishnan Monday evening March 20, 2014 speak on his subject Big Data to the Chicago area Logistics, Operations and Supply Chain Professionals (LOSC). He has worked with many leading companies. If you get the chance to hear do so.
He defines Big Data as data problems too complex for basic Oracle and Microsoft software. As a way to make big data a little less complex to understand, he asked us to think about Google’s index mathematical model as way of seeing how bid data number crunching works. A key issue is somehow arranging disparate data.
When there is a big data need, management must not punt on this process. Clarity on what the issue is the key to avoiding spending big bucks on wasted efforts. Your organization’s IT department cannot make those type of decisions for management. Management must determine what is important to find out and why. The if skills are needed to carry out the mechanics of the process, talent can be found at a price. It is management’s decision if the cost is worthwhile.