Big Data
Big Data
What is Big Data?
To better our understanding around big data, we can break it down into the three Vs:
Volume: It is all the different types of data a business collects from its day to day transactions, social media, customers, employees, and sensor information.
Velocity: We generate more data than we can actually process because of its tremendous
speed, so it is very important to deal with the data that we want in a timely manner. This can be a serious issue if data isn’t process in time, because it could lead to missing information that could actually cost businesses a lot of money.
Variety: Data has many types; we can expect images, videos, emails, links, presentations, audio, or even numeric data. All businesses collect data in many shapes and forms as they find necessary to improve and excel.
Why Big Data?
The main reason why data has become so important is because it is everywhere and we have some interaction with it whether we know it or not. We can all make data work for us or help us if we use it in the right way. Collecting data isn’t always as easy as it seems, it has to be reliable, consistent and provide quality as well. Many businesses use data to solve business issues, to better the decision making process, and improve predictabilities. Without big data today, many businesses might and could fail.
How Does Big Data Relate to Data Analytics?
A great proportion of MIS2502, Data Analytics, is about creating multi-dimensional data cubes through the analytical process of data. An effective data cube really depends upon the process of extracting, transforming, and loading all of the collected data. So this really takes us back to the beginning of the course where we talked about data entry, which is all of the collected big data.
How is Big Data Used Today?
A good example of how big data can be used today is practiced at AT&T. For AT&T to be able to offer a great service it has to resolve any issues it runs into quickly. AT&T provides services to millions of customers, so it really has to know how to prioritize some issues over others. AT&T developed a program called Tower Outage and Network Analyzer (TONA) that uses real time data and historical measurements to find system malfunctions and disruptions. TONA also provides guidance on which towers to fix first based on the data of the number of people affected in each region and the duration necessary for the repair. Throughout their program they have had a 59% improvement in recognizing customer impact.
Video Link:
Following is a link of a short informational video on big data that I found on SAS’s website. Hope you enjoy it as I did.
Link to the video from SAS.com
References:
Alleven, Monica. “AT&T Taps Big Data for Network Management.”FierceWirelessTech. 9 Oct. 2014. Web. 13 Apr. 2016. <http://www.fiercewireless.com/tech/story/att-taps-big-data-network-management/2014-10-09>.
SAS.com. “What Is Big Data and Why It Matters.” What Is Big Data? Web. 13 Apr. 2016. <http://www.sas.com/en_us/insights/big-data/what-is-big-data.html#mdd-about-sas>.