Big Data? What is it?

Sep 23, 20182 min read

Let’s talk big data, what is it? and why are people talking about?

So, if you haven’t heard the term ‘big data’ before then this post is just for you. For the people in the know, take this as a quick snapshot that hopefully relates with what you know.

Before we dive in to it, I’m going to take a step back and provide an overview. Traditional data sets have been processed by data processing software, and a term that has been used historically to describe data is the ‘Three Vs’ being Volume, Velocity and Variety (Oracle, 2018).

As time has passed, two further Vs have emerged, being Value and Veracity. These two V’s refer to how truthful is your data? And, how much can you rely on it? (Oracle, 2018).

From there, the term Big Data came into the conversation. Essentially, Big Data is larger and more complex data sets from new data sources. The data sets are so complex that the historic data processing software can’t seem to manage (Oracle, 2018).

So why is Big Data all-the-rage? Well, as McAfee and Brynjolfsson (2012) outline, ‘because of big data, managers can measure, and hence know, radically more about their businesses, and directly translate that knowledge into improved decision making and performance’.

As a simple example of traditional data vs now (big data), lets consider retailing. A physical book store could always track what books people buy based on turnover of inventory. Loyalty programs also provided some element of knowing who those customers are/were (McAfee & Brynjolfsson, 2012). That pretty much sums up the traditional data collection model.

Now considering more recent years, a book store that operates online can track where customers looked (clicks), as well as what they buy, and also how they navigate around the website.

As a comparison to a physical store, imagine following customers around your store and trying to write down everything they looked at, considered or missed? What a task!

So, Big Data has opened the doors for more data, more valuable data, but more complex data. This has equipped managers and businesses in ways that data has never done before. Where will it stop? Nobody knows.