Three things to think about when considering whether to start collecting and analysing big data

 

 

1)      Where will you get your big data from?

You need determine what the possible sources of big data are for your organisation. Examples of big data sources include sensors, RFID tags, audio and video files, internal and external reports and social media.  Some of the external sources are free and publicly available such as government and company reports for example.  Here is a nice article categorising big data sources. 

 

2)      Will big data add value to your organisation?

Collecting data is not hard, figuring out what to do with the data is the difficult part. Think about how big data will add value.  The main benefit of information is to enable better decision making.  So ask yourself what do I need more information about in order to improve my business?  Do you need to know more about, for example, your customers, your manufacturing processes, the political environment or the stock market?  Having some business cases in mind will give your big data initiative some direction.

 

3)      Educate yourself

When embarking on an IT initiative it is important to understand the technology or the concept so it can be applied appropriately.  The more you understand the technologies and concepts that underpin big data the better able you will be to extract value from them.  If you are really interested in getting into the nuts and bolts of big data analytics you could always go back to school.  It might be a good opportunity to take that sabbatical you always wanted.  This article here is a nice list of graduate programs related to data analytics and data science.  Just study full-time if possible.  As a part-time masters student I can assure you part-time study can be a painful exercise!