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Turning big data into business insight through 2017

How can the cloud help CIOs to make the most of the information their firms collect?

The disparate nature of data continues to present a challenge to CIOs. A great deal of information is still held in-house, but other knowledge is increasingly stored with partners, on social networks and in connected devices.

Estimates from Constellation Research suggest at least 60 per cent of the data that organisations consider to be mission-critical will live outside the four walls of the enterprise by 2020. So, how can the cloud help CIOs to make the most of the information their firms collect and use?

Constellation encourages CIOs to think beyond traditional business intelligence dashboards and to use the cloud and connected digital technologies to run innovative projects that deliver insight and value. Other market evidence suggests data analysis will indeed lead cloud adoption through 2017 and beyond.

IDG research suggests 22 per cent of organisations surveyed are predicting their data analytics will be the key application area they migrate to the cloud during the next 12 months. Another 21 per cent suggest data management apps are a high priority area for cloud migration through 2017.

Smart CIOs are already rising to this challenge and using the inherent flexibility of the cloud to connect sources of data and run new types of data analysis on-demand. Take Omid Shiraji, interim CIO at Camden Council, who is willing to share knowledge in the hope of creating innovative opportunities.

Camden uses its open data platform, for example, to publish information on publicly funded parking spaces across the London borough. A start-up called Appy Parking has built a business using that data. The app uses geo-location data to tell users when and where they can park.

Chris White, CIO at global law firm Clyde & Co, is another IT leader who is taking a proactive stance to data strategy. Case management reports are now generated automatically. White even envisages a situation where quantitative data bolsters qualitative opinion. Rather than simply relying on experiences, lawyers would use big data to present a factual answer on the chances of winning a case.

While the amount of data continues to rise exponentially, so do the tools and techniques available to help your business make the most of the information it collects. More knowledge is moving on-demand but the cloud can also be the key tool in helping your organisation turn big data into insight next year and beyond.

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[references]

Constellation research:

https://www.zdnet.com/article/how-to-use-cloud-bi-and-analytics-to-drive-innovation/

IDG research:

http://www.cloudcomputing-news.net/news/2016/dec/05/analytics-data-storage-will-lead-cloud-adoption-in-2017/

Omid Shiraji at Camden:

http://raconteur.net/technology/cashing-in-on-the-value-of-business-data

Chris White at Clyde & Co:

https://www.zdnet.com/article/big-data-three-ways-to-make-your-project-a-success/

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