Big Data

Big data describes data sets that are so large or complex that traditional data processing applications are inadequate. Challenges include analysis, capture, data curation, search, sharing, storage, transfer, visualization, querying and information privacy. The term often refers simply to the use of predictive analytics or certain other advanced methods to extract value from data, and seldom to a particular size of data set.

Big data encompasses the collection, storage, and analysis of massive stores of information. It’s helping users conduct research, create technological innovations, improve operational efficiency and drive organizations of all types toward their objectives. In conjunction with big data systems, enterprises are leveraging new technologies, such as advanced analytics, artificial intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT) and machine learning, to extract the value hidden in information. In the marketplace, these technologies are revolutionizing the way that enterprises conduct business.

As big data implementation expands, a relatively new management technique called cross-functional integration allows firms to make operational adjustments in an information-driven market where time-sensitive revelations emerge quickly. The new management paradigm allows various business units to collaborate efficiently and make better decisions. As big data implementations grow increasingly prominent among the world’s enterprises, more business leaders are implementing cross-functional organizational structures to make the most of the insights provided by big data reporting.

Big data will not, however, replace humans as strategic business advisors. Although there are astonishing new technologies that enterprise leaders can leverage to make informed decisions, there will always be a need for specialists who can interpret big data reports and determine what that information means for proprietors and organizations.

A Transformative and Disruptive Technology

Enterprises use big data systems to implement informed marketing operations and better understand their clients and consumers. It’s a powerful resource for improving the productivity and prosperity of businesses. Resultingly, enterprises are aggressively investing in digital marketing and new technology infrastructures.

Big data systems have allowed enterprises to make meaningful use of data that they’ve collected and stored for years, and as firms gain experience in deriving value from data, they will undoubtedly invest in more advanced architectures to extract increased value from their proprietary information.

Technology is changing how business leaders view the marketplace, and they are making adjustments accordingly. As a result, business leaders are rethinking management and organizational structures. The fast and powerful impact that big data has made across nearly all disciplines has left many business leaders unprepared to develop effective strategies to implement the technology. However, the innovation is at the forefront of thought of nearly all executives that seek new ways to improve the performance of their organizations.

New Ways to Steer the Ship With Data

Because of big data systems, there’ve been enormous improvements in important fields, such as education, healthcare, finance, and marketing. Depending on the organizational mission and market share, enterprises leaders are investing in different technologies. For the most part, big data analysis is currently the primary driver of change, and most big data implementations have taken place in marketing and operational capacities.

However, as the big data market matures, enterprises leaders will discover new and powerful ways to leverage the technology. For instance, sentiment analysis is an emerging discipline within many fields and industries. Additionally, business leaders are making extensive use of predictive and structured data analysis to discover opportunities to improve operations and expand their clientele.

Automated video indexing is another relatively new and promising application for big data analytics systems. As more businesses and consumers create video content, big data will prove an invaluable resource for extracting meaningful information from video archives. Audio analytics and metadata content could further increase the value of this promising application.

In the retail sector, enterprises are using camera footage to analyze in-store foot traffic. The proprietors use the technology to analyze characteristics such as consumer movement patterns, checkout flow, and traffic volume. The businesses use this information to make improvements in areas such as product placement, promotional campaigns and store layouts.

More advanced big data retail research involves the video analysis of group buying behaviour. This kind of study allows retailers to gather information about shopper buying patterns that go unnoticed at the cash register. Using video analytics, retail enterprises uncover missed opportunities by making a detailed analysis of this kind of group activity.

Big data analysts are also making great strides in the analysis of data generated by social media users. This field brings together fields that appear unrelated at first glances, such as anthropology, computer science, economics, physics, psychology, and sociology.

Big data is transforming the landscape of nearly all industries - and entire economies. Enterprise leaders will use the technology and other advanced analysis resources, as well as the IoT, to transform their brands, develop powerfully effective strategies and gain a competitive advantage in the marketplace. As time goes on, the early adopters of these technologies will reap rewards that will directly, and positively, impact their bottom lines.

The pressure to deliver ‘more for less’ is increasing day in day out inclusive of all industries and business sectors. But if you have a special understanding of technologies like Big Data, your company can get even more value.

Choosing an appropriate provider for your company’s email security can be difficult as email security is a key element in the overall security of a business. A company’s email is an open door for malicious hackers who can potentially drive your business into the ground with one rogue email. There are a few options with regards to a solution but it all depends on picking the right fit for your business. This blog post is dedicated to the options businesses face when choosing their email security.

Appliance or Software Solutions - On Premise

Generally, the most popular choice for a company are appliance or software solutions. These appliances are great for focusing on certain aspects of email security such as data privacy and spam and virus protection. This option is also easy to install and not very expensive. However, these software solutions require a lot of "hands on" updates which do not come with the benefits of realtime threat intelligence or the big data analysis that can be performed across the entire network of a cloud provider and can be quite slow to update. These appliances operate by themselves and require occasional attention from the beholder of the software.

Hosted Email Security - the OEM way

Another option businesses have are hosted email security services where the provider is simply hosting an appliance or application to take some management out of the customer’s hands. This option would be considered appealing as the customer …

Big data transfers via information superhighways require special attention and protection. Learn more about the IT-regulations of the country where your server is located. Analyze cloud providers and their encryption systems for safe data transit. Set in-house rules for preventing data loss.

The first thought that comes to mind about "Big Data" is that there is a lot of it. And while that is true, "Big Data" is more than that. It tries to address the complexity of being able to bring together both structured and unstructured data from an increasing variety of sources so it can be analysed in a concise and coherent way with a high degree of confidence.

Not so long ago, Big Data was certainly considered to be in the realm of "for the very big corporations", but that is starting to change. Part of the reason for the change is the technology associated with all the hype and the latest of buzz words becoming more available to the not so big. There are now viable choices of solutions that won't break the bank.

Because the "Big Data industry" is still in its infancy (relatively speaking), there is a small luxury of time before it becomes the expected "norm". That time can be well used to make sure you can learn all there is to know and decide if you will actually benefit from it.

One can see the anticipation of great things to follow in marketing departments the world over, talking up "big data" as if they have a clear idea about what it is, how to get it, and how it can be used. Importantly, you need to know what it might mean for your business as a competitive advantage or how disadvantaged you will quickly become if you are not currently thinking about it.

Taking a small step back in time, for years, when we needed to analyse our …

Big Data

Big data describes data sets that are so large or complex that traditional data processing applications are inadequate. Challenges include analysis, capture, data curation, search, sharing, storage, transfer, visualization, querying and information privacy. The term often refers simply to the use of predictive analytics or certain other advanced methods to extract value from data, and seldom to a particular size of data set.