FEATURE : BIG DATA
////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// chase competitive advantage in an increasingly cluttered market . It is all about how the business can harness those skills and the teams of people contributing to those data areas that will drive efficiencies in the digital organisation .
People
People are at the heart of every data-driven business . Just as jewellers increase the value of gold by turning it into a decorative ornament , staff skilled in statistical analysis and machine
Data
Finally , there is data . Simply having data isn ’ t enough – businesses must become wholly driven by it , using it to anticipate the future , enrich every interaction and answer rising consumer demands for personalised products and services .
ALREADY , DATA-DRIVEN BUSINESSES ARE FORGING A NEW PATH , EMBODIED BY THE METEORIC RISE OF DISRUPTIVE BRANDS WITH BUSINESS MODELS BUILT ON SMART DATA USE .
Adebayo ADEBAYO Sanni , Managing SANNI , MANAGING
Director , Oracle Nigeria DIRECTOR , ORACLE NIGERIA
The value of data is clear today – a recent report from Forrester Consulting joins numerous others in showing that companies with mature Big Data and analytics strategies are two times more likely to say they were seeing significant improvements in growing revenue or other similar benefits .
These companies have come to recognise that data has value even in an uncertain economy , and when mined properly , can be used to create value , drive a competitive advantage and empower true business change .
A major challenge however is that the amount of data available is continually growing – the IDC predicts that by 2025 we will be creating and replicating over 160 zettabyte of data , a tenfold increase since 2016 – and fast outpacing our ability to gain insight from it .
In order to mine all of that information , the data leaders of tomorrow need a strategy to unlock value across the entirety of this treasure trove and quickly .
They need to find their golden ratio of people , data and machines . learning within the enterprise can get more value from data by turning it into insights . Finding the right talent , and enough of it , is key to any business seeking success in today ’ s data-driven economy and it continues to be a challenge . While a key focus is on finding data scientists , they aren ’ t the only resource needed .
Data-savvy business managers who can understand the organisation and can leverage analytics are equally as necessary .
Machines
The role of machines , as a balance to people , cannot be underestimated . Technology gives businesses the ability to collect , collate and connect data – and thanks to cloud , this can be done at a scale , speed and cost that was previously unaffordable to all but the largest and most dedicated enterprises .
The cloud is also bringing to the fore new tools such as integrated insights platformsas-a-service , which free data scientists from constantly struggling with clunky , disparate tools and data and allowing them to focus on innovation that can be quickly operationalised at scale .
In tandem with cloud we are also seeing the rise of machine learning and Artificial Intelligence , which are helping organisations large and small learn faster than before .
Already , data-driven businesses are forging a new path , embodied by the meteoric rise of disruptive brands with business models built on smart data use .
Startups in Nigeria have taken notice of the opportunities opened up by harnessing the power of data : Kudi . ai has developed a chatbot that uses AI to understand user requests , drive conversations , understand user spending habits and prevent fraud , and Aajoh uses AI to help individuals that send a list of their symptoms via text , audio and photographs to diagnose their medical condition .
Neither people , machines , nor data , can successfully mine the data gold rush in isolation . By achieving the golden ratio of the right people , the right data and the right machines , companies can unlock the full potential of data and be best poised to seek its fortune in today ’ s data gold rush .
Kate Mollett , Regional Manager for Africa KATE MOLLETT , REGIONAL
South MANAGER at Veeam
FOR AFRICA SOUTH AT VEEAM
Data is the engine of digital transformation , the lifeblood of applications , the currency of business and the beating heart of digital life . But as the value and business criticality of data have grown in our age of digital transformation , the challenges of managing data have grown as well .
The sheer amount of data and its rapid growth is a massive challenge for businesses . There is not only much more data , there ’ s much more data everywhere .
The hyper-available enterprise
In this new reality where enterprise data is scattered across many different clouds and systems , ensuring availability across the entire enterprise becomes both much more critical and much more challenging . So does
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