Big Data, the big daddy of buzzwords that has been done to death by industry pundits and leading publishers with their understanding of what it means and its impact on the way we do business.
If technology thought leader Gartner is to be believed, Big Data is that fat lady whose size is 3 Vs big:
- Volume: The most self-explanatory aspect of the term which suggests the huge and ever increasing quantum of data.
- Velocity: The phenomenal speed at which data flows in and out of information systems thanks to high speed telecommunications networks and advancements in chip-level as well as data centre computing.
- Variety: The many structured and unstructured forms in which data is generated by sensors, smart IoT devices, enterprise applications as well as the average users who surf the internet and stay connected through it.
Cloud computing services from the likes of AWS and Microsoft Azure are instrumental in containing this ever increasing data bulge.
In the absence of proper utilization, Big Data is akin to a huge blob of whale vomit that is waiting to be discovered by those who recognize and understand its value. We have data scientists to help enterprises out for that sort of thing.
The biggest problem with data scientists is that they are hard to come by. All the good ones are. In fact, their skills set is so rare that they have been dubbed as Unicorn Data Scientists. Businesses are willing to pay an upwards of $200,000 a year just to warm a seat up.
So what goes into the making of good data scientists? Two things:
- First and foremost, they understand your business like the back of their hand.
- Second – They are slick users of Python and Java among other programming languages that work in tandem with big data architecture.
That’s a combination that is as hard to find as two Giant Pandas who are in the mood to mate.
Fortunately, Big Data SaaS applications built by data scientists are around to help businesses pick up the slack. It makes sense to use them because:
- They require little to no integration with your existing systems
- They have an easy to use interface
- All possible business intelligence generation scenarios are pre-configured
- Anything you find missing can be incorporated immediately
The best thing about SaaS applications is that your team members don’t need to be technically qualified to use them. SaaS products are plug and play in nature that simply require you to have nothing but inquisitiveness. Proficiency with spreadsheets is an added advantage, but not a ‘must-have’.
In light of this it is easy to see how SaaS tools bring about democratization of data. A good SaaS big data tool empowers every user to become a citizen data scientist by giving them the opportunity to effortlessly deep dive into available data without waiting for approvals or a helping hand from the IT department. All that is required are login credentials and a browser of your choice like Chrome or Firefox.
At Mo-Data we have developed one such big data tool that allows businesses to create an army of citizen data scientists. Data Scout is our business analytics tool that empowers you to get more out of your data in the following ways:
- It combines the power of spreadsheets and popular data manipulation tools. It eliminates the need to go through cumbersome configuration processes, you don’t need to download anything and no coding skills are required.
- Since Data Scout is hosted on the cloud, it requires no installation and is ready for use as soon as login information lands in your inbox.
- Manipulating and tinkering with data is facilitated by an easy to use visual interface that requires you to simply use the mouse. You have complete freedom to pick and choose data sets that matter to you.
- Data Scout is loaded with data security features that ensure that any personally identifiable information (PII) is masked from the moment it is uploaded and stored on cloud encrypted non-transferable storage with SSL certificates.
- The tool is loaded with intelligent algorithms that automatically detect relationships between data sets that were previously unknown to you.
- A range of data visualization options are available that can be easily shared in the form of graphic charts which can be embedded in presentation slides.
If Data Scout sounds like the kind of tool your organization needs, then we would like to hear from you.
For more information about MoData offerings click here
