Despite the strong focus on the customer, less than half of the organizations engaged in active Big Data initiatives are currently collecting and analyzing external sources of data, like social media, according to a new report released by IBM and Oxford University.
According to the survey of 1,144 business and IT professionals from 95 countries and 26 industries, organizations are struggling to address and manage the uncertainty inherent within certain types of data, such as the weather, the economy, or the sentiment and truthfulness of people expressed on social networks.
Survey respondents questioned the validity of social media information. Regardless, IBM recommends that organizations embrace and manage data uncertainty and determine how to use it to their advantage.
Organizations also struggle to manage the unstructured aspect of Big Data, according to the research. Only 25 percent of the survey respondents say they have the required capabilities to analyze highly unstructured data – a major inhibitor to getting the most value from Big Data.
Nearly two-thirds (63 percent) of the survey respondents report that using information, including Big Data, and analytics is creating a competitive advantage for their organizations. This is a 70 percent increase from the 37 percent who cited a competitive advantage in a 2010 IBM study.
“Most companies recognize the potential for Big Data to improve decision-making and business outcomes across the enterprise. What they struggle with, however, is how to get started on their Big Data journey,” Michael Schroeck, IBM Global Business Services global information management leader, upon release of the survey. “Across industries and geographies, the survey found that organizations are taking a pragmatic approach to Big Data. While the majority of them are still in the early stages of adoption, leading organizations are beginning to derive significant value from their Big Data initiatives.”
Nearly one-fifth (18 percent) cited optimizing operations as a primary objective for Big Data. Other Big Data applications are focused on risk and financial management (15 percent), enabling new business models (14 percent) and employee collaboration (4 percent).
Three-quarters (76 percent) of the respondents are currently engaged in Big Data development efforts, but the report confirms that the majority (47 percent) are still in the early planning stages. However, 28 percent are developing pilot projects or have already implemented two or more Big Data solutions at scale. Nearly one quarter (24 percent) of the respondents have not initiated Big Data activities, and are still studying how Big Data will benefit their organizations.
More than half of the survey respondents reported internal data as the primary source of Big Data within their organizations. Internal data is the most mature, well-understood data available to organizations, according to IBM.
In more than half of the active Big Data efforts, respondents reported using advanced capabilities designed to analyze text in its natural state, such as the transcripts of call center conversations. These analytics include the ability to interpret and understand the nuances of language, such as sentiment, slang and intentions.