Big Data and its impact on Society

In recent years the concept of Big Data has gained strength. Every day there are more and more companies that want to join in or are already using this term in their business lexicon. But what is Big Data and how can it help us?.

In the following article we will summarize some of the main benefits, its importance and even characteristics of why more and more companies and work teams are interested in adopting technologies that allows them to improve their data analysis.

Large volumes of data are a reality today. Data sources have also changed due to the massive use of social networks, IoT devices, sensors, digital images, photographs, videos, commercial transactions, GPS mobile positions amongst a long list that continues to increase exponentially generating abysmal amounts of data.

So, what is the challenge that the technology industry has to manage, collect, store and process all of this information, so that it is used in the interest of businesses, governments and society in general?. For example, Big Data is used to improve customer relationships and offer products or services that best suit their needs. In the Health sector, it is utilized to make more accurate medical diagnoses. In industries, to help monitor equipment or machines for production processes; and in Government, data is invaluable. It can be used in agriculture, traffic, education among many other sectors, where applications are already in use, while others have yet to be discovered.

With the emergence of Big Data, companies have realized that traditional tools are not enough. They are not able to process and/or exploit large amounts of data, causing areas of Information Technology to search for new tools that will facilitate data collection, processing and analysis.

“Companies have realized that traditional tools are not enough.”

Characteristics of Big Data

There are 7 Characteristics of Big Data. However, for this article we will cover only the 4 most important:

Volume: Refers to the growth that data generation has had in recent years. It is said that by 2020, 40 zettabytes of data will be processed in the world and it is expected that the amount of data will double every two years. One of the biggest contributors to volume is IoT (Internet of things), which generates data through sensors.
Speed: Refers to the amount of time it takes data to move. With the use of the internet, social networks, and sensors, data is being generated at enormous speeds, while traditional BI-based models usually take a longer time for information to be extracted for analysis. Companies need to be able to have and process information in real time, instantly, in order to make decisions and make changes along the way.
Variety: The wide variety of data being generated, has gone from being just structured data stored in data stores to unstructured and semi-structured data, with different formats such as audios, videos, JSON, XMLs, etc. For example, millions of text messages and audios are sent daily. These activities generate different types of data, which when processed generate important information for organizations. It is said that 90% of the information comes from unstructured data, which has forced organizations to change the way in which their information is stored.
Veracity: One of the most important aspects of Big Data is the reliability that the data that is stored gives us, since the value and benefit that can be obtained from the data is much more profitable according to the degree of quality that they present. It is for this reason that truthfulness becomes one of the 7Vs that must be met in Big Data.

“It is said that 90% of the information comes from unstructured data, which has forced organizations to change the way in which their information is stored”

What are smart companies?

Smart companies are organizations that have access to their data anywhere, at all times and from any device, placing the business analysis as the main pillar. These types of companies are fully aware that their survival in such a competitive market depends on the quality of their data and the ability to react to changes in the market. They also rely on data collection processes, advanced analytics, and Big Data; all of the above, together with the Cloud phenomenon are enablers of an entirely new technology platform.

Is Big Data is a disruptive technology?

Big Data is a disruptive concept as long as it causes the organization to change its traditional way of making decisions, based on the analysis of its information.

Are we preparing our companies to compete in this new paradigm?