10 years, 10 months ago

Get data responsibility out of IT? Bad idea.

Recently, I dusted off my soapbox to respond to Thomas C. Redman’s post  Get Responsibility for Data Out of IT:

As companies devote increasing time and energy in gathering massive quantities of data, many neglect a critical first step: Get most responsibility for data out of the IT Department.”

…”Since this step flies in the face of most current practice and may seem counterintuitive, I want to explain carefully. First, it seems obvious enough that one ought to put management of data (or anything else for that matter) as close to the action as possible.”

…”In a somewhat different vein, management responsibility should lie with the parties that have the most to gain or lose. Business departments gain mightily when they create new value from data. In contrast, IT reaps little reward when data is used to improve a product, service, or decision.

I disagree with Redman on two points. Read about them at HPIO: Getting data responsibility out of IT is dangerous – Input Output.

10 years, 11 months ago

Data wants to flow — active information

Why, oh why, didn’t I come up this point:

“Organizations that capitalize on big data stand apart [because] they pay attention to data flows as opposed to data stocks.”

I highlight this concept, and the source article, in this week’s active information post: Shifting from data stockpiles to flows, thats the… – Input Output.

11 years, 1 day ago

Management, change and big data — active information

In my most recent active information post, I highlight management implications of effective big data usage, as articulated in HBR article by McAfee and Brynjolfsson.

An excerpt:

As investment in data analysis small, big, fast is worthless without a willingness to act, Im choosing to highlight McAfee and Brynjolfsson’s submission on Big Data: The Management Revolution.

After setting a context on Big Data volume, velocity, variety and showcasing tangible business results of Big Data PASSURs RightETA and Sears Holdings, McAfee and Brynjolfsson get to the heart of the matter:

“The technical challenges of using big data are very real. But the managerial challenges are even greater—starting with the role of the senior executive team.”

“One of the most critical aspects of big data is its impact on how decisions are made and who gets to make them.”

read the full post: Management in the Big Data era: Rethink or be Repl… – Input Output.

11 years, 8 days ago

American Idol and Twitter teach us about Elections — active information

In the strange but true category…

“A paper in EPJ Data Science asserts that analysis of social networking data can be used to accurately predict societal events, such as election outcomes. The authors reached this conclusion by studying Twitter activity related to the 11th season of American Idol.”

I wrote about the study in my latest active information post: Can American Idol and Twitter teach us about Elect… – Input Output.

11 years, 1 month ago

Weekend warriors rejoice: sensors to improve your game

Yes, it’d be fair to say I have vacation on the brain. This week’s active info post:

“Over the years, I’ve highlighted many interesting, and even oddball, usages of sensor technology, from cow containment to mollusc-based oil spill detection. As my writing is directed at a business audience, I tend to highlight the commercial nodes on the ever-expanding internet of things.

Not today though. It is summer, after all. And like most, summer brings out my weekend sports warrior. Thing is, I’m not that talented. My golf outings would be better described as a watersport. My high school tennis prowess is long gone. And I have no foot-eye coordination.

But, there is hope for me…”

read: Weekend sports warriors: Improve your game, via se… – Input Output.
Related posts:

  1. Active Info: Football and Weekend Data Warriors
11 years, 1 month ago

Data analysis issue, or data collection issue?

The research explored in my latest active information post caught the attention of my inner retailer, figuring out why customers do the things they do:

“…Sifting, cleansing and connecting disparate pieces of data to unearth a clue or two to customer behavior. Think click-stream analysis. And in the case of multichannel businesses, follow-on activities to correlate in-store visits, customer service calls and such.

That’s a significant amount of up-front time and effort. Compounding the issue, the shortage of data explorers is well documented. No wonder organizations are focusing on data collection and procrastinating on data discovery.

But perhaps, the big problem of big data isnt one of analyzing the data stockpiles. Rather, the problem is in our data collection techniques and scoping…”

Read the post: Customer behavior data: better collection, better … – Input Output.
Related posts:

  1. Big Data, ambiguity & the new era of Data R&D – active information
  2. 8 Rules for Big Data – Active Information
  3. Developing data literacy: Informed Skeptics & Big Judgment — Active Information
11 years, 2 months ago

Visibility, Context, Correctness & Responsiveness — active information meets change-friendly

This week on active information, I offer some observations on the Pew Big Data report in the context of one of my top projects: evolving business-technology architecture and practices to accommodate continuous change. (a.k.a. change-friendly)

My change-friendly tenets:

  1. You can’t change what you can’t see (Visibility)
  2. Context is king (Context)
  3. Not every change is the right change (Correctness)
  4. Delay is the enemy of change (Responsiveness)

The post teaser: “Big data ushers in a new era of visibility, for good and evil. But, visibility without timely, intended action, isnt all that big.”

The post: Visibility, Context, Correctness & Responsiveness … – Input Output.
Related posts:

  1. Active Information: Streaming through Computational World, Changing change via experimentation platforms
  2. Lessons from Bechtel on making information valuable via APIs — active information
  3. Roadmap for Digital Government: Information Centricity — Active Information
11 years, 2 months ago

Lessons from Bechtel on making information valuable via APIs — active information

My latest active information post highlights Bechtel’s case study on implementing an API strategy to satisfy the needs of data consumers without all the heaviness of the current, data creation focused, applications.

It’s a great case, covering the use of APIs at Bechtel, the business and technology drivers, the benefits, the underlying technology, challenges and future plans.

The post: Lessons from Bechtel on making information valuabl… – Input Output.
Related posts:

  1. Roadmap for Digital Government: Information Centricity — Active Information
  2. Developing data literacy: Informed Skeptics & Big Judgment — Active Information
  3. Big Data, ambiguity & the new era of Data R&D – active information
11 years, 2 months ago

3 Practices to turn Big Data aspirations into business value – Active Information

This week on Active Information, I highlighted research published in MIT Sloan on Finding Value in the Information Explosion. Jeanne Ross is a co-author, so you know it’s good stuff.

The good news is that IT organizations are stepping up to manage the data explosion.  The bad news is that these vast stockpiles of data aren’t generating a business return.

To turn Big Data aspirations into realized value, the research proposes three essential practices that BUSINESS leaders must embrace.

Read about these practices: Turn Big Data aspirations into business value – Input Output.
Related posts:

  1. Active Information: Data Scientists, Moneyball, Competitive Analytics & Big Data Definition
  2. Big Data, ambiguity & the new era of Data R&D – active information
  3. Active Information: Big Data from left field; Big Data Rx
11 years, 3 months ago

Data Gravity as Cloud Consideration – Input Output

This week on Active Information I wrote about Dave McCrory’s newly published Data Gravity formula. If you are unfamiliar with Data Gravity:

McCrory’s premise is that as your data migrates to the cloud, say through the use of a CRM application, it will pull related, satellite applications and services into the cloud. As those satellite applications and services produce and consume additional data, your data mass grows, increasing the gravitational pull, which migrates more applications and services to the cloud, and the cycle continues.

For the formula, and how I see it applied, check out the post: Data Gravity as Cloud Consideration – Input Output.
Related posts:

  1. Big Data, ambiguity & the new era of Data R&D – active information
  2. Active Information: Data Scientists, Moneyball, Competitive Analytics & Big Data Definition
  3. Active Information: Big Data from left field; Big Data Rx
11 years, 3 months ago

Big Data, ambiguity & the new era of Data R&D – active information

My active information post this week meanders from a case  on the creation of VinSpin — a wine recommendation app — to ambiguity, and lands in (potentially) a new branch of corporate R&D: Data R&D. And no, I wasn’t testing out the effectiveness of VinSpin while writing. I’m tangential naturally.

Check out the post: Big Data, ambiguity & the new era of Data R&D – Input Output. Let me know your thoughts.
Related posts:

  1. 8 Rules for Big Data – Active Information
  2. Active Information: Data Scientists, Moneyball, Competitive Analytics & Big Data Definition
  3. Developing data literacy: Informed Skeptics & Big Judgment — Active Information
11 years, 4 months ago

Augmented Reality — Active Information

This week, I took a bit of a stretch and wrote about augmented reality on active information. Since AR applications involve superimposing data/information within an individual’s active context, it felt like a fit to me. Plus, it’s interesting.

My post starts with a piece from the WSJ on augmented reality glass and then touches on other uses, such as in consumer products and for office productivity.

Even if none of that sounds relevant to you, you should still check out Marco Tempest’s TED Talk: A magical tale (with augmented reality).

 

My post on HPIO: Activating information and business via Augmente… – Input Output.
Related posts:

  1. Roadmap for Digital Government: Information Centricity — Active Information
  2. 8 Rules for Big Data – Active Information
  3. Developing data literacy: Informed Skeptics & Big Judgment — Active Information