Big Data Buzz: 5 Questions to Ask Before Analytics Project Kick-Off

By Steve Bloom, Owner/CEO, Pragmatek

Steve specializes in strategic planning and sales development for growth. To learn more about how he manages change as a business owner, read the follow article – Transforming Your Business Model – from the April 2015 issue of Minnesota Business.

I recently attended the SAP SAPPHIRE conference in Orlando and was amazed to hear all of the buzz around big data. It definitely was the hot topic of the week. Yet, it’s a highly confusing topic for many clients and companies due to a myriad of misconceptions and confusion on how to tackle and use all this data.

The issue is only going to get more attention, as companies take in more and more data everyday – such as internal product sensors and real-time, mobile device data. In order to sift through the clutter of information, ask yourself these 5 questions to determine if it makes sense to kick off a data analytics project:

1. What are the strategic changes that you need to make in your environment in order to take advantage of this influx of data?

2. What is the clear path forward to achieve a successful outcome for your environment? This should include many specific and detailed examples, such as how you are going to migrate your cubes, for example.

3. How will it help the company? What are the expected financial and operational paybacks? Define the benefits that you are going to receive from such an effort.

4. How are you going to track progress and its ROI? A defined schedule with milestones needs to be developed.

5. Finally, how much is this project going to cost and what exactly is the ROI you are expecting?

By developing a plan prior to embarking on any type of analytics project, you will increase your chances of success immensely.