Jason Santos
Blog #3
In todays
world bid data is transforming the way people do everyday research and analytics.
In this article, Peter David, regional CFO of SAP, talks about the importance
of bid data in relation to finance. Peter says that by the year 2020, there
will be enough big data to cover each grain of sand times 75. That is 40
zettabytes of data annually. Peter then goes into more depth about how big data
can help finance.
He first
talks about how it can enhance value. He says that big data will enhance the
finance function’s ability to steer, control, and develop the business. He
refers to bid data as a impartial, statistically savvy expert on his shoulder
guiding him and his company to better decisions. He mentions three ways it can
actually do this, cash forecasting, collections and discounts.
He then
goes into talking about three capabilities. He talks about an article in the
Harvard Business Review, the article which can be found in this article talks
about three analytical requirements. Dominic Barton and David Court say these
three things: First, companies must be able to identify, combine and manage
multiple sources of data. Second, they need the capability to build advanced
analytics models for predicting the optimizing outcomes. Third, management must
possess the muscle to transform the organization so that the data models
actually yield better decisions.
Last thing
he mentions is harnessing the data you already have. He talks about how only 4%
of the industry is taking advantage of big data resources. He says that
starting from the CFO big data that is already collected in your industry can
be taken advantage of. You need to find the right tools and look for the right
data. Once this is done you can start improving your business model around bid
data.
I feel that
the article does a good job at introducing big data. I feel that the author is
missing the costs that come with the tools involving big data. How much it
actually cost to save as this data. Also I feel that it avoids talking about
the tools it mentions could help. I feel the article could suggest tools
instead of just saying tools. Although I did find an article that goes more
into just that. This is the link to that article, http://www.forbes.com/sites/cdw/2016/04/05/tapping-into-big-data-is-easier-than-you-think/#1d4b821311e0.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/sap/2016/04/06/how-big-data-enhances-finance-operations/#5c174d6624c3
He talks about how only 4% of the industry is taking advantage of big data resources. From what Jason states this a problem that most financial operations are not using there resources wisely.
ReplyDeleteBig data is, parallel to this article, helpful, however it can also be a hindrance. Data is the future of business but utilizing the data correctly makes all the difference. The 3 steps Jason listed as the analytical requirements seem just like a check list, but the amount of work needed to perform each step is where the real struggle lies. With the first step alone, being able to manage and combine multiple sources of data; each data type is very different with different rules and requirements, making it exceedingly difficult to combine all the rules to fit one program. However, if a company is able to foster such a data type that has the ability to handle all this data that would be where the real future begins. For a finance operation, having all the statistics and numbers from the data in one big spread all in the same data language would really, as Jason said, steer and control the development of business. Today only 4 percent of the industry is taking advantage of these big data resources, but that is only the beginning.
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