DATA – Climb the Mountain or Drown in the Ocean

Confusing title? Well, it's all about how data can bring prosperity to your business OR bad fortune when mishandled

What is Data?

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Going back to our computer textbooks in school, the definition of “Data” was something as:

“Collection of facts and figures in the form of 1 and 0 (binary language) to serve as an input for the computer process.”

In short, it was something that isn't human-understandable but the computer can process it to give human-readable “information” as output. That's about curriculum scenario but in routine life, we associate data with multiple stuff.

Like the data on our phone, as in database for a software/website, mobile internet, track records and much more. Thus, DATA is a collective set of text, numbers, media, transactions.

I guess now you are through with the concept of Data...let me navigate you to how data can reinforce or dissuade your business...

Data as a Champion

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Let's categorize the possibility of data showing as a “Champion” i.e. Helping your business grow or streamline the business process for easy execution:

• Analytics—Consider running a software company and you have a set of data collected on prospects, leads and their requirements. Analyzing these data can give you insights on the market trends, client demands, etc. This can further be used to test your company's potential, prioritize technologies or incorporate a new one if required, minimize the risk of sitting on bench or secure yourself from any cyber threat.

  Another example to consider is the very recent pandemic we are going through. The figures of positive/negative cases, tests per million, recovery rate, contact tracing and tons of other data sets are obtainable for analyzation. Thus, facilitate governing bodies and medical institutions for better decision making in the light of making this globe Covid-19 free as early as possible.

• Storage—Remember the time when penning down everything from notes to transactions on paper was ideal. It was tedious and hard to trace when needed. Hard disk, pen drive, cloud and other storage options have made this irksome job quick and easy. In context with the software company example, all your data is just a click away!

• Internet—This word has changed the way we live. There is nothing wrong with using the phrase “Ocean of Data” for the Internet. As a question pops up, the first thing you do is “Google Search”. Anything and everything is available on the Internet. Thus, a knowledge sharing gateway in the form of Web Data.

• Memories—Nowadays, companies sell smartphones pitching its camera quality. The obsession to capture food, surroundings, selfies and capture every other moment of your life is high. The pictures and videos in your phone gallery are nothing but pixel data set put together. Hence, carrying memories everywhere is a boon of Data!

• Pre-requisite for Computer process—How can we neglect the very first definition of data learned in school? You and your employees can work with user-friendly software because the engineers have developed the process where Data in the form of binary language goes in, gets processed and comes out in the form of human-readable information.

• Big Data—Big Data is nothing but a field that is used to analyze large and complex data sets. Now, you would think about why Big Data? What is wrong with the traditional data analyzing software? Well, again time to consider an example. Imagine the tons of data a good old brand or an expansive organization like AMUL or TATA would have. The traditional software is incapable to process such massive data sets and hence the need arises for Big Data.

  Obviously it covers all the fundamentals of traditional data processing but in addition, it works great for unstructured data. So, drawing data in multiple forms (text, image and video) and also add lacking information through data fusion. Another important aspect to observe is “Expanded Agility”. Change is inevitable in any form of business and in the 21^st century “Faster Change is a Better Change”. Big Data offers smart results to improve and align business processes.

  There can an entire blog post on Big Data benefits but I'll stick to the topic and move forward!

Data as an Antagonist

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Favorable and unfavorable consequences go hand in hand. We discussed the beneficial part and now turn for the detrimental half:

• Data Breach—If you have been following the news, I need not stress it hard on the infamous “Facebook Data Breach with Cambridge Analytica”. When you install an app, it requests certain permissions and you “Accept” it without bothering. Sometimes, your sensitive/private information becomes a victim of unauthorized access which is then a monetary gain for malicious organizations.

  Now, just think if it leaks your business's trade secret or client details, it can cause a relentless collapse.

• Storage Space Crisis—The problem is much serious than your smartphone alert, “Storage space running out!”. You would either add a memory card (if there is a slot) or delete some unwanted stuff. But on a professional front, how liable is this solution?

  With Big Data in the picture, the amount of data has raised to an exceptional level. There is an enormous gap between the supply and demand for hard drives and data centres. The world is seeking a solution where this increasing amount of data can be stored securely, easily accessible and of course cost-effective.

• High Cost and Complexity for Analysis—Here, the low-level analytics which can be handled using excel is not being talked about. Tools like R programming and Tableau come with a cost and the complexity is high. You will have to choose tools as per your requirement as excel would not be a great option all the time!

Epilogue

Be Alert!!!