We’re still grappling with just how to apply Big Data to the real world of financial data management. Interestingly, this article by Forbes’ contributor Adrian Bridgwater (@ABridgwater) takes the well-known book The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey and uses the seven-habit approach to apply to big data analytics for users, analysts, developers, managers and evangelists.
To summarise, the seven holy virtues according to Bridgwater are:
1 – Begin With No End In Mind (as you never know what analytics can be performed and what insight can be gleaned)
2 – Be Proactive, Pragmatic, Progressive & Persuasive (proactive in looking for trends in data; pragmatic about what’s of real value; progressive in unearthing insights; and persuasive in selling the value of that insight to the board or rest of the company)
3 – Be Technology Toolset Agnostic (being open to openness)
4 – Take Big Data Into The Toilet (ok, not entirely sure this one makes sense but in essence Bridgwater cites an example of an Austrian hygiene company using big data analysis to change its business model)
5 – Be Time Sensitive (he cites Tibco’s European CTO Maurizio Canton as stating not all data is created equal… some of it has a ‘use by’ date, calling for immediate action)
6 – Keep A Wide Open Path For Big Data (you need to be able to rely upon a scalable infrastructure that can keep pace with the rapid exponential growth of your data)
7 – Above All, Be Holistic (you need to still look at the big picture, not just get caught up in the ‘old shoe box (or cluttered draw) of information’)
