Enterprise Software Solutions Enable Technologies to Deliver Information
November 8, 2012
The author of a recent ZDNet article, “Reality Check: Big Data BS” is not the first to call out the marketers and media mongers who are going nuts over the buzz surrounding big data. It could be argued, according to this source, that big data as a concept is nothing new.
This particular article brings in reinforcement in the form of other blogs and posts related to the idea that big data use cases have been around for quite some time now. Projects in the past may not have always been labeled as ‘big data’ but that doesn’t stop them from fitting the bill as such.
The article states:
As I think about this topic I cannot help but go back to the Harrahs case study from ten plus years ago where CEO Gary Loveman applied his understanding of customer loyalty, developed during his tenure at MIT Sloane to the rejuvenation of a tired gaming hall and turned it into a gaming powerhouse. He understood the value of blended real time data coming from multiple sources. More important, he understood that data has to be actionable, business models have to be refined and processes need recasting to reflect the new information and what it is revealing.
Creating and working with actionable and usable data is no longer a challenge for many businesses – rather it does not have to be a challenge anymore. Many information management software solutions, such as PolySpot, enable the technologies to deliver information and users are simply left with making the decisions.
Megan Feil, November 8, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext.
IntelTrax Summary: October 26 to November 1
November 5, 2012
The IntelTrax information intelligence blog posted some excellent articles this week discussing the importance of investing in data analysis technology to help improve the efficiency of workplaces.
“Big Data a Big Part of IT Spending” looks at some projections regarding the rate of IT spending growth, most of which went towards social media campaign spending. However, the spending is continuing to branch out as more and more industries are beginning to utilize the technology.
The article states:
“Big data this year will account for US$28 billion of IT spending worldwide, which will increase to US$34 billion in 2013, according to Gartner.
In a report released Wednesday, the market research firm said much of 2012 expenditure will be in adapting traditional tools to address issues related to the big data phenomenon such as machine data, social data, and the large variety and velocity of data. In contrast, only US$4.3 billion will be focused on new big data functionalities.”
As big data analytics becomes more mainstream, we are seeing more interesting ways that it is being utilized. “Big Data Justice League” examines the use of big data analytics to predict the criminal behavior of maritime pirates.
The article states:
“There are almost too many sources of unstructured data to grapple with: interviews with pirates in custody, news stories about piracy incidents, data from mobile phones found during investigations, e-mail traffic, and social media posts from the pirates themselves. And here’s where the story gets really interesting, in my opinion. Most of this data comes from disparate sources that can vex the best investigations. It’s not simply a matter of easily formatted spreadsheets with clean rows and columns. At warp speed, data comes in from the Web, mobile devices, PDF files and other documents — a potential treasure trove of hidden insights.”
Some companies that a new to the big data game take a little bit of time to see the return on their investment. “Data Scientists More Important Than Most Think” gives four major detractors to analytics success:
“1. 35% of the time, it is the missing analytics skills – For analysts – how well are they able to bridge the gap to business, to understand the real question behind the ask before they jump into the data pull? For PM’s and marketing managers – how well do they understand the recipe behind making decisions based on data (BADIR framework), how well familiar they are with the fundamental analytics technique?
2. 10% of the time, it is the missing decision making process – How does budget get allocated? What is the process of laying out product roadmap?
3. 25% of the time, it is the organization’s data maturity – how easy is to get to data, how many version of the truth exist, does data exist in its rawest form for everybody to aggregate as they please?
4. 30% of the time, it the management and leadership – how is the management making decision, how are they establishing roles and responsibility, how are they holding people accountable?”
Regardless of your industry or expertise in the data analysis field, Digital Reasoning can be of great help. It offers one of the best analytics platforms on the market and can get your house in order by using automated understanding for big data.
Jasmine Ashton, November 5, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
IntelTrax Top Stories: October 5 to October 11
October 15, 2012
This week’s top stories from the IntelTrax advanced intelligence blog focused on the impact of big data analytics solutions on a multitude of different industries.
According to “New Pike Research Report Analyzes Smart Grid Analytics” there will be a spike in smart grid data analytics spending that is forecasted to reach more than $34 billion. The bulk of this spending, which will occur worldwide, will be in the Asian Pacific.
When describing the report, the article states:
“This Pike Research report analyzes the global market opportunity for smart grid data analytics across four key solution segments: meter analytics, grid analytics, asset analytics, and renewables integration for business intelligence, operations, and customer management. The report provides a comprehensive assessment of the demand drivers, business models, policy factors, and technology issues associated with the rapidly-developing market for smart grid data analytics. Key industry players are profiled in depth and worldwide revenue and capacity forecasts, segmented by application and region, extend through 2020.”
“Expert Suggests You Ask Your Analytics Vendor the Tough Questions” explains the importance of advocating for yourself and your business by asking the hard questions when choosing between a myriad of solutions that solve the same or similar data management problems.
The article states:
“SAP customers looking at the possibility of deploying text analytics software within their operations should be diligent about asking vendors lots of questions, according to one expert.
Giving vendors the third degree is especially important when shopping for text analytics technology because there is a wide range of offerings on the market at various levels of maturity, said Hanns Koehler-Kruener, a research director with Stamford, Conn.-based IT research firm Gartner Inc.
Additionally, text analytics technology is still emerging into the mainstream and therefore terminology and performance expectations will vary from vendor to vendor. As a result, the only real way to find out if a particular text analytics product meets specific needs is through questioning and trial and error, the analyst said.”
While most companies see big data as a huge benefit when channeled appropriately, consumers may see it as a threat to their privacy. “The Threat of Big Data” explains how big data can be misused.
The article states:
“What those breadcrumbs tell is the story of your life. It tells what you’ve chosen to do. That’s very different than what you put on Facebook. What you put on Facebook is what you would like to tell people, edited according to the standards of the day. Who you actually are is determined by where you spend time, and which things you buy. Big data is increasingly about real behavior, and by analyzing this sort of data, scientists can tell an enormous amount about you. They can tell whether you are the sort of person who will pay back loans. They can tell you if you’re likely to get diabetes.”
Whether you are looking to utilize big data for good or evil, there are companies out there that are willing to help your company harness data. Digital Reasoning uses automated understanding to take the pressure off employees and gain valuable insights from big data.
Jasmine Ashton, October 15, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
Comperio FRONT: Business Logic for Enterprise Search
October 2, 2012
There are many enterprise search systems. Some are available without charge; others can push beyond seven figures. Many professionals working in an organization want systems to provide information needed in the context of work. Laundry lists of hits from a key word query were a significant advance over manual inspection of documents in file folders in file cabinets.
In order to deliver information within the context of a business task, logic is needed. Many search systems provide laundry lists or categories of possible relevant documents. Without business logic, an enterprise search system can frustrate some professionals.
FRONT is available for Dot Net and Java. FRONT is compatible with SP 2013.
Comperio, a company with the motto “Search matters,” offers FRONT. According to the firm:
Comperio FRONT is the proven business logic software for state of the art search solutions. Comperio FRONT blends perfectly with your enterprise search platform to deliver quickly, with quality and top features.
The software is an outgrowth from more than eight years of experience with enterprise search and more than 100 search projects. Comperio has encapsulated that expertise into the FRONT framework.
In a nutshell, says, Jørn Ellefsen, CEO and Founder of Comperio:
Our deep experience has lead to the creation of Comperio FRONT framework, which allows search solutions to be built more quickly and with improved quality and features.
KMWorld Magazine named FRONT a trend-setting product for 2012. This is the second time that Comperio FRONT has received this recognition from KMWorld. FRONT is now a crucial part of more than 200 enterprise search solutions.
Comperio FRONT is a major source of satisfaction amongst our customers. It is a product that blends seamlessly with existing investments in search engines and end-user applications. The search middleware, or orchestration layer, leverages best practices gained from hundreds of search projects and possesses business logic visualized in graphical workflows. Whether it’s for developing a search solution as a business productivity solution or as a line of business application, Front allows our customers to benefit from faster time to market with higher quality. The flexible nature of the FRONT framework helps companies react quickly to new business opportunities and likewise to the availability of new technology. This award recognizes Comperio’s investment in, and commitment to, delivering world-class search solutions that will stand the test of time.
For more information about Comperio Front, navigate to http://goo.gl/umaO7.
Stephen E Arnold, October 2, 2012. Mr. Arnold is a paid columnist for KMWorld Magazine.
Sponsored by Augmentext
IntelTrax Top Stories: September 7 to September 13
September 17, 2012
This week the IntelTrax advanced intelligence blog published articles on current trends related to big data, fraud detection, and analytics solutions that will help both of the previously stated problems.
“Real Time Analytics Makes an Impact” discusses how companies have spent the last couple of years making it so that their analytics solutions have zero lag time.
The article states:
“Operational Intelligence, basically, is real-time analytics over operational and social data. Operational intelligence, or OI as we like to call it, provides three important capabilities. First is real-time visibility over a wide variety of data. Second is real-time insight using real-time continuous analytics, and third is what we call right-time action, which means being able to take action in time to make a measurable difference in the business. We decided to focus on Operational Intelligence because it addresses some very important business problems that we felt were not well served by traditional software products today. These problems include service assurance in telco, social analytics for dynamic selling and brand management, real-time supply chain management, smart grid management in electrical utilities, and dynamic pricing in retail. These are just some of the examples.”
One way that analytics solutions have positively impacted a variety of industries is through the detection of fraud. “Fraud Analytics Deliver on Fine Art Forgeries” explains a new niche in fraud analytics that helps prevent substantial losses from individuals and museums.
The article informs:
“Just as with credit card fraud detection, the data sets created by digital authentication are quite large. Similarly, the modeling tools are extremely sophisticated, looking for patterns that would be unlikely from the painter just as a given purchase would be unlikely for a credit card holder. Zeroing in on the fraud can save an enterprise millions of dollars. Digital authentication is not real-time — it took two days to identify the fake Van Gogh. But in the world of art, that’s more than fast enough.”
When discussing advancements made in the industry, the information is often more well received when it comes from experts in the field. “Analytic News is Best From the Experts” showcases on experts opinion on the topic:
“Werner Vogels, a data guru as chief technology officer for Amazon Web Services, has been touting his interpretation of big data for almost two years. For him, managing a behemoth like Amazon, it’s not exactly what big data is, but what can be done with it.
“Big data is the collection and analysis of large amounts of data to create a competitive advantage,” he told a conference earlier this year.
“I am an infrastructure guy and for me big data is when your data sets become so large that you have to start innovating how to collect, store, organise, analyse and share it.”
Since technology is continuing to progress at rapid rates it is important the companies seek out a data analytics provider that evolves with the times. Digital Reasoning’s solutions, not only will protect your business from fraud, but its automated understanding for Big Data allows companies to find the necessary information they need to stay ahead of the competition.
Jasmine Ashton, September 17, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext.
What Can Big Data Do for You?
September 1, 2012
We all know big data has been at the top of the buzzword heap for many moons now. But how does all that hype translate into practical use? ZDNet examines the matter in “How is Big Data Faring in the Enterprise?”
Writer Dion Hinchcliffe begins by identifying three big changes he says are emerging within the big data field. First is the growth of “data-first” thinking; rather than hunting for data that supports an already formed decision, this approach strives to pull insight from the best raw data available. Next is the significant move away from the relational data model which has long held sway. Finally, Hinchcliffe writes:
“The third change is the move towards making big data a more operational component of the way organizations work and how externally-facing products function. While data scientists are often required to get the best outcomes, the results of their work are often applications or data appliances that are usable by just about anyone. Just like Google enabled the layperson to query the entire contents of the Web with a few keywords, the next generation of enterprise big data seems to be about connecting workers with the data landscape of their organizations in a way that doesn’t typically require IT wizards in white robes.”
How practical. And the fate of big data in the enterprise hinges on practicality; CFOs don’t usually like to spend a lot of money simply for hipster credibility. Hinchcliffe looks at several reports on what real businesses are, and are not, doing with this technology. For example, a recent report from Novarica shows just 15 to 20 percent of insurance companies preparing to embrace big data. See the article for more.
The word is out that this technology can provide a competitive advantage, but it seems most businesses are unsure how, or how soon, to grasp it. They need industry-specific solutions, and they need to know how these solutions will integrate with their existing business processes.
It looks like big data has some more marketing to do.
Cynthia Murrell, September 01, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
IntelTrax Top Stories August 10 to August 16
August 20, 2012
This week the IntelTrax blog published some excellent articles on data analytics and search technologies.
One of the most notable analytics developers for Web sites is the search giant Google. “eGoogle Analytics Is No Longer the Only Game in Town” discusses some other options for those companies that are not satisfied with what Google is offering.
The article explains:
“If you operate your own website, analytic software can be crucial in order to track exactly how well your site is doing. Without this software, you can do whatever you want with your site, but you will never know if it is getting more visitors, aside from the amount of comments. When you look at the possible options you have for analytic software, the most popular choice is Google Analytics. However, if you’re not a fan of Google or its Analytics package, there’s no need to fear. There are still a handful of options for you to try out.”
Another article of note discusses the recent dramatic increase of unstructured data in almost every industry. “Growth of Text Analytics in Response to Unstructured Data” discusses the fact that there has also been an explosion of data analytics solution to make sense of all this new data.
When discussing some great solutions available, the article states:
“The Text Analytics market is rapidly consolidating with numerous mergers and acquisitions over the past year. Oracle purchased Endeca for its technology to mash up unstructured data from many different data sources. HP acquired similar technology from Autonomy. IBM picked up Vivisimo and Lexmark for their rich search features. Popularity of Big Data is driving huge interest in the area of text analytics, and that interest is causing the technology to evolve quickly. Text analytics techniques, for example, are becoming increasingly richer and more sophisticated in the information and insight which they can provide.”
While there are a lot of amazing data analytics solutions on the market, many companies are also feeling the effects of a downtrodden economy, so choosing an affordable solution is a very important part of their decision making process. “CFOs Demand a Reduction in Costs and Increase in Competitive Edge” argues that companies are utilizing data analytics solutions as a way to cut costs and create new growth opportunities.
Here are some qualities that companies in New Zealand and Australia are looking for in their products:
“As a discrete process, like CRM, corporate performance management is particularly well suited to a cloud delivery model. It provides organizations greater flexibility, lower capital costs and fast implementations that take weeks rather than six plus months. The end result is customers fast-track uncovering business opportunity. We’re excited about partnering with Host Analytics as it provides our clients a unique value proposition at a time when CFOs and CIOs are telling us that their number one priority is to reduce costs and gain competitive advantage with business analytics.”
The three articles that I have highlighted drive the point home that companies, regardless of their industry, are looking for text analytics solutions that will efficiently make the most of their limited resources and time. Digital Reasoning is a relatively young provider that understand the unique needs of small and midsized companies and offer their Synthesys platform as a solution that provides all the necessary data crunching tools and apps needed for most industries.
Jasmine Ashton, August 20, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
Toast to CMO or CMO Toast
August 17, 2012
Once upon a time, CMO’s were company heroes. They were known to roam about the region promoting business via merit and word of mouth with their merry band of quality sales staff. However, Reuters’ article “CMOs Could Be Extinct, Says Strategic Marketing Growth Expert Lisa Nirell” tells us that times have changed.
Marketing is done via the web now. Merit is gained by comments and testimonies and companies move up the open search ladder to popularity. So, what exactly do today’s marketing personal do?
It appears the CMO’s chair has been replaced by a hard drive:
“Their current perceived role is limiting them from reaching their true potential. When I reflect on the traditionally sought after competencies for a CMO, an image of ‘order taker and service provider’ emerges. Unfortunately, that perception has three limitations: it has become outdated, if not extinct; it restricts Marketing’s true potential; and finally, it perpetuates the belief that anyone can be a marketing expert.”
Thus, CMOs are struggling with career threatening market shifts for these reasons:
- Budgets are shifting.
- Social media exacerbates cross-departmental and customer tensions.
- Pressure to demonstrate a return on investment with Marketing has reached a fever pitch.
- Lines of responsibility across marketing sales are disintegrating.
Who would have thought that chief marketing officers would go from being the toast of the town to just plain toast? Marketing is more important than quality, the service, the product—everything except revenue. Maybe traditional marketing no longer works but this is not the end of the story. It is simply the start of a new chapter.
Jennifer Shockley, August 17, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
IntelTrax Top Stories: August 3 to August 9
August 13, 2012
This week, the IntelTrax blog delivered some informative posts that discuss the issues surrounding big data analytics technology in today’s workforce.
While many articles discuss the prevalence of analytics technology in various industries, “Troubling News for the Analytics Needy” looks at those that are not using it.
A recent survey found:
“Fifty-six percent of respondents indicated they will not be deploying big data analytics applications even beyond 2013, the survey of 255 IT professionals found. Half of those surveyed were data storage professionals at the analyst level; the other half comprised IT managers, vice presidents and CIOs…Survey respondents with no plans to roll out Hadoop or other big data analytics software said doing so requires a specific business case, and in most instances they didn’t see a need for it, according to Marco Coulter, managing director of TheInfoPro’s Cloud Computing Practice.”
Another interesting piece is “Big Data Law Might Be Changing.” It discusses the fear that many have of data analytics technology falling into the wrong hands. One suggestion has been to grant the legal right to accessing personal information of third parties as a way to incentivize transparency.
Writer Patrick Roland concludes:
“This is promising news for a population concerned with the potentially invasive nature of data mining and analytics. After last year’s surprising Supreme Court ruling that basically let Vermont sales reps mine doctors’ patient lists, we are pleased to see reasonable thought return to the table. We can only hope they further find ways that help us utilize this strong technology, while still keeping wrongdoers away.”
One industry that is already seeing lucrative returns on its investment in data analytics technology is Wall Street Investors. “Big Data Promises Big Returns for Stock Investors”
references an article that discusses why savvy stock traders should pay attention to the latest analytics technology.
The article states:
“At the heart of the feed from ORATS is the use of “implied dividends” – the dividend levels implied by prices within the options markets. In the case of equities that have both dividends and exchange-traded options on their stock, the dividend price is a major component in the calculation that traders use to compute a fair price for those options. ORATS runs that calculation backwards to compute “implied dividends”, a measure that reveals the broad consensus of all players in the options market about how much a company will pay as a dividend along the entire option expiration calendar”.
All three of these stories provide different avenues to get to the same conclusion. Investing in data analytics technology is an integral way for companies to make the most out of the unstructured data that is being put out on a daily basis. It is important that you find a reputable company with affordable solutions like Digital Reasoning.
Jasmine Ashton, August 13, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext.
Research and Development Innovation: A New Study from a Search Vendor
August 3, 2012
I received message from LinkedIn about a news item called “What Are the Keys to Innovation in R&D?” I followed the links and learned that the “study” was sponsored by Coveo, a search vendor based in Canada. You can access similar information about the study by navigating to the blog post “New Study: The Keys to Innovation for R&D Organizations – Their Own, Unused Knowledge.” (You will also want to reference the news release about the study as well. It is on the Coveo News and Events page.
Engineers need access to the drawings and those data behind the component or subsystem manufactured by their employer. Text based search systems cannot handle this type of specialized data without some additional work or the use of third party systems. A happy quack to PRLog: http://www.prlog.org/10416296-mechanical-design-drawing-services.jpg
The main of the study, as I interpret it, is marketing Coveo as a tool to facilitate knowledge management. Even though I write a monthly column for the print and online publication KMWorld, I do not have a definition of knowledge management with which I am comfortable. The years I spent at Booz, Allen & Hamilton taught me that management is darned tough to define. Management as a practice is even more difficult to do well. Managing research and development is one of the more difficult tasks a CEO must handle. Not even Google has an answer. Google is now buying companies to have a future, not inventing its future with existing staff.
The unhappy state of many search and content processing companies is evidence that those with technological expertise may not be able to generate consistent and growing revenues. Innovation in search has become a matter of jazzing up interfaces and turning up the marketing volume. The $10 billion paid for Autonomy, the top dog in the search and content processing space, triggered grousing by Hewlett Packard’s top executives. Disappointing revenues may have contributed to the departure of some high profile Autonomy Corporation executives. Not even the HP way can make traditional search technology pay off as expected, hoped, and needed. Search vendors are having a tough time growing fast enough to stay ahead of spiking technical and support costs.
When I studied for a year at the Jesuit-run Duquesne University, I encountered Dr. Frances J. Chivers. The venerable PhD was an expert in epistemology with a deep appreciation for the lively St. Augustine and the comedian Johann Gottlieb Fichte. I was indexing medieval Latin sermons. I had to take “required” courses in “knowledge.” In the mid 1960s, there were not too many computer science departments in the text indexing game, so I assume that Duquesne’s administrators believed that sticking me in the epistemology track would improve the performance of my mainframe indexing software. Well, let me tell you: Knowledge is a tough nut to crack.
Now you can appreciate my consternation when the two words are juxtaposed and used by search vendors to sell indexing. Dr. Chivers did not have a clue about what I was doing and why. I tried to avoid getting involved in discussions that referenced existentialism, hermeneutics, and related subjects. Hey, I liked the indexing thing and the grant money. To this day, I avoid talking about knowledge.
Selected Findings
Back to the study. Coveo reports:
We recently polled R&D teams about how they use and share innovation across offices and departments, and the challenges they face in doing so. Because R&D is a primary creator and consumer of knowledge, these organizations should be a model for how to utilize and share it. However, as we’ve seen in the demand for our intelligent indexing technology, and as revealed in the study, we found that R&D teams are more apt to duplicate work, lose knowledge and operate in soloed, “tribal” environments where information isn’t shared and experts can’t be found. This creates a huge opportunity for those who get it right—to out-innovate and out-perform their competition.
The question I raised to myself was, “How were the responses from Twitter verified as coming from qualified respondents?” And, “How many engineers with professional licenses versus individuals who like Yahoo’s former president just arbitrarily awarded themselves a particular certification were in the study?” Also, “What statistical tests were applied to the results to validate the the data met textbook-recommended margins of error?”
I may have the answers to these questions in the source documents. I have written about “number shaping” at some of the firms with which I have worked, and I have addressed the issue more directly in my opt in, personal news service Honk. (Honk, a free weekly newsletter, is a no-holds-barred look at one hot topic in search and content processing. Those with a propensity to high blood pressure should not subscribe.)
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