You can’t analyze what you don’t capture

Big Data can sometimes mean Big Obstacles. And often those obstacles are simply that the Big Data isn’t there.

That’s what more than 1400 CIOs told Robert Half Technology, a staffing agency. According to the study, whose data was released in January, only 23% of CIOs said their companies collected customer data about demographics or buying habits. Of those that did collect this type of data, 53% of the CIOs said they had insufficient staff to access or analyze that data.

Ouch. 

The report was part of Robert Half Technology’s 2013 Salary Guide. There is a page about Big Data, which says,

When you consider that more than 2.7 billion likes and comments are generated on Facebook every day — and that 15 out of 17 U.S. business sectors have more data stored per company than the U.S. Library of Congress — it’s easy to understand why companies are seeking technology professionals who can crack the big data “code.”

Until recently, information collected and stored by companies was a mishmash waiting to be synthesized. This was because most companies didn’t have an effective way to aggregate it.

Now, more powerful and cost-effective computing solutions are allowing companies of all sizes to extract the value of their data quickly and efficiently. And when companies have the ability to tap a gold mine of knowledge locked in data warehouses, or quickly uncover relevant patterns in data coming from dynamic sources such as the Web, it helps them create more personalized online experiences for customers, develop highly targeted marketing campaigns, optimize business processes and more.