Big Data isn't the answer

In a recent speech, John Costello, former president of Dunkin Donuts, is reported to have said “Big data is not a strategy…”. Well…let me say that big data isn’t the answer.

I wish I had said that sometime in the past few years. I think I’ve similar things but I haven’t come right out and said those exact words (that I can recall). Again, I wish I had.

I hear people talking (and writing) about big data today. There are some folks out there that take a very common sense approach to big data, but quite a few have gone ‘ga ga’ over big data.

Blogs and articles are written that describe the utopia that big data can bring to an organization.  They talk about how great big data is and what great things big data can bring.  For the most part, these people are right. Big Data can bring great returns on the investments into the technology, systems and people…but big data isn’t the answer.  Big data isn’t about finding answers…big data is all about finding more questions.

Big data isn’t a strategy and it surely isn’t the answer.  Big data is just one more tool that can be used in the toolbox that an organization can use to improve.