With all signs pointing to greater Big Data spending by businesses, the question is: Do you want to get the most out of your investment? To do so, experts say businesses shouldn’t just invest on Big Data technologies, but on Big Data talents as well.
Gartner, an information technology research and advisory firm, recently released its report, Survey Analysis: Big Data Adoption in 2013 Shows Substance Behind the Hype Opens a New Window., which revealed that organizations are increasingly investing in Big Data and will continue to do so over the next couple of years.
According to the study, 64 percent of organizations have invested or plan to invest in Big Data in 2013 — 30 percent have already invested in Big Data technology, 19 percent plan to invest within the next year, and an additional 15 percent plan to invest within two years.
Further, a recent market forecast Opens a New Window. by market intelligence firm ABI Research also predicted that business spending on Big Data will exceed $31 million in 2013 and reach $114 billion by 2018.
Like many tech sectors, however, Big Data faces a significant skills gap leading to an impending work force shortage. According to a study Opens a New Window. by McKinsey & Co., by 2018, the United States will face a 35 percent shortfall in highly skilled statisticians and data analysts that businesses need to make sense out of Big Data Opens a New Window.
As major universities implement and expand Big Data programs, businesses also need to prioritize Big Data hiring and evaluate the role they play in shaping tomorrow’s Big Data work force.
