Thomas H. Davenport

Gaining value from a book like this depends on your starting point. I know a bit about data collection and manipulation and I find little of value in Mr. Davenport's presentation. He seems more interested in allaying the reader's fears of big data than providing concrete examples of how we can use big data to improve the ways we manage our businesses. If you are new to data manipulation or are curious about how business data is seen these days then you might find the book useful. If not, show more then I suggest that you go on to something more practical.

I received a review copy of Big Data at Work through NetGalley.com. show less

ARC provided by NetGalley

Big data. What is it and why the heck do we keep hearing people talk about it? Hasn't it been around for years and years? Haven't we always looked at data? Yes..and no. In Big Data at Work author Tom Davenport, expert in analytics, shares with us that at one time he too thought big data was just a retread of old information. But then he started looking into it and he discovered...big data is new. In this book Davenport tells us in a concise, nonsense, and show more nontechnical way of what big data is and why it should matter to us.

Davenport starts us at the very beginning of explaining in simple, easy to understand terms and illustrations as to what big data is and why it's different from regular analytics. Big data, as Davenport explains, consists of unstructured data--such as comments on a feedback form; is made up of 100 terabytes or more of information; and that it is a continuous flow of data, it doesn't stop just because a survey ends. Davenport clearly explains to us that not everyone will need big data or people to analyze it, but walks us through the different aspects that might be of interest to us, why it matters, and how we can go about implementing it in our own businesses. He shares with us how companies the size of Netflix and Google are using big data to help change their approach at how they interact with their users, but even more importantly he shares with us how startups are utilizing big data to get ahead of their peers.

Even more importantly for me, Davenport explains to readers about how to get people on board with wanting to examine big data and how to build a strategy and framework into implementing it. I say it's the most important for me, because so many authors put out pie in the sky dreams or hopes, or suggest things that are only practical for businesses the size of Google. Davenport instead talks about how to do this on a practical small scale and gives us examples of how it has worked for different groups already in existence.

For anyone that is interested in the study of data, whether big or small, and how you can utilize it in your place of work, this is a must have book. Davenport's clear and concise terminology will help you understand it and explain it to others that you work with, even if they think that data crunching is looking at 2 spreadsheets at a time. I give this book 4 out of 5 stars and it will definitely have a place on my book shelf. show less

Since I know next to nothing about Big Data, this book was a welcomed oasis in the rapidly changing world of information technology. Davenport is a business consultant, as such his focus is on the conceptual and business end of the idea. I was looking for something that was closer to the technical end. To be fair, he does make a more than valiant stab at listing what big data can do for actual physical products rather than just virtual products.

I think he did a great job of introducing me to show more the idea of big data, what it is, what it would take to implement, the million and one considerations that one needs to take into account prior to jumping in with both feet.

I think the key thing that he kept hammering on was that Big Data is more than just analytics on steroids. He made that point abundantly clear. I appreciate the way Davenport presents the information concisely and in detail without losing the reader and without condescending to the reader's lack of knowledge.

Obviously this is not a be all end all book on big data, but it is a great introduction to the topic. show less

What I liked most about this overview of Big Data is that it shows the potential without participating in the hyperbole. Davenport is an established expert in this field. This book covers what a modern practitioner or business leader needs to know, including the evolution, technology stacks, skill sets and, most importantly, the application.