Analytics and Big Data for Accountants, 2nd Edition

Chapter 6Big Data End User and Accounting Tools

Learning objectives

• Recognize how optimization is used with big data.
• Recall an actual example of big data in the electronics retail business.
• Identify other big data resources.

Introduction

This chapter examines accounting tools that can be used for big data analysis. The reader may be familiar with some of the tools but may not have considered the use of the tools as a resource for analyzing big data. One of these tools is very helpful in the analysis of generating sales and referrals. We’ll start our discussion by examining the use of big data in a real-life example, using data pulled from a nationwide retailer. The example will illustrate how to access, dissect, and evaluate big data, both in terms of data contained in the information as well as inferences that can be drawn from the big data.

Actual example of big data

In this section, the participant is going to be involved in a real-life big data example. As you look at the example, keep in mind the following:

• Notice the “look” of real big data.
• Determine if any trends can be identified within the big data.
• Speculate on how the trends changed.
• Determine what management actions could be taken in view of the data.

Example of accessing actual corporate data — Best Buy

Best Buy allows the public to access some of its big data. You can access the data by visiting https://developer.bestbuy.com/.

It is necessary to get an API key, so click on the box in the middle ...