Taming The Big Data Tidal Wave: Finding Opportunities in Huge Data Streams with Advanced Analytics

CHAPTER 10

Enabling Analytic Innovation

What is innovation? According to Merriam-Webster, innovation is

• “The introduction of something new,” or
• “A new idea, method, or device.”1

The formal definition of innovation is disappointing to me because it misses the power of what innovation can do in business and in the world in general. Without innovation we’d still be living in the Stone Age because innovation is what drives change and progress. Unfortunately, innovation is not something that’s always given the focus it needs in today’s business environment.

Very few businesses succeed by simply following the competition. Innovation is one key to success. If an organization sits back and watches the competition begin to work with big data, it will have a problem. This is particularly true if there is gloating about how the competition is spending money in their efforts while the organization in question is not. Perhaps once the organization hears what the competition has been able to do with big data, it will get the motivation to go and do the same thing. That is simply playing catch-up. The effort of those who lead is spent to get a competitive advantage while the effort of those who follow is spent to catch up with the leaders. That is not a winning formula.

In this chapter, we’ll review some of the basic principles behind innovation. Then, we’ll apply them to the world of big data and analytics through the concept of an analytic innovation center. The goal is to provide readers ...