Big data continues to be top of mind while new technologies are also emerging to reel in and uncover important insights. In 2018, a variety of solutions came to the fore and 2019 is setting the stage for another data explosion. Here, several experts in the big data space offer their predictions for what's ahead in 2019.
1-Letting Data Tell the Story: 2019 will bring data science to the fore in corporate finance and HR. Increasing use of new technologies—such as AI, machine learning and augmented analytics—to dissect vast troves of data will result in actionable insights such as “where are our employees having a good work experience” or “why did this financial performance metric shift.” Think of it like data’s guiding light, illuminating the recommended path you should take. – Pete Schlampp, vice president of Workday Analytics
2-The Year of the Data Feed Frenzy and Growth of Data Visualization: 2019 might not be a break out year for IoT, but the commonalities are beginning to come together in terms of particular domains. IoT will move from a generic concept to solving real problems. Businesses will finally embrace data visualization and see its promise. We’ll have no choice – data growth is exponential and increasingly structured because of IoT. Like how consumers today can view their home’s energy consumption and look at comparisons to neighbors’ energy use, we’ll start to see this bleed (finally!) into the supply chain, as example. Automated analytics will find something interesting, create a visual representation of that item – then it shows it to a human so action can be taken. - Ruhollah Farchtchi, CTO of Zoomdata
3-Big Data Takes the Main Stage: Historically, big data projects centered on building infrastructure. Once a platform was established, businesses could move to a second phase with the goal of gaining business value from their big data, such as the ability to leverage IoT. Over the next few years, organizations with this established foundation will move into a third phase, where it won’t be just about big data anymore. Accordingly, I expect to see a few key trends in big data projects emerge companies will strive to leverage IoT and sensor technology in an integrated way within other technologies; Businesses will focus on more advanced access to big data to feed predictive and advanced analytics models and create automated insights; Instead of simply driving broader data visibility and backing IoT, big data will also drive new initiatives that enable a more flexible delivery of analytics and support broader data management; and businesses will focus on the convergence of technologies and big data as a part of broader initiatives by leveraging both operational and transactional hubs and big data stores. - Lyndsay Wise, director of market intelligence, Information Builders
4-The Database Sprawl will Continue as Different Types of Databases Proliferate: App developers are creating a lot of data in a lot of different ways, but it’s all bumping into each other without a servicized solution that offers flexibility to house and manage this data. As it stands, developers are using multiple databases for each individual application, creating a database sprawl as users cobble together multiple databases to plug different holes in the system. While the short-term gain of being able to use emerging technologies and have many choices seems great upfront, companies need to consider their long-term goals, rather than select a cobbled together, quick solution. - Ravi Mayuram, CTO, Couchbase
5-Increased Need for Personal and Informed Decision Solutions: As big data continues to proliferate, there will be an increasing need in 2019 for technology that enables personal and contextual access. While technology continues to drive the creation of big data next year and beyond, new innovations will increasingly help people and organizations leverage big data to enable users to make better informed decisions. - Scott Parker, director of product marketing, Sinequa