Big Data Analytics

Meaning
Big data analytics is the often complex process of examining large and varied data sets, or big
data, to uncover information -- such as hidden patterns, unknown correlations, market trends and
customer preferences -- that can help organizations make informed business decisions.
On a broad scale, data analytics technologies and techniques provide a means to analyze data sets
and draw conclusions about them which help organizations make informed business decisions.
Business intelligence (BI) queries answer basic questions about business operations and
performance.
Big data analytics is a form of advanced analytics, which involves complex applications with
elements such as predictive models, statistical algorithms and what-if analysis powered by high-
performance analytics systems.
The importance of big data analytics
Driven by specialized analytics systems and software, as well as high-powered computing
systems, big data analytics offers various business benefits, including:
Here is a couple of skill sets required to be a data analyst:

 Problem-solving and critical thinking: An able data analyst should be able to make a
hypothesis, experiments and inferences from the data available at their disposal.
 Data management and analysis: A proficient data analyst should be comfortable and skilled
in collecting, understanding and manipulating large amounts of data available.
 Programming: A thorough knowledge of programming is not only useful, but most of the
times necessary to solve problems where readymade software may not be a viable or flexible
choice.
 Visualization and communication skills: A data analyst must be able to put forth the finding
in an accessible and informative manner to aid decision-making.

The importance of big data analytic

New revenue opportunities

More effective marketing
Better customer service
Improved operational efficiency
Competitive advantages over rivals
Big data analytics applications enable big data analysts, data scientists, predictive modelers,
statisticians and other analytics professionals to analyze growing volumes of structured
transaction data, plus other forms of data that are often left untapped by conventional BI and
analytics programs. This encompasses a mix of semi-structured and unstructured data -- for
example, internet clickstream data, web server logs, social media content, text from customer
emails and survey responses, mobile phone records, and machine data captured by sensors
connected to the internet of things.

5 Skills You Need To Know To Become A Big Data Analyst

Traditional data analysis fails to cope with the advent of Big Data which is essentially huge data, both
structured and unstructured. Much more is needed that being able to navigate on relational database
management systems and draw insights using statistical algorithms.

The good news is that the analytics part remains the same whether you are dealing with small datasets,
large datasets or even unstructured datasets. What is needed the most in big data is the ability to draw
relevant information from the humungous amounts of data being processed every minute. This requires
technology to join hands with traditional analytics.

Let us now look at some of the key skills needed for being a big data analyst –

1) Programming
While traditional data analyst might be able to get away without being a full-fledged programmer, a big
data analyst needs to be very comfortable with coding. One of the main reasons for this requirement is
that big data is still in an evolution phase. Not many standard processes are set around the large
complex datasets a big data analyst has to deal with. A lot of customization is required on daily basis to
deal with the unstructured data.

Which languages are required – R, Python, Java, C++, Ruby, SQL, Hive, SAS, SPSS, MATLAB, Weka, Julia,
Scala. As you can not knowing a language should not be a barrier for a big data scientist. At the
minimum one needs to know R, Python, and Java. While working you may end up using various tools.
Programming Language is only a tool and more tools you have in your kitty, merrier it is.

2) Data Warehousing
Experience with relational and non -relational database systems is a must. Examples of non- relational
database include – MySQL, Oracle, and DB2. Examples of non-relational database include – NoSql:
Hbase, HDFS, MongoDB, CouchDB, Cassandra, Teradeta, etc.

3) Computational frameworks
A good understanding and familiarity with frameworks such as Apache Spark, Apache Storm, Apache
Samza, Apache Flink and the classic MapReduce and Hadoop. These technologies help in Big Data
processing which can be streamed to a great extent.
4) Quantitative Aptitude and Statistics
While the processing of Big Data requires great use of technology, fundamental to any analysis of data is
good knowledge of Statistics and linear algebra. Statistics is a basic building block of data science and
understanding of core concepts like summary statistics, probability distribution, random variables,
Hypothesis testing framework is important if you are data scientist of any genre.

5) Business Knowledge
To keep the analysis focused, to validate, sort, relate, evaluate the data, the most critical skill of a big
data scientist is to have a good knowledge of the domain one is working on. In fact, the reason big data
analysts are so much in demand is that it’s very rare to find resources that have a thorough
understanding of technical aspects, statistics and business. There are analysts good in business and
statistics but not in programming. There are expert programmers without the knowhow of how to put
the programs in the context of the business goal.

To keep the analysis focused, to validate, sort, relate, evaluate the data, the most critical skill of a big
data scientist is to have a good knowledge of the domain one is working on. In fact, the reason big data
analysts are so much in demand is that it’s very rare to find resources that have a thorough
understanding of technical aspects, statistics and business.

There are analysts good in business and statistics but not in programming. There are expert
programmers without the knowhow of how to put the programs in the context of the business goal.

Lastly, a good hold on machine learning is highly beneficial as it helps in managing complex data
structures and learning patterns that are too difficult to handle using traditional data analytics