Does Your CEO using the Term Big Data: What's In a Name?

In present world, when we enter into any technical field, everyone is using the word BIG DATA. I don't know people really know the meaning of it or not. I saw so many startup meets, all CEOs talk about that they are goint to use BIG DATA or else they are using it. Here I'm pointing out some relationship b/w a CEO and BIG DATA. When you are in a business world, you pay close attention to the words people use. The same word can mean different things to different people, and when people use certain words they tip off a lot about their state of mind. I have a theory, and it is only a theory because I don't have a way to test it right now. My belief is that the word your CEO uses for "big data" or "analytics" or "business intelligence" or whatever you want to call it, says more about the state of your analytics program than any more solid metric. I'm convinced that the CEO's choice of words around data and its use shows his or her total grasp of the value of the project. And I'm convinced that the CEO's interest in it is probably the number one driver of success unless you have a CIO (or maybe a CMO) who is extraordinary. If you read your CEO's interviews and public musings, you will see a strong relationship between your perceived success or failure of your own analytics efforts. Here are my "translations" of your CEO, at least in theory:

Big Data -- If your CEO uses "Big Data" I'm guessing he or she still doesn't know what it really means. For the most part, serious analytics professionals seem to have abandoned the word as part of a needless hype cycle. The only people who still use it are those who aren’t really in the know or who have something to sell and hype helps them sell it. I believe if your CEO is still using this word, you are probably throwing money at the wrong problems, storing everything whether it is useful or not, still coping with storing data rather than using it, and wondering why no one in the business is using your reports.

Business Intelligence -- If your CEO is using this term, they are probably older and remember that before there was "Big Data" we just called providing data to the business "business intelligence." They don't think there is any difference between modern analytics and the old spreadsheets and reports they got in the 1980's, and they might be right. If your CEO uses BI, then chances are you are a bit underfunded, having trouble getting the CEO or CFO to invest in predictive analytics, and you probably hear managers saying something like "but my experience tells me these numbers aren't the whole story." At the same time, you are probably respected, and you just wish you could do more.

Analytics -- You have a modern CEO who can see past the hype and knows analytics can serve the business. You probably are well-funded and mature. If anything, you probably are under pressure to do more every day. If there is a downside, it is probably that your CEO expects miracles.

Data -- If the CEO doesn't have a word for it and just refers to "data", he or she is probably smart at the business but technologically illiterate. This is usually bad news because the CEO doesn't think they need your services at all. You are probably spending most of your days wondering why they haven't cut you from the budget yet and working on the data you need to comply with whatever laws apply to your industry.

Nothing -- You'd think this is the most dangerous situation, but I have a theory that rather than being the CEO who ignores analytics, the one who doesn't speak of it, is the CEO who has most assimilated it into "business as usual." It isn't analytics because it is just part of any business process. It is integrated directly into marketing decisions without needed to be held up as a special insight.

All of the above -- Some CEOs are going to change the terms for the audience. They are shifty, smart, poker players who know words mean something and know how to read a room. You won't know what they think, but you're stock is probably in good shape.

As I said, this is sort of a casual theory. I don't have any way to prove my theories. But I'd love to hear if you hear your CEO or other leadership using one word more than another, and if so, whether you think that ties into the way they see "big data" or "analytics." In other words, tell me if you think I'm crazy for having the theory.

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