ICTC Releases New Report: Big Data and the Intelligence Economy

The result of an 8-month consultation among industry and academic experts (in which CIOCAN was represented), the recommendations in the Big Data and the Intelligence Economy report are intended to inform business leaders, academics, and policy-makers how to prepare organizations for the opportunities and challenges that big data adoption will bring. One of the most significant challenges, the impact of which is already being experienced, is staffing. Insight into the combinations of background knowledge and new skills required to capitalize on the opportunities will be of interest to CIOs and those involved in education.

Big Data has been described as the “new commodity” for the 21st century digital economy, due to its immense, untapped value. Its adoption is seen as critical for organizations that are looking to extract knowledge from massive data sets in order to streamline connectivity, reveal insights about consumer trends and develop more profitable business models. As a result, 43,700 Canadians are employed directly and indirectly as a result of big data adoption. This is expected to reach 56,000 by 2020.

Having distinct competition with other advanced industrialized economies, Canadian companies must ensure their success by staying up to date with digital technologies. This requires upgrading business processes, digital skills and technology management expertise. To make Canada a more competitive player in the global big data market, industry, policymakers and post-secondary institutions must come together to overcome adoption challenges and skills shortages by treating big data as the evolution of business analytics.

The Executive Summary section of the Big Data Report will give you a good idea of which sections of the full report you will want to study carefully.

ICTC is engaged in ongoing research into IOT that will shed new light on the economic potential of big data analytics and the new business models being created to maximize its value. To learn more about the dynamic relationship, download ICTC’s Monetizing IOT: Capitalizing on Connectivity Trend Focus report.