Organizational considerations initiating a big data and analytics implementation

Purpose - Organizations are beginning to realize the potential benefits of big data and harnessing all of the data they are creating. However, a major impediment for many organizations is understanding where to start in big data and analytics implementation. In many respects, starting a successful implementation is not much different from any other project managed within the organization. The major stumbling block is knowing what questions to ask to get things going. This paper aims to help libraries and information organizations that are considering big data and analytics implementation to begin their journey by following a checklist of eight aspects to be considered in the development of a big data and analytics strategy. Design/methodology/approach - The eight aspects to consider in big data and analytics implementation were developed using a combination of existing project management common knowledge, consultant recommendations and real-life experiences. Findings - Organizations considering big data and analytics implementation need to explore aspects related to the data they have, what organizational problems they are trying to solve, how data governance will work in the new environment, as well as how they will define success in terms of their implementation. These are in addition to the technical issues one would normally expect in a systems implementation. Originality/value - While there have been many articles written about the implementation of big data and analytics in organizations, most of these focus on technical issues rather than managerial and organizational concerns. In addition, none of these other articles have been from the perspective of library and information science. In this article, the focus is specifically on how information professionals may approach this problem.