What Happened?
A recent study suggests the majority of municipalities have yet to adopt big data solutions that can harness large volumes of information being generated by modern computing systems, despite the increasing presence and demand for such technology.
So What?
The MeriTalk “The State and Local Big Data Gap” report explained the rise of big data and need for appropriate solutions to leverage the information to support decision making and operational efficiency is prevalent in both the public and private sectors. As more enterprises implement big data solutions to process and analyze the information streams to benefit business activities, many public agencies are lagging behind and not maximizing the potential of the information streams.
According to the study, big data presents local governments with complex information regarding various aspects of municipality operations and needs. The insights provided in the volumes, however, cannot be realized and translated into action without the proper tools for collection and reporting. Municipalities can benefit from big data technology through increased efficiency, accelerated decision making and enhanced understanding of solutions to citizen problems.
Study Findings
While 79 percent of public IT professionals are only slightly familiar with big data technology, just 2 percent have a big data strategy in place. Of the municipalities leveraging big data streams, 59 percent analyze the information, but only use half of the data to support strategic moves. IT professionals listed major obstacles holding localities back from taking full advantage of the technology:
- 46 percent cite a lack of storage capacity
- 34 percent report slow analysis and processing speeds
- 32 percent do not have necessary analysis tools
- Majority of respondents are unsure of who owns the data being analyzed
However, cities will likely have to increase their big data technology adoption in the near future as:
- 87 percent of state and local agencies report increased data volumes in the past two years
- 97 percent anticipate data growth by 53 percent by 2015
- About 30 percent of local agencies are already struggling to maintain data volumes with limited capabilities
Adoption Enhances Efficiency
A study from McKinsey & Company estimated the implementation of big data analytics in the public sector throughout Europe could generate more than $149 billion in operational savings. The figures refer to anticipated improvements to streamlined tasks and communication connectivity. Additional benefits may also be realized when big data technologies are applied to fraud and error reduction in tax activities. The adoption of big data technologies is projected to cut 15 to 20 percent of administrative costs in first world localities.
The study explained how volumes of municipal data can not only enhance the effectiveness of local agencies to solve resident problems, but also enable a more connected citizenry to enable communication and distribution of information. The research indicated big data can:
- Make information transparent and usable
- Help leaders boost performance and analyze operational efficiency
- Enhance decision making
- Segment streams for more precise reporting
- Improve effectiveness of solutions to meet public demands
Data Efforts
Gov1 has reported on other data initiatives and how cities can prepare for growing tech demands.