How big data is affecting the job market

Posted by Justin Hesser on May 20, 2013

Last week, this blog discussed the ability for organizations to use data and shape their personnel management strategies around the contents of their information. The same can be said about the departments that employees either currently or soon will work in.

By evaluating the operations of various departments, businesses can determine exactly what they need to do to improve their productivity. The answer may be as simple as minor operational changes, or it may result in the need to bring in new workers. The truth typically lies in the information. Building a custom database software system designed to analyze the productivity of each department will ultimately help organizations determine whether or not they need to bring in new employees or let current ones go.

This can give insights into which areas of business have the most pressing need. For example, if a company is relatively successful but ends up lagging behind in one or more areas, it might be determined that a specific area needs more people in order to hold up its end of the bargain. In today's uncertain economic landscape, companies cannot afford to make hiring mistakes, but using big data to analyze both positions and applicants can help ensure that each hire is the right fit.

Big Data shaping enterprise IT hiring

Not only is big data dictating the way companies manage employees, the entity itself is having a major impact on IT departments. The growth of big data is expected to create 4 million new jobs globally by 2015, according to a report from icrunchdata. Roughly half of them are in the United States alone. IT departments across the country are shifting their focus on developing solutions designed to better track information, so bringing in individuals who focus on the practice will go a long way toward ensuring the success of a big data strategy.

This trend is being fueled by IT departments that understand hiring analytical minds is just as important as hiring those with experience managing high-tech systems. Todd Nevins, a spokesman from icrunchdata, said in a statement that he isn't sure where this trend is ultimately going, but as long as companies are finding the value in hiring personnel with analytical skills, he doesn't believe it will die down.

"The hype is through the roof, but I'm not sure when it will turn," he said. "We aren't seeing any signs of a slow down on our side from companies recruiting big data talent due to the massive opportunities in their data. We don't expect to see any pull back in the foreseeable future as long as the ROI continues to exceed the expense of finding, recruiting and retaining big data talent."

Of course, even though businesses are hiring professionals with an understanding of big data, they still must possess the solutions needed to ensure their analytics strategies yield the best results. FileMaker development can help create the applications needed to examine information, process it and generate effective reports quickly and effectively. A combination of this system with highly skilled IT professionals will help ensure companies have the ability to maximize the value of their data.