Making a Case for Big Data in the Public Sector

Big data is changing the way government agencies store, manage and collect data, but they cannot rely on structured data to meet their goals, according to a recent survey from government niche network GovLoop and enterprise NoSQL database specialist MarkLogic. Like commercial businesses, public-sector agencies need to capture data from a variety of sources, including unstructured data such as email and social media, to turn it into actionable items. But GovLoop, asked "Is the government ready for big data?" The majority of survey respondents said yes, but they still face major challenges and roadblocks, ranging from buy-in by the leadership to a lack of needed skill sets. This is where government agencies can leverage consulting and outsourcing services to help them build a case for big data as well as develop a data and analytics strategy and platform so they become an integral part of the agency's big data strategy. They also will find the low-hanging fruit before scaling out to help build a business case for big data. A few successes early on can help drive adoption. Here is a look at the survey's top findings.