It’s the place where the whole data industry comes together to find inspiration, share challenges (making AI work – anyone?), and see the latest tech solutions from the world’s premier data solutions providers. 

Every September, thousands of students, data leaders, practitioners, and innovators descend on London’s Olympia for Big Data London. It’s two days of finding out what others are up to, hearing about the latest tech innovations and, let’s be honest, a bit of eye-rolling about the latest hype cycle. 

For us at Oakland Everything Data, it’s more than just another industry event. Big Data London is where we meet our clients, past, present, and future. It’s where the conversations that matter in data and AI happen. And yes, we’ll admit it, stocking up on socks and T-shirts is a nice bonus, too. 

But this year, Big Data London feels bigger, bolder, and more important than ever. With AI hype at fever pitch, data leaders are under pressure to deliver real results – and quickly. That’s why we’re so excited about what’s coming up this September. 

Why Big Data London Matters 

What makes BDL special is its ability to bring the entire data community under one roof. From startups to the biggest global enterprises, everyone is here to share what’s working, what isn’t, and what’s next. It’s a unique opportunity to see cutting-edge solutions, compare experiences, and walk away with a roadmap for delivering value back in the real world. 

And while the exhibition floor is buzzing with activity, it’s the conference theatres that steal the show. Packed to the rafters year after year, these sessions offer hundreds of deep dives into everything from governance and data quality to AI ethics and platform modernisation. You need to get in line early to bag a seat, but it’s worth it.

Big Data London 2025 Speakers 

This year’s agenda is stacked with over 300 speakers, including data engineers from Netflix, analytics leaders from Google, and strategists from across industries. And of course, Oakland. For the first time since our partnership was announced, Softcat will be there too. 

Our very own Andy Crossley, CTO of Oakland, will be joining forces with Alex Pearce, Chief Microsoft Strategist at Softcat, for a no-holds-barred session on why AI isn’t working for everyone and what you can do about it. Their talk, “AI: It’s Going Back to the Future,” will cut through the hype and get real about the foundations every organisation needs to succeed with AI. 

Expect honesty, practical lessons, and plenty of myth-busting. If you’ve ever struggled to show ROI on your AI investments, this is the session for you. 

Where and When is Big Data London 2025? 

Dates: 24–25th September 2025 

Venue: Olympia London, West Kensington 

Nearest Tube: Kensington (Olympia) is right next door, with West Kensington and Barons Court close. 

It’s easy to get to, and once you’re inside, everything is under one roof – whether you want to explore the exhibition floor, catch a keynote, or grab a coffee and talk shop. 

Who Should Attend Big Data London? 

One of the things we love most about BDL is its accessibility. It’s not just for hardcore techies or analysts – it’s for anyone with a stake in data. 

• CDOs and CIOs looking to build data strategies and prove business impact 
• Heads of Data and Analytics navigating the complexities of AI adoption 
• Finance leaders (CFOs) tasked with unlocking ROI from major tech investments 
• Practitioners and engineers eager to hear from peers and sharpen their skills 
• Students and early-career professionals looking for inspiration and opportunities 

Wherever you are on your data journey, you’ll find something valuable here. 

Where to Find Oakland and Softcat 

We’ll be exhibiting at Stand 60, located right next to one of the main theatres for maximum visibility. Pop by, say hello, and grab one of our legendary Oakland guides. Whether you’re wrestling with AI, data governance, or platform engineering, our team will be on hand to talk through your challenges. 

Oakland & Softcat on Stage 

Mark your calendars!

Session: AI: It’s Going Back to the Future 

When: Wednesday, 24th September, 15:20 – 15:50 

Where: Gen AI, App Intelligence & AI Agents Theatre 

Here’s a flavour of what Andy and Alex will cover: 

• Why so many AI projects fail to deliver real value 
• The critical data foundations every business needs to succeed 
• Real-world lessons from organisations finding AI harder than expected 

The good news? You’ll walk away with practical steps to start unlocking real value from your AI investments. 

Big Data London 2025 Theatres 

Big Data London is nothing if not comprehensive. With 13 dedicated theatres, you’ll have your pick of sessions to match your interests. Themes include: 

• Gen AI & AI Agents
• AI, Data Science & MLOps
• Analytics, Visualisation & Storytelling
• Data & AI Governance
• Data & AI Strategy
• Data Architecture Modernisation
• Data Engineering
• Data for Good
• Data Products & Data Fabric
• DataOps & Observability
• Fast Data
• Integrated Planning Analytics & Sustainability
• Teams & Culture

Big Names at Big Data London 

BDL always attracts an impressive roster, and 2025 is no exception. Expect speakers from organisations as varied as: 

• Magnum Ice Cream 
• The Ministry of Defence 
• Specsavers 
• Netflix
• Microsoft 

It’s not often you see such a diverse range of industries represented in one place proof, if you needed it, that data really is everyone’s business. 

And then, of course, there’s the headline speaker. This year, Professor Brian Cox looks at the small subject of: Is the universe the ultimate processor of information? Expect a mind-blowing session that blends quantum mechanics, information theory, and the very fabric of reality. 

How To Get Tickets for Big Data London 2025 

The best part? Big Data London is free to attend. You just need to register in advance. Tickets are available online until 19th September, so don’t leave it to the last minute. 

Why We Can’t Wait for Big Data London 2025 

For us at Oakland Everything Data, Big Data London is like being kids in a sweet shop. It’s not just about the content (though the content is world-class) – it’s about the energy of 15,000+ attendees, the buzz of the exhibition floor, bumping into old friends, and the chance to meet and connect with so many incredible vendors. 

It’s also about walking away with ideas – lots of them. From practical ways to scale AI responsibly to swapping war stories with fellow data leaders, we always leave BDL buzzing with inspiration and armed with new thinking to bring back to our clients. 

Final Word 

If you care about data and if you care about getting value from AI you can’t afford to miss Big Data London 2025. 

Join us at Olympia London this September. Come to our session, swing by our stand, and let’s talk about how to move from hype to value in AI and beyond. We’ll see you there!

The post Why We’re Counting Down to Big Data London 2025 appeared first on Oakland.

Oakland, which has a proven track record in business improvement and transformation, has joined forces with Data Literacy Academy. This strategic partnership combines Oakland’s expertise in data strategy and technical implementation with the Data Literacy Academy’s specialised knowledge and resources in developing data literacy skills.

Why a Two-Way Street Approach to Data Literacy Matters

The partnership is built on the fundamental understanding that data literacy is a two-way street. It’s not just about data professionals understanding business needs; it’s equally important for business leaders and decision-makers to understand the potential and limitations of data. This two-way communication is essential for organisations to unlock the true value of their data and make informed decisions. Far too often, businesses work in siloed ways without communicating effectively, which can lead to missed opportunities.

Addressing the Evolving Landscape of Data and Business Leadership

The partnership acknowledges the evolving landscape of data roles and leadership. We are seeing a new wave of data leaders emerging, often with strong business acumen but limited technical expertise. This creates a crucial need to help these leaders bridge the gap between data capabilities and business strategy.

Everyone talks about the value gap of what people can achieve through data. Teams are particularly poor at defining or even trying to define ROI metrics. Back to the two-way street approach. Business people must share what problems or opportunities they are trying to create using data, and data people need to be able to translate the technology, what it delivers, and how it works.

Often, data literacy, or data training as most people call it, is seen along with data governance as a tick-box exercise. They don’t understand how to execute education in the right way to achieve the outcomes they are looking for. You don’t get endless chances to make people see the value in becoming data literate, so you have to get it right.

The Rise of AI and the Need for Support

The growth of AI is opening up the use of data to everyone. AI is probably powering half of the applications you use every day. It’s easy to think of AI as a chatbot or ChatGPT, but if you are tasked with how your business should use AI, that becomes tricky, and if you’re responsible for coming up with that solution, then it becomes even more challenging.

For AI to realise its full potential, it must move on from the chatbot. It must be process native. You need to design AI capabilities into your processes. It’s not just a technology solution. This involves a whole new level of data literacy!

There is a lot of groundwork to be done so businesses are truly ready for AI, and have the skillset needed to drive value from it. We believe this is an incredible opportunity; people shouldn’t be fearful. AI gives your data the opportunity to talk – just imagine what it can tell you. But you must be able to walk before you can run. You must be data literate before you can become AI literate.

Our Partnership’s Goals: Building Bridges and Fostering Growth

This collaboration aims to achieve two key objectives:

1. Embedding Data Literacy Early On: Unlike traditional IT projects, data initiatives often lack a focus on user training and adoption. The partnership aims to address this by highlighting the importance of data literacy and embedding it throughout the entire transformation journey, from initial planning to implementation and ongoing use.
2. Bridging the Imagination Gap and Empowering Growth: Through a clear understanding that people and technology have equal value. Our partnership aligns perfectly with that mission by equipping individuals with the data literacy skills needed to understand the “art of the possible” and make informed decisions that drive growth.

By bridging the gap between data and business understanding, this partnership empowers individuals and businesses to unlock the true potential of data. Ultimately, it’s about enabling freedom and growth through a deeper understanding of data and its potential applications.

What does our partnership look like?

Our customers will have the opportunity to get support on the technology side, as well as the people side. When training and data culture change is needed, Data Literacy Academy will set up an impactful change management programme to enable teams. Supported by Oakland through strategic planning and technical implementation.

All too many technology programmes end in disappointment.  With our combined expertise, our goal is that no business needs to experience failed technology projects again, because they had the professional resources to do it right the first time.

Mastering the 5 Stages of a Successful Data Project

We’re determined to turn the tide of lacklustre data projects, which is why we have created our new guide. A blueprint to mastering the 5 Stages of a Successful Data Project.

Download the guide, and you’ll learn:

• Insider tips to align your data and business strategies, avoiding the dreaded silo effect
• Actionable strategies to ensure your data projects are eagerly adopted across the board
• Real-life anecdotes to illustrate the dos and don’ts of data project management

The post Oakland Partners with Data Literacy Academy: Bridging the imagination gap appeared first on Oakland.

Interestingly whilst the number of newly represented organisations was a big plus this year (certainly from our perspective), the mix of challenges for senior data leaders remained strangely familiar.

Data leaders are still navigating the technologies that are sometimes thrust upon them from IT departments or more technically orientated leaders (yes, that’s you CIO/CTO), but mainly they’re dealing with the expectation that data will solve all ills, and why can’t the smart ‘data scientists’ (the catch-all role for any clever analyst) just magic up the answers. This is often where the real problems and challenges really begin.

It was a common thread in many of our conversations that data governance, data management, and data quality still appear near the top of the CDO to-do list. Ill-conceived data platforms, cloud migrations, and new technology ‘silver bullets’, still don’t help the organisation become more data-centric/savvy/literate (pick your term of choice). Data leaders are grappling with how to get these aspects solved and embedded as the organisation pushes (or stutters) on the big tech investments.

If this is the case, is the data world really moving forward, learning from the previous mistakes and making the most of the ‘new and shiny’? Or are most of the challenges, still just as big, complex, and complicated to navigate as before…proving that a data challenge is the same as any business challenge, that takes time, drive, tenacity, and a bit of luck?

So, data leaders are you facing:

• Data governance, quality, and management still not getting the air time it needs
• The struggle of how to get started with the shift to a new of thinking/working with data
• How to provide the assurance that the data products produced are ‘right’
• How to work with IT to get the best data structures in place to serve the business

…then don’t worry, you’re not alone!

It wasn’t the same, not having the after-meeting chats in the bar with old friends and new, but the event again provided a unique chance for senior data leaders from every industry to share experiences and genuinely learn from each other, whilst hopefully finding some answers to their challenges.

We will look forward to the next one, hopefully, face to face and at the bar, so we can join together and figure out how we put these data wrongs to rights!

Andy Crossley is a Director at the Oakland Group

The post So, another year, another CDO Exchange event in the bag with IPQC appeared first on Oakland.

When was the last time you stood still to savour the moment, pause for thought or take time to truly look after your mental health and wellbeing?

There are only 24 hours in a day, yet in modern society, it often feels like we are trying to cram as much as we possibly can into our waking hours. We talk on our phones whilst walking, grab a ‘quick bite’ to eat at our desks, sit transfixed at our computer screens without taking regular breaks, and constantly juggle working life and family life in a manner that would make a circus performer proud! We are constantly bombarded with unrealistic images on social media and receive a daily overload of messages on how we should look, talk, and feel. It’s often difficult to take time out and just breathe!

As children, we embrace the simple things in life. We learn to splash in puddles, build sandcastles, lose ourselves in imaginary worlds and keep ourselves entertained in a variety of ways, but as we grow older, we begin to face more and more challenges in life, and our ‘stress buckets’ start to overflow. We all face a multitude of demands on our time each and every day and it’s no wonder cracks begin to appear and both our mental and physical health begins to suffer.

When times were simpler

Mental health is just as important as physical health and in order to function properly, we need to maintain a high level of self-care. By creating a wellbeing toolkit, we can begin to put steps in place to look after ourselves and others. Self-care is not selfish and as a result, we will begin to see many positive outcomes, not only for ourselves but also for our surrounding family, friends and colleagues.

We spend the vast majority of our lives at work and as employers, we have a duty of care to look after our staff and their mental health and wellbeing and provide them with the necessary tools to look after themselves. The journey of life is never a smooth one and the events of 2020 have certainly highlighted this. Major life events, such as redundancy, bereavement, family separation, relocation, and chronic illnesses can all take their toll and just any one of these events can throw us off balance. No one should ever feel like they have to suffer in silence, and it is vitally important we let our teams know that support is always available in times of need.

While we do not always have the power to change what happens to us in life, we can certainly lookout for the warning signs, both in ourselves and those around us. It is important for employers to take steps to invest in mental health and raise awareness so that when problems do arise, we can be there to listen with a non-judgemental ear, provide advice and offer the correct level of support and guidance.

When discussing mental health and wellbeing, the ‘Four Pillars’ of mental health – exercise, good nutrition, relaxation, and sleep are often referred to and at the Oakland Group, we have been investing time to look into these areas and learn how we can embrace the principles.

Earlier this year we introduced Dr Sarah Hattam, a General Practitioner and the Director of Concilio Health https://www.conciliohealth.com/ to our team and asked her to conduct a well-being survey. We invited all our employees to take part in this survey and Sarah also conducted some 1:2:1 interviews, so we could gain a better feel for how we were supporting our team and where we could make improvements going forward. Sarah then ran some online sessions for everyone on the topics of Sleep, Recharge, Move and Mind Matters and she has also recently rolled out some Mental Awareness training to our employees and associates, to extend the learning and provide everyone with the tools to look after themselves and others around them.

We have also enlisted the help of other experts in the field, such as Lucile Allen-Paisant, the Director of Mind-It https://www.mind-it.co.uk. Lucile supported us recently with the continuation of our wellbeing programme and also ran a fantastic session for us in September on stress management, providing additional guidance and tips on how to deal with stress. Lucile also recently arranged for us to have an online Chair Yoga session with one of her experts, Helena. This session proved really helpful to our team, particularly whilst we are all currently working from home and our movement is somewhat limited!

So, once we have covered the principles, what can we do when things don’t go to plan or we feel ourselves veering off track? This is where our well-being toolkit comes into play and where practicing resilience can really help. It is so easy to beat ourselves up when we have a bad day and our inner voice pops up to berate us and remind us how we could have done things better or said something differently!

It really is ok, not to be ok and natural to feel anxious or apprehensive when facing new challenges and in times of uncertainty. We will all experience fear and failure and encounter various setbacks throughout our lives, but with the right level of help and support, we can get back on our feet and gradually move on.

Mental health is not a ‘one size fits all’ cure and it really is finding whatever method works for you when it comes to self-care. Some people like to practice calming methods such as mindfulness, meditation, or yoga, or go outdoors and be at one with nature. Others like to document their thoughts and feelings by writing a journal or practicing gratitude and positivity or by helping others by doing some voluntary work.

At Oakland, we have a real passion for mental health and wellbeing, and our mental health awareness journey has only just begun. We do not see this as a ‘tick-box’ exercise and we will consciously continue our learning and development into 2021 and beyond, so we can continually invest in and engage with our employees to ensure that they are looked after and their voices are heard.

Jane Dennis
Office Manager and Mental Health Champion

The post Be kind to others, by first being kind to yourself… appeared first on Oakland.

We recently participated in the 2-day Project:Hack 6 hackathon hosted by the Project Data Analytics Community https://projectdataanalytics.uk/ which focuses on exploring and sharing how to leverage big data, machine learning and AI within a project, programme and portfolio environment. This was the perfect hackathon for us because this area is our day-to-day work at the Oakland Group. The hackathon had 12 different challenges you could work on, ranging from tracking COVID-19 transmission on construction sites to identifying sarcasm in user comments.. I chose Challenge 9 (Using machine learning to predict variance in activity duration). Can you guess what my specialty is? To my complete surprise, when I joined the slack channel, by sheer coincidence  I saw that Eva had also chosen this challenge! Given that we work together and that we already work in the field, one could argue that we had an unfair advantage….and that argument would be correct! Eva and I are an amazing team. When we work together, sparks fly! We communicate clearly, we motivate each other, we keep each other focused, and we know each other well enough to know when to push harder and when to ease up. All of this makes for a beautiful working relationship. So yes, big unfair advantage……or so we thought!

After 48 hours of planning, discussing, building, developing, and coding, we submitted a Power BI dashboard and a machine learning model combined with a PowerPoint presentation recorded over Zoom. After careful examination from the judges, we were told that *cue dramatic music* we came second place. It seems the advantage was not as big as we thought! Hats off to the winning team though. Their challenge was to develop a dynamic Power BI Dashboard and Power App to track the progress of a hotel construction project. They genuinely deserved to win. Their presentation was seamless and what they managed to produce over the two days was truly impressive. Their winning presentation can be viewed here https://youtu.be/1WzW0BPZvoI

After retrospectively analysing the competition weekend and the feedback, here is our advice on how to win (or at least come second in) a hackathon:

1.) Be lucky
In group projects, you never know what the group chemistry is going to be like. If you’re lucky, you will have a group consisting of people who get on well, who work as a team, and who get the job done. If you’re unlucky, the group will very quickly descend into chaos! Also, I’m sure we all have horror stories of working as a group and someone doesn’t do any work. If you’re lucky, this person won’t be in your group during the hackathon. If they are…unlucky! We were also quite lucky because we had a very helpful client sponsoring the challenge. This meant we were able to ask them questions, get feedback on our progress, and constantly check in to make sure we were heading in the right direction. We are very grateful to Pedro and the team at Baker Hughes https://www.bakerhughes.com/

2.)  Play to your strengths
My strength is machine learning so in hackathons I play to my strengths. If I volunteered myself during the hackathon to do the mathematical calculations, that wouldn’t make sense-actually, I have a PhD in Maths. That’s a bad example. If I volunteered to build a Power BI front end, I-actually, I have quite a bit of experience with Power BI. Hmmm, the point I’m trying to make is do the things you are good at and have experience in. Don’t do things that are new to you or that you may find difficult. That way, you’re being the most helpful you can be to the team. If you want, you can completely contradict this point and explore areas that are new to you. Hackathons provide a low-stakes opportunity for you to acquire a new skill. Depending on what the prizes are for winning the hackathon and how competitive your team is, this may be a bad idea. Proceed with caution!

3a)  Everyone’s opinion is important
Hackathons are a team effort. Everyone on the team has something to contribute and everyone can learn something from the team. For these reasons, it’s important to listen to everyone’s opinion and ensure they are heard. This increases team chemistry, team morale, and everyone is more likely to contribute.
3b) Everyone’s opinion is not critical
Hackathons have deadlines. If there is someone on your team who likes to talk in hour-long monologues or who always contradicts any group decision, that deadline is going to approach very quickly. These people will disrupt the flow of the work, decrease team morale, and are very likely not going to contribute much (See point 1 – unlucky!). Identify these people early in the hackathon and take appropriate actions. Trust me!

4.) Focus on the goal
There are different strategies in a hackathon. You can play to win the hackathon, or you can play to impress the client who sponsors the challenge. They are two very different success criteria. To win the hackathon, you want a shiny presentation that meets the judges’ requirements. To impress the client, you want something they can pick up and use once the hackathon is over. Sometimes these criteria overlap, sometimes they don’t. It’s important that you know what you are focusing on, especially given the time constraints in a hackathon. In either scenario, presentation is important. It can really make or break your work. You can have the most amazing solution but if it doesn’t look good, it doesn’t present well, and it’s not explained clearly, you will struggle to impress both the judges and the client. Presentation is key!

So there’s our advice to win (or at least come second in) a hackathon: be lucky, play to your strengths, everyone’s opinion is important but not critical, and to focus on the goal. Overall, this hackathon hosted by the Project Data Analytics Community was a lot of fun. Given the circumstances of COVID-19, lockdowns, and social distancing, this virtual hackathon hit all the right notes. Working from home is tough (see my blog on surviving and thriving while working from home here (https://bit.ly/3ctnlnb) but the organisers ran this hackathon in such a way that I didn’t even miss my weekend. Truly phenomenal, first-place quality work!

Dr. Kevin Minors, Data Scientist at The Oakland Group
Eva Fernández Marín, Technical Business Analyst at The Oakland Group

The post How to win or at least come 2nd in a hackathon! appeared first on Oakland.

I consider myself privileged for the parents that I have. I was raised playing with puzzles and construction toys. At that time, my parents had no idea what sort of effect that would have on me, but I now know that thanks to them I learnt skills that a lot of people are deprived off… Skills like spatial visualisation, cognitive flexibility, and abstract reasoning.

Ever since I was a child, my favourite colour is green, so I was not naturally drawn into the societal model of girls play with pink or boys play with blue, which meant that I chose and played with whatever toys I preferred, not the toys that conformed with my gender.

I was lucky enough during high school to have a diverse group of friends, not just all girls or all boys. My mother had always been interested in science and my father is a computer enthusiast, so for me, it was never something ‘strange’ to like these things, despite being a girl. I didn’t realise that girls didn’t go into technical careers until I myself went to University to study an engineering degree. It was only when I saw the difference in numbers between boys and girls in my faculty that I now understood the groups who promote women in STEM are few.

Things are changing, but not fast enough. By the time that girls are told that it’s okay to go into technical careers, it’s too late. These messages need to start at a very early age.

As a woman working in a male-dominated sector, it is sometimes difficult, but you learn to expect it. The first time someone made a comment of “what are you doing here instead of being home like a good wife?” I was shocked. I didn’t know how to react – I never expected it. He would never have made that kind of comment towards a man, I told him. It’s just a joke, you shouldn’t be so angry, he replied… I don’t think it’s a joke.

For centuries in most cultures, this has been the reality for women – not being respected, or listened to, by the world of men. I’m lucky – fortunate for the way that I was raised, I didn’t do anything special and I do live in a time where seeing women in STEM is being more and more common, but there’s work yet to do.

In closing, I would like to present Dame Stephanie Shirley, a woman who had to overcome much bigger obstacles in the field that she desired: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d5nzJ1rQBew

Eva Fernandez Marin

The post Growing up loving green appeared first on Oakland.

Every year a mass of people descends on the Olympia for Big Data London (BDL). This year the Oakland team arrived en masse to find out the latest tech developments in the data/analytics world and chat to attendees in order to understand what issues they were having and how we might be able to help. As such, below I’ve summarised a few thoughts from the event based on talks, exhibitors and those conversations!

1: Data quality and access are common blockers in getting the most from data!
The main reason for being at BDL was to chat with potential clients in order to understand what data centric issues they were having, from overall strategy down to data quality. This allows Oakland to really get under the skin of our audience and determine what we can deliver to help solve these issues.

I discovered the most common issues were around being able to access data easily and ensuring the data quality. These problems seem largely to be caused by the isolation of data systems away from those trained to utilise the data (i.e. data held by IT, whilst analysts sit in other functions) or poor ETL processes. As such, there may be some hope for these companies with the greater push from on prem to cloud infrastructure, which allows permissions and processes to be reset for a more data centric organisation!

2: There appears to be a trend in code free solutions?!
Of the over 100 vendors on show at BDL, there appeared to be a number offering code free tools (Such as Alteryx or Streamsets), which allow companies to improve their outputs without hiring the more technically skilled staff that are required for dealing with complex data.
I found this surprising as our experience with these tools has been disappointing, But I can see the merit for companies trying to rapidly upskill their use of data, looking to push away from an excel based solution but not jumping into the deeper lake of full on programming, allowing things to stay somewhat simpler!

My concern around these tools is the ability to optimise processes and run production scale jobs, being locked out of the inner code. As such, some companies may find themselves building large processes within these tools and finding themselves having to translate them later.

3: Managed services are on the rise!
A couple of years ago AWS brought out a product that amalgamated a variety of their offerings into one product, known as SageMaker. SageMaker was designed to give more power to data scientists by taking away some of the pains of developing cloud infrastructure and allowing them to focus on analysis and modelling. This was done by providing an analysis interface which could easily connect with AWS data sources and be configured to automatically develop a model endpoint in order to serve a production level model.

A key thing I noticed this year’s BDL, through both walking around and attending talks, is that these types of service appear to be on the rise. This was clear from the strong presence of DataBricks, who provide a managed platform in order to more easily utilise the Spark big data infrastructure. In addition, there were several smaller companies who were offering to reduce the dev ops / architecture burden of data scientists, allowing them to focus on model development (such as Algorithmia and BDB).

The most obvious reminder of this rise in managed services came when attending a talk launching Microsoft Azure’s new product Synapse. Synapse has been set up in a similar way to Sagemaker, allowing a data scientist to quickly develop models connected to various data sources. However, an additional feature is the development of the SQL engine to allow it to more quickly incorporate files typical used for model outputs. As such, analysts relying on the outputs of said models will be able to access the underlying predictions faster.

Overall, I feel like this is a step in the right direction, if used properly (i.e. don’t just throw out models), and whilst these services come at a price, they do allow those with more analytic than infrastructure experience to get up and running until they fell, they can fly on their own!

4: Everyone loves AI….

Interestingly, this year’s BDL fell only a week after a large controversy within the data community, namely the discovery of the highly gender biased AI used to determine credit limits for Apple’s new credit card (https://observer.com/2019/11/goldman-sachs-bias-detection-apple-card/). As such it was interesting to contemplate how the mass of AI based companies would deal with the expected questions from their potential customers around how their products would deal with bias.

Aside from this, my main thoughts were around the sheer number of companies touting AI as the solution, fully cementing the data world in the AI hype. My personal feelings around this, based on my experience dealing with messy, incomplete data over the last few years, is that these types of solutions are often unprepared to deal with the state of company’s data. This is especially true for older or larger organisations where said company has gone through multiple process changes, altering how data is collected / maintained / represented.
As such, whilst I do feel like the rise of useful AI is something that is inevitable as companies use of data matures, for now the better approach would be to have a greater understand of their current position and properly plan how to achieve their analytic goals

Dr Richard Louden is a data scientist with The Oakland Group

The post A data scientists view of Big Data LDN 2019 appeared first on Oakland.

Murray will take us through his data-driven journey with The Oakland Group, from building the business case and managing expectations through to the development of an advanced POC. Running through the movement from an on-premise Oracle-based reporting system into the utilisation of AWS, Databricks and Azure platforms to allow more efficient and scalable reporting, he will share his insights on the challenges involved in working with classic enterprise systems and the lessons learnt along the way.

Register for your free ticket.

https://lnkd.in/g_vMZY2

The post Murray Leach set to speak at Big Data London appeared first on Oakland.

PyconUK is a highly accessible, community-driven conference that looks to share what people are doing with Python and link up members of the community. Talks range from the broader conceptual pieces around the language (such as comparing the move from Python2 to Python3 to the staggered change in calendars across Europe) to the highly technical deep dives (there is a lot you can learn about dictionaries!) and everything that falls in between.

Over the four days in which the main body of the conference ran the team attended a number of talks and workshops given by members of the community, attended the well-organised socials (Friday board games are never going to go down badly!) and chatted to loads of lovely Python users. Also, in addition to just watching the talks, Rich Louden from The Oakland Team tested his presentation skills with a dive into the issues regarding reproducibility and collaboration in business analytics and how companies may be able to fix this!

Whilst most companies are aspiring to utilise machine learning to either increase efficiency or drive sales, the reality is that the vast majority aren’t capable due to issues in their current analytics processes. Using examples from his experience in consulting in some of these companies Rich provided a few ways of working to help improve reproducibility and collaboration using a range of opensource tools.

The team had a great time in Cardiff and with special mention to the fabulous volunteer community that organised the event.

Here is a quick summary of a few select talks that were enjoyed by the team (which can all be viewed on youtube via https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChA9XP_feY1-1oSy2L7acog

While History: Continue –

The move from Python2 to Python3 has been an issue for a great number of people, due to a large amount of systems built using Python2 code which will very soon not be supported. Using a number of examples from European history (such as the movement to the Gregorian calendar), Tobias Kunze wove an amusing and interesting comparison about how you should approach moving from one way of working to another.

Syntactic sugar vs maintainability –

Libraries and decorators are common aspects of python programming, utilised often to improve the readability and simplicity of a module of set of actions. However, behind the scenes this methodology can actually lead to increased complexity within the back end of the program, making debugging and maintenance a much greater task. During this talk, Richard Terry provided his opinion on the subject, along with a number of interesting and amusing examples.

Sans I/O programming patterns –

Input/output (I/O) is one of the most common actions performed using code, whether accessing an API, a database or a local file it provides external context that is usually required for a programme to have real value. Through their experience of dealing with archive data at the welcome trust, Alex Chan explains a potential design pattern that takes I/O away from any business logic in order to make the process more maintainable and generalised.

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86% of senior executives agree than eliminating organisational silos is critical to expanding the use of data and analytics in decision making.

(Google Research)

Leading companies such as Amazon, Walmart, Google, LinkedIn, Microsoft and Netflix use data is almost every business decision. Most of these organisations have eliminated internal silo’s and are reaping the rewards of sharing data across the business.

Why attend our data strategy workshop?

The first of our Data Strategy Workshops are lead by The Oakland Groups Andy Crossley and Samir Sharma from Datazuum and is aimed at business managers and decision-makers and will teach how to create a winning data strategy aligned with the business strategy enabling you to make smarter business decisions.

The key areas we’ll cover are:

• Creating a vision which describes the role of data as a true business asset.
• Assessing where you are now in terms of your existing Data Management capabilities.
• Mapping out what business questions you need answered to measure and track your business outcomes.
• Develop a data and analytics roadmap that supports your corporate vision.
• Understanding how data literacy affects your organisations ability to work with data.
• Using your data strategy to support advances such as machine learning.

At the end of the day you’ll leave knowing:

• How to develop a successful strategy for data management.
• Understand how to use data to create more efficient operations.
• Develop a data and analytics roadmap that supports your organisations data vision.
• Understand how to deliver successful data programmes.
• Get insights into building a data platform that fits in with your business.
• Learn why data literacy is important to the building of your data informed culture.
• Network with your peers across different sectors and get insights into new approaches and business models.

This workshop will take place in Central London on October 29th. To book your place click the link below.

http://bit.ly/2kXx4Ny

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