Big Data and Human Connections - Part II

“Whatever you are, be a good one.” – Abraham Lincoln.   

Data visualization, analysis, and new correlations.  When you think of Big Data, you may think of the technical and logistical attributes – the nuts and bolts of this technology trend.  But if I’m making an impact, you may think about “stories.” Big Data and Human Connections Part I.

For Big Data to succeed, it needs to strive for doing more than just running the same computations faster. It needs to transform how we interact with information in our careers, in our communities, and at home. Information is useful only if we can make sense of it and put it in the hands of the right people.

Here’s what I mean.…  Mohandas Gandhi became the pre-eminent leader of India’s independence and inspired movements for non-violence, civil rights, and freedom.  His biggest achievement?  He effectively used the new media of his time – radio and newsreel – along with photography in newspapers to make the mighty British Empire blink. 

With technology and public communications nowhere near as instantaneous as they are today, Gandhi prepared the worldwide media for his now famous “Salt March” by giving them plenty of advance notice and having the event play itself out over numerous days.  As it’s described on Wikipedia: “Correspondents from dozens of Indian, European, and American newspapers, along with film companies, responded to the drama and began covering the event.” 

Information is only as good as what you do with it – and with whom you connect. 

Another example: Malala Yousafzai, who is just 18 years old and a Nobel Peace Prize winner.  She is the Pakistani school pupil and education activist from the Swat Valley region of Pakistan and the youngest nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize in history. 

When the Taliban banned girls from attending school in early 2009, Malala, at the age of 11½, wrote a blog under a pseudonym for the BBC detailing her life under Taliban rule.  She shed light on the Taliban’s attempts to take control of the valley and shared her views on promoting education for girls.  Recognizing the importance of the story, The New York Times filmed a documentary about her life the following summer, and she gave interviews in print and on television. 

On October 9, 2012, Malala was shot in the head and neck while returning home on a school bus and left in critical condition.  After the shooting, she was airlifted to a military hospital in Peshawar, where doctors were forced to operate after swelling developed in the left portion of her brain, which had been damaged by the bullet when it passed through her head.  Later in October, she travelled to the United Kingdom for further treatment.  And on January 3, 2013, she was discharged from the hospital to continue her rehabilitation at her family’s temporary home in the West Midlands.

Today, Malala not only continues to pursue her personal educational dreams but to leverage her visibility and impact to enable the dreams of others.  In another ripple effect, her story and the stories of the people she is impacting are still playing out.

These narratives illustrate the power of “the story” and how pervasively these stories can spread.  They can also guide our thinking about Big Data.  The value isn’t the technology, but the connection and inspiration to people.  The key for business?  You have to leverage the information while understanding the ripple effect it may have.

If insiders or leaders can leverage information that has been unearthed or intentionally hidden, and they use it to connect with their teams, it can have broader impact that lasts for years, decades, or centuries.  

Our global story is built on people who uncovered and communicated what mattered so as to change people’s knowledge and understanding, their thinking and behaviors, and their way of life.

These people made a difference.

Even though the world seems smaller today, and we can communicate and make connections around the world instantaneously now, Big Data can be put together to tell stories.  Technology advances can enable and inform, but only people can leverage them to go further with data and effectively tell those stories.  Only people can act to inform, to inspire, and to motivate one another.

It all begins with each of us trying to be good at what we do.