This interview with visual analysis and dashboard expert, Stephen Few, is about his newly released book, “Big Data, Big Dupe: A little book about a big bunch of nonsense”. A very audacious title, with very controversial advice!

 

Big Data is a big bandwagon.

And lots of technology providers, consultants and organisations are jumping onto it. But where are they headed? According to Stephen Few, nowhere worthwhile. And of particular – and alarming – concern to people like us, who believe in measuring what matters so we can achieve what matters, Big Data is making some very dangerous claims:

• we can forget about causation, because correlation is all that matters
• we can forget about the scientific method, because data can now speak for itself
• we should measure everything, because we now have the data about everything

If you’re as alarmed as I am about this, you’ll be calmed by this sage – but controversial – advice from data sensemaking expert, best-selling author, and internationally renowned thought leader, Stephen Few. In the interview we discuss:

• the problems with defining what Big Data really is, and really means
• the myriad problems with the lack of validity of claims that Big Data makes
• what it could mean for performance measurement and KPIs
• how we ought to respond to it

Listen to the interview with Stephen Few, on Big Data, Big Dupe:

The transcript is available only to our PuMP Community members, exclusively for our PuMP Blueprint Workshop alumni, over at thepumpcommunity.com.

Links:

• Buy Big Data, Big Dupe: A little book about a big bunch of nonsense on amazon.com.
• Visit Stephen Few at his blog, perceptualedge.com.
• Check out all of Stephen Few’s books at his website.
• Listen to my interview with Stephen Few about Making dashboards useful and usable.
• Read my review of Stephen Few’s book Show Me the Numbers.
• Read my review of Stephen Few’s book Information Dashboard Design.