“We are already an enabler of Big Data for our customers”- Ashish Pachory,Tata Teleservices.

There is a greater understanding that big data solutions are becoming key success factors in effective customer experience management and the creation of a more agile enterprise to address rapidly evolving business needs. In an interaction with itVARnews, Ashish Pachory, CIO, Tata Teleservices explain how TTSL is leveraging big data analytics –

1. Why ‘Big Data’ is a Big Deal ?

A recent academic research found that companies that have incorporated data and analytics into their operations show productivity rates 5 to 6 percent higher than those of their peers. The reason is simple: the more information a brand has on their consumer, the better it is able to predict their buying behaviour and customise its offerings, fostering customer trust and leading to an increased chance of sale. Hence, the big data revolution is that now we can do something with the data.

 2.What are some of the biggest advantages that big data provides to an enterprise?

 A recent survey of 50 CMOs at companies large and small found that offering personalised customer experiences was their highest business priority. A third of them also explicitly highlighted meeting the need for personalisation as the toughest challenge on their plate.

Another recent study found that millennials rank friends, news sites and social media among their most trustworthy sources of information, with company websites, advertising and sales ranking the lowest on their trust barometers. A research by Accenture also found that millennials are actively seeking targeted, personalised brand interactions and the majority of these young consumers want to be courted by brands through digital channels.

Mass personalisation has become the most important brand attribute when it comes to fostering customer loyalty. Additionally, personalisation helps companies differentiate their products/services from those of their competitors at a time when the Internet is rapidly making it easier for customers to compare offerings and make purchases at the click of a button.

Given the urgent need for customisation, big data analytics is one of the most cost-effective and potent tools in any organisation’s customer engagement arsenal. Never has data on user behaviour been as readily available as it is today. The sheer volume of it is staggering. To use that information for determining segments and micro-segments of customers and predicate product and service innovation on those insights is the way to business success in the near future.

 3.Is big data only applicable for big size enterprise or even a small SME can benefit from this as well?

 Big data can be considered a transformer of businesses today. It would be pertinent for SMEs to pick-up on how large enterprises tap the sheer potential of big data analysis and use it to maximize efficiency across business verticals. Apart from being a cost effective model, usage of big data also provides strong insights that can add tremendous value to the SME ecosystem.

If SMEs are to sensibly use data to improve the products and services they deliver to their customers, they can appeal to millennial consumers who are open to paying over 20% more for a bespoke experience or product offering. Also, in an age when close to 186.7 million people (in India) are actively online, it has never been easier for SMEs to maximise the opportunities presented by the effective analysis of activity/feedback generated on online networking portals.

 4.What kind of big data products or solutions do you bring to the table?

 Tata Teleservices has been using Big Data solutions for quite some time now. Big Data solution plays a crucial role in addressing legal and regulatory requirements which are mandated for longer retention periods. Given the growing volume of data and time sensitivity attached to such requirements organizations usually look to procure additional storage and servers incurring high expenditure. As an alternative we have deployed big data solutions which as a cost effective way to provide timely information to legal and regulatory teams.

 As Telecom service provider we generate massive amounts of data hence it is critical for us to mine customer data across multiple dimensions to capture and analyze customer behavior so as to improve customer experience. This becomes even more important with rise and reach of mobile network rollout – as volumes grow exponentially so does the need to understand customer behavior/experience across various geographies. Big Data technology offers necessary tools and mechanisms for real-time generation and application of insights to cater to rapidly evolving customer needs while improving profitability.

5.Where are you making the big difference on the big data ecosystem?

 At TTSL, we have a growing set of clients that are willing to adopt and harness the latent possibilities of big data analysis. We offer a strong communication function to these businesses that is key to the successful implementation of big data solutions.

There is a growing emphasis within Tata Group companies to leverage big data solutions to enhance customer experience across the value chain. TTSL is an active player in this initiative. We have elegant predictive tools and robust data warehousing in place. While these solutions enable us to leverage structured data, we are also looking at available options for effective mining of unstructured data. Through the Hadoop framework we have used big data for more effective vigilance tracking and monitoring. Big data also plays a crucial role in addressing legal and regulatory requirements which are mandated for longer retention periods.

Other business functions that benefit from these tools include marketing campaigns, customer service and network management. We expect to see a spiralling trend in the deployment and adoption of big data analytics, especially in customer experience management.

 6.Where does one go from here? What has future in store for us on the big data front?

 The International Data Corporation (IDC) estimates that the global market for big data will reach USD16.1 billion in 2014, achieving growth 6 times faster than the overall IT market. With the anticipated surge in data consumption and generation, growth of the big data market is inevitable. In addition, security programmes associated with the technology will see increased prominence across sectors such as retail, IT, e-commerce, health, aviation, telecom, etc.

 7.Can you share some of your big customers wins on big data or case studies in India?

 TTSL has a strong and growing base of enterprise customers. Amongst these we see a healthy adoption of Big Data and other trends. It is TTSL’s mission to simplify and enrich people’s lives. With Big Data, as with Mobility and Cloud, a strong communication backbone is a key success factor. To that extent we are already an enabler of Big Data for our customers. Further we see lot of potential for adding greater value to other companies through Big Data solutions as a one-stop service provider. There is a growing emphasis within the Tata group companies as well to adopt Big Data as a lever to enhance the customers’ experience across the value chain and TTSL is an active player in this initiative. We expect that TTSL’s participation and contribution in this sphere will grow over time as we establish ourselves as thought leaders in this domain.