Big Data in Practice

How 45 Successful Companies Used Big Data Analytics to Deliver Extraordinary Results

By: Bernard Marr

Narrated by: Piers Hampton

Length: 7 hrs and 25 mins

Publisher's summary

The best-selling author of Big Data is back, this time with a unique and in-depth insight into how specific companies use big data.

Big data is on the tip of everyone's tongue. Everyone understands its power and importance, but many fail to grasp the actionable steps and resources required to utilise it effectively. This book fills the knowledge gap by showing how major companies are using big data every day, from an up-close, on-the-ground perspective.

From technology, media, and retail to sport teams, government agencies, and financial institutions, learn the actual strategies and processes being used to learn about customers, improve manufacturing, spur innovation, improve safety, and so much more.

For each company profiled, learn what data was used, what problem it solved, and the processes put it place to make it practical as well as the technical details, challenges, and lessons learned from each unique scenario.

• Learn how predictive analytics helps Amazon, Target, John Deere, and Apple understand their customers
• Discover how big data is behind the success of Walmart, LinkedIn, Microsoft, and more
• Learn how big data is changing medicine, law enforcement, hospitality, fashion, science, and banking

©2016 Bernard Marr (P)2017 Audible, Inc.

Good book for managers

Bernard Marr is very knowledgeable and has a solid background in the subject. This is a good book for managers who want to learn more about why they should use big data. It is not useful for the aspiring data scientist who wants to learn more tactical level practices.

basic overviews not details

gives a lot of examples, yet very little hard details that you could run with in real life.

ok-ish

would have preferred less cases and more detail describing the actual implementation.
did not enjoy the voice acting: no value add in this type of book in my humble opinion

The narration is horrible

The main British accent changes into Southern and other accents as the voice narrator takes too much attention away from this very informative book. Had they picked a real professional narrator, I'd have ranked it higher

Great Overview of Big Data Use Cases

This book came recommended by my college instructor for a data analytics course to help me learn about how various industries and organizations are harnessing data an using it effectively. I enjoyed the structure of the book which detailed how each organization used big data to solve a business problem, what the results were, what the technical details were, and any challenges they had to overcome. The author also describes their prediction of how big data will continue to be used and which technologies will become more prevalent in data science.

Good Book, needs updates

The only problem with this book is that as time goes by, some of the info on what companies are doing becomes dated. Not withstanding the concepts are spot on.

Interesting overview

Interesting overview of case studies. Some more tactical how to’s would be helpful. this is the macro textbook. Now we need the micro. Well written. Narrator has world class voice although sometimes low on energy and monotonous. At one point even the narrator was bored and inexplicably decided to take on the southern accent of the rib joint heiress which is insulting to pred- near all of y’all. The moral is, just because you can do something does not mean you should.

Big Data Resume

This is a book with a good resume of Big Data Projects and Use Cases Implementations in diverses industries.

Horrible fake accents, but a great book.

After 27 chapters of quoting people from all over the world in his normal voice, in chapter 28 the narrator decided to do a terrible Texas accent which hurt my ears and made me think that he hates all Texans. He should’ve found a Texan to read the quote or left it alone, it is hard to listen to. Texas wants an apology.

The most dissapointing read ever!

If anyone benefited from spending time with this production it would have to be total beginner who has no clue about what Big Data means. Even then there is probably number of better positions explaining subject and saving a reader from cliches. In fact I call it a book of cliche! Never seen so many in one place; author also likes word "huge" and use it everywhere replacing need for quantifiable data. Surely, specific details are not what the writer is bothered with here. Huge for all and we done ;). BTW. Facebook came up with some of most powerful/known Big Data platforms and arguably is the biggest R&D player in the area; not mere user. I expected that the author of the book would know/mention that. Summing up, book seems like written by marketing people for marketing audience; little substance and a lot of big meaningless words.

Lacking in detail, very general.

More of a collection of general points than a serious book to be read and studied.

Good insight for the uninitiated in data mining

Good read. The voice is a bit monotonic but the book is worth listening to. It gives a glimpse to the way data mining is increasing playing a major role in bussiness

Pretty bland book

Very little technical information and those that are there are written without much understanding of how they are used and some wishful thinking on results.... You'll probably get more out of doing your own research based on the table of contents

Fantastic content and an engaging narrator.

This book was a definite eye-opener to the reality of data. It was insightful and though provoking. The book was full of information that Piers delivered informatively, with the added bonus of accents. Thank you Bernard and Piers

Interesting case studies ‘marr’ed by terrible voice accents!

If you want to understand how some of tech’s biggest unicorns applied big data to their situations (back in 2013-15, at least) then it’s an interesting read.

However, the narrator’s fondness for playing with regional accents during each case study ranges from distracting to embarrassing!