There are three reasons why big companies are so obsessed with big data.
One, there are very few people inside the company that actually have a clue about what’s really important. (Or at least a low density of people who have a clue.)
Two, the people who do have a clue unfortunately have to justify every activity and expense to people who don’t have a clue. (And the people who don’t have a clue are usually the ones who are in charge of the budget.)
Three, big data makes it easier to draw spurious correlations. At least the people who don’t have a clue, and maybe the ones that do have a clue but just don’t understand statistics - they have no idea that the projection that they’re looking at, the extrapolation that justifies the decision, has no basis in reality.
