Big Data Assignment: A Case Study Report on Platter

Question

Task:

In this big data assignment you will have to research a small case study and you will need to apply your knowledge to identify the main issues, prioritise, provide insights and to discuss alternatives. You must write a Case Study Report about your company discussing the strategic plan of an organization. To present a case study based on the selected organization’s current analytics strategy and your recommended strategy. Identify a key business initiative for your organization, something the business is trying to accomplish over the next 9 to 12 months. It might be something like improve customer retention, optimize customer acquisition, reduce customer churn, optimize predictive maintenance, reduce revenue theft, and so on.

Brainstorm and write down what (1) customer, (2) product, and (3) operational insights your organization would like to uncover in order to support the targeted business initiative. Start by capturing the different types of descriptive, predictive, and prescriptive questions you'd like to answer about the targeted business initiative. Tip: Don't worry about whether or not you have the data sources you need to derive the insights you want (yet).

Write down data sources that might be useful in uncovering those key insights. Look both internally and externally for interesting data sources that might be useful. Tip: Think outside the box and imagine that you could access any data source in the world. Be analytical within your report and examine key terms and theoretical relationships in depth.

Answer

Introduction

As evident in this big data assignment, data has emerged as one of the most important assets for the business organizations in the recent times. The business decisions are highly data-driven and there are massive quantities of the data sets that are generated on a daily basis. It is necessary that the handling and management of these data sets is proper and effective. The mishandling and mismanagement of the data can cause significant impacts on the organization functioning and the quality of the business operations. To enable the business firms to manage and utilize the data sets properly, Big Data technology and tools are developed. These tools enable the analysis of massive quantities of information and enable the effective data processing and handling. However, it is essential that the use of the Big Data tools and platforms is done appropriately [1].

The case study report is developed to illustrate the conduction of sales forecasting and market analysis by an IT firm through the Big Data tools and platforms. It is extremely important to obtain an understanding of the customer preferences, product insights, and the operational details so that the business planning and execution is guided accordingly. 

Platter – Organization Overview

Platter is a Melbourne-based IT start-up firm that works on Augmented Reality and Content Management System. Rupert Deans is the founder of platter and had been working on Platter for over two years before officially releasing the AR app in 2017 [2]. The primary aim of the organization is to enable the users to have access to the integrated platform for the creation, management, and deployment of the AR and mixed reality experiences. AR is an emerging technology and it has the ability to transform the digital as well as the physical world. Platter is an attempt towards the same to enhance visualization and imaginations [3]. 

Problems and Issues

Platter officially emerged in the market in 2017 with the AR and content management systems. AR is an emerging technology and there are a majority of the users that do not realize the applications and potential of the technology. As a result, the customer base that Platter has been able to establish over the period of three years has not grown at the expected rate. Also, there are new technologies that are emerging in the market that also have significant impacts on the products and services offered by Platter [4]. The impacts of the emerging concepts are not easy to understand. This is due to the significant fluctuations involved in the technology market. However, all of these details are important and must be assessed to determine the market strategies and sales forecasting. 

Business Insights

It is essential for Platter to obtain the business insights in three broad areas as customers, product, and operations to determine the overall sales and marketing strategies and parameters. 

Customer Insights

It is desired by every organization to expand the customer base so that the market growth and revenues increase accordingly. The same is the case with Platter [5]. However, the response and understanding of the customers towards the AR technology is essential so that the sales and marketing strategies can be developed accordingly. 

Product Insights

The product insights are also important to make sure that the effective understanding of the AR tools and applications is obtained. It will enable the organization to plan the further developments and improvements accordingly [7]. These shall be targeted to the technology experts and the other organizations working in the field of AR. 

Operational Insights

It is also important to make sure that the operational insights of the technology are obtained so that the effective business decisions are made.

Analysing the Issues

Augmented Reality is still a new technology and concept in the market. There are certain issues that are identified as per the organization details and the questions that are developed to obtain the customer, product, and operational insights. 

The first is the market fluctuations that involve the release of new technologies leading to the variety of options among the customers. The customers in the current times have the access to a large number of applications and platforms that they may assess and then make the selection. This is an issue for Platter as AR is an emerging technology and the organization is also a start-up firm [10]. The resolution of the issue is possible with the selling of the technology as per its unique design and user experience. The domain-specific target audience shall be identified and the primary domains that Platter shall first target are Education, Gaming, and Manufacturing. 

The second issue that is identified is the technical and implementation challenges that are associated with the AR technologies. These also include the design and security issues that may arise. Platter has been working on the AR technologies since its inception. It must continue working on its strengths and must make sure that the latest security tools are amalgamated with the platforms and apps that it offers to the end users [11]. 

Possible Alternatives

The issues that are identified for Platter shall be based on the statistical forecasting and analysis. The questions that are listed above for obtaining the customer, product, and operational insights shall be used. The target audience in each case shall be the customer groups and technology experts. It will enable the determination of the market demands and requirements. The statistical sales forecasting techniques shall be used to develop the specific patterns and trends as per the information retrieved [12]. 

The short-term goal is to assess the domains and the target markets for the AR technology with the gradual enhancement of the market revenues and shared. The long-term objective and goals of the organization is to emerge as a leading AR technology in the market. These goals will be attained with the sales forecasting using the data-driven analysis and research. 

Also, social media is an important platform which Platter can use to obtain the information. The customer interests and preferences can be determined using the information available on the social media platforms. Also, the assessment of the competitors working on AR or other similar technologies can be obtained from the social media platforms. All of this will enable Platter to be aware of the specific USPs that it shall focus upon [13]. 

Resources and Timeframe

There will be certain human resources and tools required to conduct the research. The Market Analysts and Data Scientists along with the AR technology experts working with Platter shall work in collaboration. The data collection and analysis shall be performed by these resources. The Big Data tools will be needed to carry out these activities [14]. 

The total timeframe involved in the process will be 225 days. 

Recommendations & Conclusion

There are certain recommendations that are developed for Platter that must be considered during the entire process. 

• During the data gathering and the market surveys activities, the information privacy shall not be violated at any instance. 
• The combination of AR with the leading technologies, such as virtual reality, IoT, etc. shall be considered and evaluated for the current and future business benefits. 
• The technical and business goals of the organization must strategically align at all times. 

Big Data is one of the technologies that are successful in data management and analysis. The technology shall be used by Platter to obtain an understanding of the specific AR apps and platforms that it shall focus upon. The sales forecasting and market analysis will enable Platter to enhance its customer base and market reputation. The data-driven decision-making will be beneficial for the business as it will enable the organization to meet the customer and market demands. The short-term and the long-term goals will be met by the organization. 

References

[1]C. Catlett and R. Ghani, “Big Data for Social Good,” Big Data, vol. 3, no. 1, pp. 1–2, Mar. 2015, doi: 10.1089/big.2015.1530.

[2]Platter, “Company,” Plattar, 2020. https://www.plattar.com/company/ (accessed Dec. 15, 2020).

[3]T. Hartung, “Making Big Sense From Big Data,” Frontiers in Big Data, vol. 1, Oct. 2018, doi: 10.3389/fdata.2018.00005.

[4]E. P. Y?ld?z, “Augmented reality research and applications in education,” New Trends and Issues Proceedings on Humanities and Social Sciences, vol. 2, no. 1, pp. 238–243, Jun. 2017, doi: 10.18844/prosoc.v2i11.1927.

[5]D. Sahin and A. Togay, “Augmented reality applications in product design process,” New Trends and Issues Proceedings on Humanities and Social Sciences, vol. 2, no. 1, pp. 115–125, Feb. 2016, doi: 10.18844/gjhss.v2i1.288.

[6]S. Rangelova and E. Andre, “A Survey on Simulation Sickness in Driving Applications with Virtual Reality Head-Mounted Displays,” PRESENCE: Virtual and Augmented Reality, vol. 27, no. 1, pp. 15–31, Mar. 2019, doi: 10.1162/pres_a_00318.

[7]A. L. Kun, H. van der Meulen, and C. P. Janssen, “Calling while Driving Using Augmented Reality: Blessing or Curse?,” PRESENCE: Virtual and Augmented Reality, vol. 27, no. 1, pp. 1–14, Mar. 2019, doi: 10.1162/pres_a_00316.

[8]S. Aukstakalnis, Practical augmented reality?: a guide to the technologies, applications, and human factors for AR and VR. Boston: Addison-Wesley, 2017.

[9]Theodosia Prodromou, Augmented reality in educational settings. Leiden?; Boston: Brill/Sense, 2020.

[10]D Schmalstieg and T. Ho?llerer, Augmented reality?: principles and practice. Boston: Addison-Wesley, 2016.

[11]A. Gladston and A. Duraisamy, “Augmented Reality Indoor Navigation Using Handheld Devices,” big data assignment International Journal of Virtual and Augmented Reality, vol. 3, no. 1, pp. 1–17, Jan. 2019, doi: 10.4018/ijvar.2019010101.

[12]K.-T. Huang, C. Ball, J. Francis, R. Ratan, J. Boumis, and J. Fordham, “Augmented Versus Virtual Reality in Education: An Exploratory Study Examining Science Knowledge Retention When Using Augmented Reality/Virtual Reality Mobile Applications,” Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, vol. 22, no. 2, pp. 105–110, Feb. 2019, doi: 10.1089/cyber.2018.0150.

[13]M. Rusinol, J. Chazalon, and K. Diaz-Chito, “Augmented songbook: an augmented reality educational application for raising music awareness,” Multimedia Tools and Applications, vol. 77, no. 11, pp. 13773–13798, Jul. 2017, doi: 10.1007/s11042-017-4991-4.

[14]M. A. F. Salar, “An Augmented Reality System for Malaysian STPM Students Studying Chemistry,” International Journal of Psychosocial Rehabilitation, vol. 23, no. 4, pp. 1355–1362, Dec. 2019, doi: 10.37200/ijpr/v23i4/pr190461.