The Importance of Data Engineering in Business Success

Introduction

One of the advantages of living in a decentralized, globalized economy is that you have instant access to almost all kinds of information. The disadvantage, however, arises in the way you handle this information.

The rapid proliferation of data and its ease of accessibility has put businesses in a precarious position. On one hand, they have the opportunity to sift through mountains of data and derive useful insights from them that can further propel them towards success. On the other hand, they face a risk of being unable to manage and handle this data properly, which could result in them being overwhelmed and left behind as the competition races ahead of them. And another

What is Data Engineering?

Data Engineering is a way firms can solve this problem they face. Data Engineering is a practice that involves extracting, storing and handling data systems in such a manner that data scientists can easily access and understand it, and draw useful insights that drive smart decision-making. The role of Data Engineers within an organization primarily revolves around collecting data from different sources, and then formatting it so that it becomes accessible, reliable and consistent for data scientists. Without achieving this important task, the success of any business organization becomes uncertain. 

Difference between Data Science and Data Engineering

Before we delve deep into the nitty-gritties of data engineering, it is important to establish a distinction between it and data engineering. Though the two terms sound similar, and though there does exist some overlap between the duties of a data scientist and data engineer, the two roles differ significantly for the following reasons:

1. Data Science: The job of a data scientist is to use a scientific and algorithmic approach towards data and analyze it for gaining valuable, actionable-insights that drive a business towards success. These insights, coupled with abstract mathematical models, allow the data scientists to make predictions about the future in lieu of which a firm can take the necessary preparatory measures.

• Data Engineering: In contrast, the job of a data engineer is to do precisely what the name suggests. In order for a data scientist to be able to seamlessly access the necessary data without much trouble, there needs to exist a comprehensively designed data infrastructure that facilitates such ease of accessibility. This is exactly what data engineers do: they engineer data architectures and pipelines so that the process of storing, processing, accessing and analyzing data is streamlined.

Now, let us see how Data Engineering plays a pivotal role in a business’s success:

Why is Data Engineering Important for your Business’s Success?

1. How Data Engineering Enables Efficient Data Management: When it comes to the benefits of data engineering, a well-organized system of data that creates ease for everyone, and saves valuable time and money, is the very first one. In such a system, employees no longer have to exhaust themselves trying to dig up the information they want; instead, with data engineering, they are freed up to focus all of their efforts on their core competencies, and towards producing important, value-driven work.

• The Role of Data Engineering in Business Analytics: It is impossible for businesses to succeed without closely scrutinizing their pe