Assessing Big Data Operations Performance

The client, a leading provider of point-of-sale and ATM services, needed RKTech, Rikkeisoft’s US-based subsidiary, to provide a solution that could help them gauge the efficiency and effectiveness of their big data operations.

About the client

Big Data

Power BI

Azure Data Lake

This article describes a real-life project. However, we cannot disclose our client’s name for privacy purposes.

The client is a United States-based pioneer and leader in point-of-sale, ATM, and ITM services, with an annual revenue of over $7 billion in 2022. Their products and solutions encompass a wide range, including self-service kiosks, point-of-sale terminals, automated teller machines, check processing systems, barcode scanners, and more. As their business scales into the digital world, their data builds up and requires complicated operations to process and generate meaningful results. Looking for a way to extract insights into the performance of these operations, the client contacted RKTech to develop a solution that can evaluate these valuable KPIs from their vast data ocean.

Project Overview

Industry

Information Technology

Technology

Azure Data Lake, Azure Synapse Analytics, Azure Data Factory, Power BI

Country

United States

Duration

Ongoing

Challenges

Lack of Data Transparency

A major hurdle for the client was the lack of transparency surrounding their big data. The vast amount of information collected lacked proper organization and documentation, making it difficult to understand the origin, meaning, and structure of the data. Without context, extracting meaningful performance KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) was a complex and time-consuming process.

Issues with Data Quality

In addition to data transparency problems, the client also faced issues with data quality. Inconsistencies, inaccuracies, and missing values plagued their data sets. This meant that even when relevant data points were identified, their reliability remained questionable. Cleaning and validating the data manually was tedious and error-prone, further hindering performance evaluation.

Data Analysis Difficulties

Beyond the transparency and quality issues, the client struggled to effectively analyze and extract insights from their data pipelines. The sheer volume of big data, coupled with its unstructured nature, overwhelmed traditional data analysis methods. This resulted in a gap between the amount of data collected and the actionable insights needed to optimize operations.

Solution

Big Data Operational Performance KPIs Extractor

To address the client’s data challenges, RKTech developed the “Big Data Operational Performance KPIs” extractor. This powerful solution tackled all three critical areas hindering their ability to extract valuable insights: data ingestion, data transformation, and data extraction, providing real-time snapshots of data quality, processing efficiency, and overall system performance.
Beyond basic health checks, the application also incorporates Data Pipeline Performance Measurement capabilities. This feature delves into specific crucial data sets including Opportunity to Order, Product Fulfillment (Supply Chain), Field Services Delivery, Financial Management, and Human Resources, measuring them in:

– Recency: It ensures data reflects the most up-to-date information, eliminating the risk of outdated insights influencing decision-making.
– Completeness: It verifies if all necessary data points are present, preventing gaps that could skew analysis and hinder accurate KPI extraction.
– Performance: It monitors the efficiency of data processing through each pipeline stage, identifying potential bottlenecks and optimizing processing speeds.

Furthermore, the application is integrated with dynamic PowerBI dashboards, translating complex data into visually compelling and easy-to-understand formats. This enhances overall user accessibility and comprehension of the KPIs, allowing the client to gain better understanding of their big data operations.

Result

The client expressed great satisfaction with the solution, highlighting its contribution to their successful operations. They commended RKTech’s development team for their expertise, collaborative approach, and dedication to delivering a solution tailored to their specific needs. Looking ahead, the client has expressed strong interest in further collaboration with RKTech to explore additional solutions that can further leverage their big data for continued growth and success.

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