As companies in all kinds of sectors - from Graze to Netflix - are building a data-centric business, there is an ever increasing volume of data to be exploited for business use. In fact, we create a staggering 2.5 quintillion bytes of data every day. The speed with which we're creating data means that 90 per cent of the data in the world today was created in just the last two years.

For companies - small as well as large - across all sectors, getting a handle on this overwhelming volume is a crucial part in staying ahead of competition. Making use of the data relies on a company's ability to manage, interpret and identify actionable insights from amongst the high volume of unstructured data.

The speed with which companies are able to achieve innovation is of great importance, and an increased capability to analyse the data streams flooding into a business is key to this. Data information is an enabler for next-generation innovations - such as machine learning algorithms, autonomous product development, and accurate financial forecasting - so the ability to interpret should be at the core of all efforts to future proof any business.

Whilst larger enterprises are beginning to create a distinct data science function, for smaller companies the job of interpreting the information will often fall within the IT team's remit. For these companies, it is essential that the data science function does not become siloed off to one side of the business. The data insights gleaned by the IT team only become useful as they are used for business functions such as sales, marketing and finance. 

Ensuring that IT teams are aligned to the core business needs - that they understand the strategies and goals you are trying to achieve - is therefore key to driving growth for the business. This ensures that the insights the IT team looks for will actually answer the questions that different departments are asking.

Companies of different sizes and at different stages of Big Data adoption may not always be ready for a separate data science department, or even a new team member. But the value of data to all businesses is exponentially growing, as data creation itself is set to explode even faster than ever before.

By the year 2020, about 1.7 megabites of new information will be created every second for every human being on the planet, and it is those companies who are able to apply this knowledge across their business functions that will benefit the most. Bringing on board a new data scientist who works across departments - or at least looking for data science capability within new IT staff and even marketing or finance staff - may well be the best way to leverage value from the data so that the whole business can benefit.