For today’s businesses, the term Big Data piques both excitement and confusion. Many find themselves knee deep in data they don’t quite know what to do with — maybe it holds the secret that will lead to their next lucrative innovation; maybe they will merely spend time looking through it only to discover nothing of value.

Ron Bodkin, founder and president of Think Big (A Teradata Company), says that we’re honing in on ways to answer the questions businesses have around making Big Data faster using newer, more sophisticated tools.

Bodkin told John Furrier (@furrier) and Dave Vellante (@dvellante), cohosts of theCUBE, from the SiliconANGLE Media team, that the Internet of Things (IoT) is one area where his company is helping customers see real returns using data. “There’s huge returns when you get to where you’re really starting to use the data and drive the analytics. We’re working with a global high tech manufacturer, and we’ve helped change the way they do engineering using Big Data,” he said, adding that product lifecycle and quality were both improved by Big Data use.

The cloud seesaw

Bodkin spoke about the influx of businesses into the cloud as excitement hits a high mark followed by the “antibodies” that inhibit their full migration. One of the main antibodies, according to Bodkin, has been security concerns. Bodkin’s belief is that it is now possible to have world-class security in the cloud.

At any rate, he maintained that the conversation around cloud has to be about risk and benefit — not utter seclusion on a Gilligan’s Island as the only acceptable situation. “Security is about knowing your risks and weighing the business impact and making rational choices about what you’re going to do,” he said.

Watch the full interview below, and be sure to check out more of SiliconANGLE and theCUBE’s coverage of Hadoop Summit 2016 – Dublin. And make sure to join in during theCUBE’s live coverage during the event by joining in on CrowdChat.

Photo by SiliconANGLE