As data analytics matures from a science into a technology, companies are shifting their focus toward making products out of the advanced models generated by their data science organizations. Hortonworks Inc., a company known for supporting Apache Hadoop, with its open data management platform, is focused on turning data models into products, according to Scott Gnau, chief technology officer of Hortonworks.

“The natural evolution for us as a company and as a community, and I’ve seen this time and again in the tech industry, is to move from really cool breakthrough tech more into a solutions base,” Gnau said. “When you think about having all the cool technology and breakthrough algorithms, that’s really great. But how do we then take that and turn it into value very quickly and in a repeatable fashion?”

During a keynote address at DataWorks Summit in San Jose, California, Gnau described what he views are the key factors in enabling data analytics to mature. He filled in Lisa Martin (@luccazara) and George Gilbert (@ggilbert41), co-hosts of theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Media’s mobile live streaming studio, on the details. (* Disclosure below.)

Open collaboration across organizations

The three distinct organizations that must come together within a company for a successful deployment of data analytics technology are business analysts, data scientists and operations managers, according to Gnau.

“The notion that I launched today is really making these three personas successful by focusing on combining all of that technology, usability and even some services around it to make each of those folks more successful in their job,” he said.

Not only is collaboration required within a company, but also across the industry, and frameworks for open collaboration are key in empowering advances in data sciences, Gnau added.

“Open models and algorithms … are creating tremendous opportunity, the likes of which we’ve not seen before, and it’s really driving the velocity in the market. Things just get done faster and more efficiently,” Gnau concluded. 

Watch the complete video interview below, and be sure to check out more of SiliconANGLE’s and theCUBE’s independent editorial coverage of DataWorks Summit. (* Disclosure: Hortonworks Inc. sponsored this DataWorks Summit segment on SiliconANGLE Media’s theCUBE. Neither Hortonworks nor other sponsors have editorial control over content on theCUBE or SiliconANGLE.)

Photo: SiliconANGLE