Business man Anaand Nallathambi giving presentation
Operating in this new big data-driven world, corporations and individuals find themselves faced with the challenge of navigating through massive amounts of information, making sense of it, and applying it to improve their business. While data comes more easily, it is much more complex. Mr. Anand K. Nallathambi shared his insights into how students can create value for their organizations by learning to create a story with the data.

As industries move to a statistical environment for decision making, Mr. Nallathambi points out that young professionals must focus on understanding the fundamental concepts underlying the computations: algorithms, selecting the right kinds of data, assessing risks, and designing control points. However, in order to stay relevant, students must remember that the application of the data is where artificial intelligence cannot replace the human touch.

Rather than fearing job security due to automation, students should take advantage of the change. “Always be curious,” says Mr. Rick Rayson, an assurance partner from Deloitte, “learn how to learn.” Learn that data means nothing without context. Data only becomes useful information when there is a story to give it meaning and purpose. These lessons grow more crucial every day, as the landscape of decision-making is rapidly changing in favor of computerized algorithms and programming.