ΙΒΜ announced the creation of a new center of specialization in the field o f Big Data & Business Analytics in Creece (Center of Competence), fostering its activity in the provision of technology consulting services in the area, with the assistance of domestic high standard abilities.

The new center will help businesses and organizations make the best of Business Analytics and Cognitive Computing technologies, enhancing their business operations and boosting their competence in the world market.

The specialized consultants group of the aforementioned center, which belongs to the services department of IBM Greece, will provide clients expertise on an international level, which is based on:

• The research development of IBM, which focuses the 2/3 of its efforts on the field of Big Data and Analytics, as well as on the fast growing Cognitive Computing.
• The combined possibilities which arise from the over 30 acquisitions of specialized companies by IBM in the field of Big Data and Analytics over the past five years.
• The availability of over 15000 consultants and 400 mathematicians of IBM worldwide, exclusively in the area of Big Data and Analytics.
• The collaboration with over 6000 trade partners on an international level, who work with IBM in order to help businesses make use of Big Data.
• The knowledge acquired from thousands of successful collaborations with businesses worldwide.

The new center will lead collaborations with businesses and organizations in the wider region in the field of Big Data and Business Analytics, in close cooperation with the global network of respective IBM centers in Berlin, Beijing, Dallas, London, New York, Tokyo, Washington, and Ζurich.

 Spiros Poulidas, CEO of IBM Greece and Cyprus, said: “We believe that the utilization of Big Data, Business Analytics tools and Cognitive Computing have the potential to become driving forces and offer competitive advantage for the Greek economy. At IBM, we consider Big Data the next new natural resource, which constitutes the basis for developing solutions that not only provide competitive advantage, but also a stepping stone for growth of the Greek competitiveness in the global market”.

 Efstathios Kakoyannis, General Informatics and Support Functions Manager at Alpha Bank, noted: “By establishing collaboration with IBM and making use of the big potential of IBM in Greece in the field of Business Analytics, Alpha Bank gains deeper insights and knowledge of the areas of its activity, from retail banking to risk assessment, compliance and corporate governance. These insights improve our ability to assist our customers better, evaluate our performance and the satisfaction of our customers, as well as provide new services”.

Collaborations with academic institutions and research

Increasing its focus on Big Data and Analytics in Greece, IBM collaborates with the Athens University of Economics and Business for the organization of conferences, the presentation of case studies and the carrying out of workshops on principles and implementations of Big Data and Business Analytics.

In the upcoming weeks, IBM executives will present, in the quality of invited speakers, Marketing Analytics tools within the context of the one year Certification Program of the university in the field of Business Analytics. IBM will also collaborate with the Athens University of Economics and Business for the creation of the first title of master on Business Analytics, the program of which is bound to start this September.

Moreover, IBM will collaborate with the University of Pireus for the development of practical training subjects within the sections of Business Intelligence/Business Analytics of the MBA programs of the university. Specialists from IBM will participate providing practical training for the resolution of specific business problems, utilizing the most sophisticated tools of IBM, within the framework of the MBA subjects of the university.

ΙΒΜ is working on several research and development projects, financed by the European Union, in collaboration with universities and research institutions, such as the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, the Centre for Research and Technology Hellas (CERTH), the Foundation for Research and Technology Hellas (FORTH), as well as the National Technical University and the Athens University of Economics and Business.

The collaborations with academic institutions are part of a variety of initiatives established by IBM worldwide in order to contribute to closing the gap in capabilities between the million jobs created in the field of Big Data and Business Analytics and the number of scientists and engineers who have the necessary theoretical and practical training to cover them.

It is noted that IBM collaborates with more than 1000 universities over the world for the development of courses of study what reflect the combination of business and technology skills and problem resolution skills, something necessary for the student preparation in the fields of Big Data and Analytics, including all sectors of the economy.

Source:  www.techgear.gr