What is Data Mining?

By DeVry University

November 29, 2023

4 min read
 

Data mining is the process of analyzing large amounts of data in order to identify patterns, anomalies and correlations. People who work in the data mining field use this type of data analysis to help predict the outcome of business decisions such as moves to increase revenue or reduce risk.

As businesses rely more and more on digital processes, they accumulate a wealth of data. Companies today can track everything from customer contacts and sales transactions to internal processes. Gleaning insights from all that “big data” is the role of a data mining professional.

As a branch of data science, data mining represents an intersection of statistics (the study of data relationships), artificial intelligence (the theory of human intelligence displayed by machines) and machine learning (the development of algorithms that learn and predict behavior).
 

There is also a cross-industry standard process for data mining, known as CRISP-DM. This provides an appropriate guide for beginning and working through the data mining process.

The CRISP-DM is a six-phase workflow:
 

The concept of data mining originated in the 1990s and is a result of evolution in database and data warehouse technologies. Previously, NASA and similar organizations were the only ones able to analyze big data. Back then, doing so required supercomputers. But today, analyzing big data is the cornerstone of modern business and more affordable than ever.

Back in the ‘90s, data mining was a manual, tedious and time-consuming process. Fast forward several decades to today, and data mining technology has evolved. The increased processing power and speed of today’s computer systems allow industries to uncover correlations and patterns in even vast quantities of data. The information unlocked through data mining helps organizations make better decisions that can help improve their operational efficiency and customer relationships and, ultimately, increase their revenue.
 

The amount of data in the world has grown at exponential rates over the last two decades, accumulating to an amount that is beyond comprehension. In addition to the new data being generated, new IoT and wearable devices have become and will continue to be non-stop data-generating machines. It’s estimated that there are expected to be 30.9 billion connected units by 2025. It’s for this reason, amongst many others, that it won’t be long before data mining is a gold standard for any needed business or performance analysis.