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According to Post & Anderson Data Mining is consists of a variety of tools and techniques to automatically retrieve and search data for information.
C.G. Lynch, author of Companies Need Better Enterprise Search, states “a survey of 500 businesses concluded that 69 percent of companies have less than half of their data discoverable by enterprise search tools. Such tools can help end-users find files, data and other content in enterprise systems, applications, and document repositories.” (Lynch) We are in an Information Age and companies rely on data to prove to stock holders that they are producing. Once stock holders see the company is doing well, they will continue to invest in that company. With all of the data that companies produce, how do they sort through and find information that is relevant to what they are looking for? Companies sort through stored information by a process called data mining.
PC Magazine defines data mining as “exploring and analyzing detailed business transactions. It implies [digging through tons of data] to uncover patterns and relationships contained within the business activity and history.” (PC Magazine) The patterns of data that the mining process uncovers allow company executives to make better business decisions. Let’s say that a supermarket pulls data on when men buy chips and salsa; this data search might also reveal that the men purchased a six pack. Knowing that men usually buy chips and salsa at the same time, the supermarket puts one of those chips and salsa displays at the front of the alcohol aisle. By giving companies the ability to unde ...