Abstract
Managers the world over complain that they are overwhelmed by the amount of data available to them, but that they are unable to make any sense of this data. The changing business environment and the fact that customers are becoming more and more demanding highlight the need for organisations to be able to adapt faster and
more effectively to those changes. Data mining developed as a direct result of the natural evolution of information technology. The increased organisational use of computer based systems has
resulted in the accumulation of vast amounts of data, and the need for decision makers to have efficient access to knowledge, and not only data, has resulted in more and more organisations adopting the use of data mining. The promise of data mining is to return the focus of large, impersonal organisations to serving their customers better and to providing more efficient business processes. Indeed, for some organisations data mining offers the potential for gaining a
competitive advantage, but for others it has become a matter of survival. The literature is filled with examples of the successful application of data mining, not only to specific business functions, but also in specific industries. Undoubtedly, certain industries, such as those dealing with huge amounts of data, and those exposed to many diverse customers, stand to benefit more from data mining than others. iii The benefits, associated with data mining, for organisations, individuals and society as a whole, far exceed its drawbacks, but the biggest issue facing organisations that want to employ data mining, is its cost. The other drawbacks of data mining relate to the threat that it poses to privacy, and any data mining effort must not only be done within the framework of the relevant laws, but must also be done in an ethical manner. Although data mining is probably beyond the financial ability of most organisations, its main principle, the fact that there might be value in organisational data, should not be forgotten. Organisations must endeavour to treat their data with the same respect it has for all its other corporate assets.
Mr. C. Scheepers