Acknowledgments are dangerous. Not dangerous like wrestling an alligator or an unhappy Chicago Cubs fan, but dangerous in the sense that there are so many people to thank. How do I prevent the Acknowledgments section from becoming longer than my book? This book represents the sum of many, many discussions, debates, presentations, engagements, and late night beers and pizza that I have had with so many colleagues and customers. Thanks to everyone who has been on this journey with me.
So realizing that I will miss many folks in this acknowledgment, here I go…
I can't say enough about the contributions of Jeff Abbott. Not only was Jeff my EMC technical editor for this book, but he also has the unrewarding task of editing all of my blogs. Jeff has the patience to put up with my writing style and the smarts to know how to spin my material so that it is understandable and readable. I can't thank Jeff enough for his patience, guidance, and friendship.
Jen Sorenson's role in the book was only supposed to be EMC Public Relations editor, but Jen did so much more. There are many chapters in this book where Jen's suggestions (using the Fairy-Tale Theme Parks example in Chapter 6) made the chapters more interesting. In fact, Chapter 6 is probably my favorite chapter because I was so over my skis on the data science algorithms material. But Jen did a marvelous job of taking a difficult topic (data science algorithms) and making it come to life.
Speaking of data science, Pedro DeSouza and Wei Lin are the two best data scientists I have ever met, and I am even more grateful that I get to call them friends. They have been patient in helping me to learn the world of data science over the past several years, which is reflected in many chapters in the book (most notably Chapters 5 and 6). But more than anything else, they taught me a very valuable life lesson: being humble is the best way to learn. I can't even express in words my admiration for them and how they approach their profession.
Joe Dossantos and Josh Siegel may be surprised to find their names in the acknowledgments, but they shouldn't be. Both Joe and Josh have been with me on many steps in this big data journey, and both have contributed tremendously to my understanding of how big data can impact the business world. Their fingerprints are all over this book.
Adaobi Obi Tulton and Chris Haviland are my two Wiley editors, and they are absolutely marvelous! They have gone out of their way to make the editing process as painless as possible, and they understand my voice so well that I accepted over 99 percent of all of their suggestions. Both Adaobi and Chris were my editors on my first book, so I guess they forgot how much of a PITA (pain in the a**) I can be when they agreed to be the editors on my second book. Though I have never met them face-to-face, I feel a strong kinship with both Adaobi and Chris. Thanks for all of your patience and guidance and your wonderful senses of humor!
A very special thank you to Professor Mouwafac Sidaoui, with whom I co-teach the Big Data MBA at the University of San Francisco School of Management (USF SOM). I could not pick a better partner in crime—he is smart, humble, demanding, fun, engaging, worldly, and everything that one could want in a friend. I am a Fellow at the USF SOM because of Mouwafac's efforts, and he has set me up for my next career—teaching.
I also what to thank Dean Elizabeth Davis and the USF MBA students who were willing to be guinea pigs for testing many of the concepts and techniques captured in this book. They helped me to determine which ideas worked and how to fix the ones that did not work.
Another special thank you to EMC, who supported me as I worked at the leading edge of the business transformational potential of big data. EMC has afforded me the latitude to pursue new ideas, concepts, and offerings and in many situations has allowed me to be the tip of the big data arrow. I could not ask for a better employer and partner.
The thank you list should include the excellent and creative people at EMC with whom I interact on a regular basis, but since that list is too long, I'll just mention Ed, Jeff, Jason, Paul, Dan, Josh, Matt, Joe, Scott, Brandon, Aidan, Neville, Bart, Billy, Mike, Clark, Jeeva, Sean, Shriya, Srini, Ken, Mitch, Cindy, Charles, Chuck, Peter, Aaron, Bethany, Susan, Barb, Jen, Rick, Steve, David, and many, many more.
I want to thank my family, who has put up with me during the book writing process. My wife Carolyn was great about grabbing Chipotle for me when I had a tough deadline, and my sons Alec and Max and my daughter Amelia were supportive throughout the book writing process. I've been blessed with a marvelous family (just stop stealing my Chipotle in the refrigerator!).
My mom and dad both passed away, but I can imagine their look of surprise and pride in the fact that I have written two books and am teaching at the University of San Francisco in my spare time. We will get the chance to talk about that in my next life.
But most important, I want to thank the EMC customers with whom I have had the good fortune to work. Customers are at the frontline of the big data transformation, and where better to be situated to learn about what's working and what's not working then arm-in-arm with EMC's most excellent customers at those frontlines. Truly the best part of my job is the chance to work with our customers. Heck, I'm willing to put up with the airline travel to do that!