Linked Data and semantic technologies have seen a remarkable uptake in recent years. However, there is still a significant divide in organisations and companies between implementers and executive decision makers regarding the adoption of Linked Data. While implementers are early adopters, enthusiastic about new technologies, executives who decide whether or not new and potentially costly projects go ahead tend to be sceptical, thinking in terms of costs and benefits. What is needed to bridge this divide is a kind of “executive whispering”: presenting a potential Linked Data project not in terms of technology, but of the concrete benefits it will bring to a particular organisation or company. The talk draws from the significant experience of the Talis and Kasabi Consulting team.

1. Executive Whispering
for Linked Data
Knud Möller
Data Engineering
http://kasabi.com

2. *
Executive Whispering
for Linked Data
* Jarred McGinnis Knud Möller
(Press Association) Data Engineering
http://kasabi.com

3. Kasabi &
Talis Consulting

4. Not yet standard
procedure...

5. ‘Curious Girl’ by zubrow on Flickr (CC BY-NC 2.0)

6. What’s the goal?
“Hi, we want to do
something with
Linked Data!”
“Great, what’s the
something?”
“Erhm, we’re not
quite sure...”

7. ‘Sceptical Owl’ by FransBadger on Flickr (CC BY-NC 2.0)

8. Don’t start with the
technology!
Start with a concrete problem:
• Lots of untapped potential in our data!
• Our search engine results aren’t so great.
• Our internal knowledge management
isn’t working.
• Cost savings, productivity increase, ...
• (Everybody else is doing it...)

9. Common Issues
• “But it’s too hard!”
• “We don’t have the right skills!”
• “We don’t have the right
infrastructure!”
• Data just isn’t sexy...

10. But it’s too hard!
• actively dissuade people from doing too big
a project
• instead, go step by step:
• do a small project first, gain experience,
show benefits
• then build on that
‘Steps’ by net_efekt on Flickr (CC BY-NC 2.0)
”From Idea to Web -Linked
Data Apps by Example”
Benjamin Nowack, 14:00

11. But do we have the
right skills?
• Probably not, but...
• no need to train everyone, build a
small, diverse team
• get someone external in!
Kasabi Network:

12. But do we have the
right infrastructure?
• Probably not, but...
• you can outsource - LD can now be
done as SaaS
• hosting, integrating, monetizing:
Kasabi ded
t
Talis
o let ing and
t
e deci f the hos to do
“W are o had
ta ke c so all we aking
ing, ut m
serv orry abo e.” ntist
,
wa sw
avai labl rch Scie vey
esea Sur
the data odw
in, R rdnance
O
n Go
Joh

13. Data isn’t sexy...
Data isn’t sexy...

14. ... but pretty pictures are.
kasabi .com
@ asabi
log.k
htt p://b

15. ... but pretty pictures are.

16. ... but pretty pictures are.

17. Take home
• Don’t talk about technology - talk about
concrete problems and benefits.
• Don’t do everything at once - start small
and build from there.
• No need to retrain everyone - build up
expertise bit by bit, get external help.
• No need to invest in infrastructure - use
SaaS options.
• Make demos, visualisations, mockups!

18. Links
• Jarred McGinnis, Press Association. “Semantic News”:
http://www.slideshare.net/TalisConsulting/semantic-news
• Kasabi Data Marketplace:
http://kasabi.com/
• Kasabi News:
http://blog.kasabi.com
@kasabi
• Talis Consulting Case Studies:
http://consulting.talis.com/case-studies/
• Data Liberate:
http://dataliberate.com/
• Epimorphics:
http://www.epimorphics.com

19. Links, ctd.
• Linking Open Data cloud diagram, by Richard Cyganiak and
Anja Jentzsch:
http://lod-cloud.net/
• ‘Curious Girl’ by zubrow on Flickr (CC BY-NC 2.0):
http://www.flickr.com/photos/zubrow/5688491904/
• ‘Sceptical Owl’ by FransBadger on Flickr (CC BY-NC 2.0):
http://www.flickr.com/photos/fransmayra/226264535/
• ‘Steps’ by net_efekt on Flickr (CC BY-NC 2.0):
http://www.flickr.com/photos/wheatfields/504844510/
• These slides:
http://www.slideshare.net/dunken69/executive-whispering-for-linked-
data-11441808
These slides are licensed under Creative Commons CC BY-SA.