According to Gartner, Big data will grow beyond its hype towards 2016 to become just data once the technologies mature, and organisations learn how to deal with it.
The research firm said while data is regularly defined by the dimensions of volume, velocity and variety, information management concerns must be much broader.
Gartner research vice president Frank Buytendijk said the bottom line is that not all information requires a big data approach.
"The new "big data way’ is not going to replace all other forms of information management. There is more room – and need – for experimentation in the area of ‘information of innovation,’ for instance with social media data, or by making processes more information-centric," Buytendijk said.
Buytendijk noted that it’s important that organisations understand that big data isn’t the only stream of innovation in information management.
"The industry is in the middle of what Gartner calls "The Nexus of Forces", and it is in the combination mobile, social, cloud and information innovation where new opportunities arise."
Gartner said mobile has shaken up information dissemination where knowledge workers expect to be able to connect to systems from anywhere at anytime and get information in the context of their situation.
Buytendijk said: "Information management has gone ‘cross-platform content delivery’, and this line of innovation hasn’t ended yet."
"However, mobile content delivery is only a part of the impact on information management. Mobile devices will develop to become a prime source of data collection."
The research firm said business analytics will become available for consumers and sentiment analysis is another popular application, which is mainly used to inform companies on how they are viewed in the market, or for the benefit of advertisers.