The Data Lake is more a concept than a technology. Taking technology out of the discussion, the data lake is a repository of just-in-time, real time and historical data that is available to business users that needs it. Why do we need this? Because in order to survive (let alone, excel), an organization needs access to information so that it can measure progress, plan for growth, and react to its environment. With data residing in POS systems, operational data stores, data warehouses, social streams, on the internet and in sensors how can anyone hope to have access to what they need? 

That's where the data lake comes in. In order to meet business demands, the data lake must: 

- Capture data from a wide range of sources 

- Allow for structured, semi-structured and unstructured data (video, IoT, social streams, etc) 

- Allow access to all this information in one place by the persons that need it 

- Allow for the use of advanced algorithms for data mining, pattern matching and predictive modeling 

- Support the enterprise data warehouse (where highly processed information lives) 

- Support data driven applications 

In this presentation we will discuss how the data lake is an integral part of your data eco-system and how it helps to address the many challenges that an organization faces when trying to satisfy the voracious appetite of its many user personas.