Since their inception, ERP systems have demonstrated their value in connecting business functions by bringing together data and making it accessible within an organization. However, with the globalization of supply chains and the increased need for collaboration, the ERP systems that once promised to be the "do-all" solution are proving insufficient when it comes to aligning business functions outside of the four walls of an organization. Sales and operations planning (S&OP) is one of those functions.

This is why they call Big Data big: IDC, a research firm, predicts that the Big Data market "” including technology and services "” will grow at a 31.7% compound annual rate through 2016, becoming a $23.7bn market by 2016.