Database Reference
In-Depth Information
1. Business
Understanding
6. Deployment
2. Data
Understanding
Data
5. Evaluation
3. Data
Preparation
4. Modeling
Figure 1-1: CRISP-DM Conceptual Model.
CRISP-DM Step 1: Business (Organizational) Understanding
The first step in CRISP-DM is Business Understanding , or what will be referred to in this text
as Organizational Understanding , since organizations of all kinds, not just businesses, can use
data mining to answer questions and solve problems. This step is crucial to a successful data
mining outcome, yet is often overlooked as folks try to dive right into mining their data. This is
natural of course—we are often anxious to generate some interesting output; we want to find
answers. But you wouldn't begin building a car without first defining what you want the vehicle to
do, and without first designing what you are going to build. Consider these oft-quoted lines from
Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland :
"Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?"
"That depends a good deal on where you want to get to," said the Cat.
"I don't much care where--" said Alice.
"Then it doesn't matter which way you go," said the Cat.
"--so long as I get SOMEWHERE," Alice added as an explanation.
"Oh, you're sure to do that," said the Cat, "if you only walk long enough."
Indeed. You can mine data all day long and into the night, but if you don't know what you want to
know, if you haven't defined any questions to answer, then the efforts of your data mining are less
likely to be fruitful. Start with high level ideas: What is making my customers complain so much?
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