What is a significant overhead in managing on-premises Big Data infrastructure?

The time associated with procurement and maintenance is a significant overhead in managing on-premises Big Data infrastructure due to the complexities and resources required for acquiring hardware, software, and related services. Setting up and maintaining a Big Data environment involves thorough planning, budgeting, and acquiring the necessary physical infrastructure, which can often take considerable time. Once the infrastructure is established, ongoing maintenance is also required, including updates, scaling, and ensuring security, all of which demand continuous attention and resources from IT teams.

In contrast, automated backups, advanced analytics, and simple data monitoring are essential functions of Big Data management but are part of the overall operation rather than the overhead required to manage the infrastructure itself. While these tasks do require time and resources, they do not usually come close to the level of complexity and resource intensity involved in procurement and maintenance, which often represent the bulk of the operational workload.