Hailing from a small village in Tamil Nadu, Sam Hamilton rose to become the vice-president of Data Technology at PayPal, the online money transfer giant. Having spent more than two decades in the United States, Mr. Hamilton is considered an expert on big data and spearheads data platforms that drive analytical insights, experimentation, next-generation machine learning and data science at PayPal. RAHUL DEVULAPALLI caught up with him, when Mr. Hamilton was in the city to attend an event organised by Nasscom.
How important is Big Data today?
Compared to how things were a couple of years ago, they are maturing now. There is more demand for Big Data across different markets. The audience, including individuals, is not happy with just maintenance of data but they want to personalise it. Even India is potentially a good market for Big Data as the cost of computing has also come down.
Which areas in India stand to benefit from Big Data?
Health care needs huge volume of data. So does bio-informatics. Financial services and transportation are the other sectors which would be benefited by this technology.
What should India do to resolve the dearth of Big Data professionals in the country?
Indian educational institutions should focus on and include data sciences curriculum. They should include algorithm dealing, how to handle large data and domain expertise. There are good professional opportunities for data experts.
Telangana and Andhra Pradesh are known to churn out a large number of engineers. Does PayPal conduct campus recruitments in these States? How many of them are employed with the company?
Around 15 per cent of our fresh graduate hires come from tech-schools in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. Many of our employees from these States are not just working in our Bangalore and Chennai centres, but also in other global centres.
Which of PayPal’s new and exciting products will come to India soon?
PayPal Beacon is a bluetooth low-energy device introduced in North America. A vendor has to install this device and the user has to download this app.
Whenever a customer enters a store, the vendor would know all the details of the customer, thanks to the beacon device. After the purchase, the payment is directly made online since the beacon syncs with the customer’s app, without any need for interaction.
Another app is called ‘PayPal Here’, which is a credit card reader that can be attached to mobile phones.
How important is Big Data today?
Compared to how things were a couple of years ago, they are maturing now. There is more demand for Big Data across different markets. The audience, including individuals, is not happy with just maintenance of data but they want to personalise it. Even India is potentially a good market for Big Data as the cost of computing has also come down.
Which areas in India stand to benefit from Big Data?
Health care needs huge volume of data. So does bio-informatics. Financial services and transportation are the other sectors which would be benefited by this technology.
What should India do to resolve the dearth of Big Data professionals in the country?
Indian educational institutions should focus on and include data sciences curriculum. They should include algorithm dealing, how to handle large data and domain expertise. There are good professional opportunities for data experts.
Telangana and Andhra Pradesh are known to churn out a large number of engineers. Does PayPal conduct campus recruitments in these States? How many of them are employed with the company?
Around 15 per cent of our fresh graduate hires come from tech-schools in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. Many of our employees from these States are not just working in our Bangalore and Chennai centres, but also in other global centres.
Which of PayPal’s new and exciting products will come to India soon?
PayPal Beacon is a bluetooth low-energy device introduced in North America. A vendor has to install this device and the user has to download this app.
Whenever a customer enters a store, the vendor would know all the details of the customer, thanks to the beacon device. After the purchase, the payment is directly made online since the beacon syncs with the customer’s app, without any need for interaction.
Another app is called ‘PayPal Here’, which is a credit card reader that can be attached to mobile phones.
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