> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.thedigitalspeaker.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # How Coca-Cola Takes A Refreshing Approach On Big Data - URL: https://www.thedigitalspeaker.com/how-coca-cola-takes-a-refreshing-approach-on-big-data/ - Published: 2013-07-18T06:48:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-08-04T05:43:02.000Z - Description: As the world’s largest non-alcoholic beverage company, Coca-Cola generates and analyzes Petabytes of data from various sources. - Author: Dr Mark van Rijmenam, CSP - Tags: Big Data As the world’s largest non-alcoholic beverage company, Coca-Cola generates [Petabytes](http://www.teradata.com/case-studies/Coca-Cola-Continuous-Refreshment/?ref=thedigitalspeaker.com) of data from various sources. Multi-channel [retail](https://www.thedigitalspeaker.com/ai-retail-speaker/) data, customer profile data from loyalty programs, social media data, [supply chain](https://www.thedigitalspeaker.com/ai-supply-chain-speaker/) data, competitor data, sales and shipment data from bottling partners as well as transaction and merchandising data. Coca-cola collects vast amounts of data and they take a refreshing approach in exploiting that data and deriving value from it. Chief Big Data Insights Officer, Esat Sezer, [explains](http://www.research-live.com/features/big-data/big-companies-big-data/4008394.article?ref=thedigitalspeaker.com) that Coca-Cola takes a strategic approach instead of a tactical approach with big data. They use the vast amount of available data sets to change the way they approach IT. They have embraced big data technologies and as such were able to create a shared services centre for their financial transactional activities as well as an employee service centre for HR activities. They moved from a decentralized approach to a centralized approach, where the data is combined centrally and available via the shared platforms across the organization. In addition, Coca-Cola has almost 70 million Facebook followers and big data enables Coca-Cola to connect to these followers better and be able to grow the brand advocacy. Coca-Cola also [leverages](http://practicalanalytics.wordpress.com/tag/coca-cola-company/?ref=thedigitalspeaker.com) Point of Sales data from companies like Walmart (Walmart alone is responsible for $ 4 billion in Coca-Cola sales annually) to build customer profiles, create centralized iPad reporting across the company and enable Collaborative Planning, Forecasting and Replenishment process within their supply chain using all data at hand. One of the most [refreshing](http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-01-31/coke-engineers-its-orange-juice-with-an-algorithm?ref=thedigitalspeaker.com#p1) approaches on big data is that Coca-Cola uses it to produce orange juice that has a consistent taste year-round, although the oranges used have a peak-growing season of just three months. They have developed an algorithm, called the Black Book model, that combines various data sets such as satellite imagery, weather date, expected crop yields, cost pressures, regional consumer preferences, detailed data about the myriad of 600 different flavours that make up an orange, and many other variables such as acidity or sweetness rates to tell Coca-Cola how to blend the orange juice to create a consistent taste, down to the pulp content. In a post on [BusinessWeek](http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-01-31/coke-engineers-its-orange-juice-with-an-algorithm?ref=thedigitalspeaker.com#p1), Bob Cross, architect of Coke’s juice model Black Book, calls it “one of the most complex applications of business analytics. It requires analysing up to 1 quintillion decision variables to consistently deliver the optimal blend, despite the whims of Mother Nature.” Of course also [throughout](http://www.teradata.com/case-studies/Coca-Cola-Continuous-Refreshment?ref=thedigitalspeaker.com) other departments within The Coca-Cola Company, such as category management, shopper marketing or the supply chain, vast amounts of data are used to make more and better critical time-sensitive decisions. They have developed an advanced enterprise data warehousing that is capable generating a single view of all multi-channel retail information, which enables Coca-Cola to respond quickly and accurately to changing market conditions. They standardized all data through a series of [master data management](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Master%5Fdata%5Fmanagement?ref=thedigitalspeaker.com) processes and their ultimate goal is to help Coca-Cola’s customers become efficient and effective within their stores to drive sales and improve the consumer experience. With so much data being collected from so many countries, Coca-Cola is available in 206 countries, privacy is a major concern within The Coca-Cola Company. Coca-Cola has already been on a [10-year data governance journey](http://www.computerweekly.com/news/2240164439/Big-data-advice-from-big-names-Coca-Cola-and-Lastminute?ref=thedigitalspeaker.com) to ensure that culturally specific sensitivities of different societies are respected. On a blog post by [Computer Weekly](http://www.computerweekly.com/news/2240164439/Big-data-advice-from-big-names-Coca-Cola-and-Lastminute?ref=thedigitalspeaker.com), Katherine Fithen, Chief Privacy Officer at Coca-Cola, explained that “in the US it is not creepy that the grocery store knows what we buy. In other cultures, it is considered creepy to track that. The use of GPS data is not creepy for some cultures; it is for others”. It may be clear that The Coca-Cola Company is far ahead in using big data to improve their organizations, products, increase their revenue and reduce their costs. [Reportedly](http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2012/12/12/is-big-data-really-that-big-of-a-deal.aspx?ref=thedigitalspeaker.com), they were able for example to cut overtime costs by 46% just by analysing the data in their employee service centre. And as long as their orange juice taste the same year-round and is readily available anywhere in the world at any moment for the right price, we know that their Black Book algorithm does the job correctly. ###### Images: Courtesy of The Coca-Cola Company ##### *Image Credit:* [*madeinitaly4k/Shutterstock*](https://www.shutterstock.com/g/madeinitaly4k?ref=thedigitalspeaker.com) ## Frequently asked questions ### How does Coca-Cola use big data strategically? Coca-Cola's Chief Big Data Insights Officer, Esat Sezer, explains that the company takes a strategic rather than tactical approach to big data, using vast data sets to change how it approaches IT. This led to shared services centres for financial transactions and HR activities, moving from a decentralized to a centralized model where data is combined and shared across the organization. [Link to this question](#faq-how-does-coca-cola-use-big-data-strategically) ### What is the Black Book model used for? The Black Book model is an algorithm Coca-Cola developed to produce orange juice with a consistent taste year-round, despite oranges having a peak-growing season of just three months. It combines satellite imagery, weather data, crop yields, cost pressures, regional preferences and detailed data on hundreds of orange flavours to determine the optimal blend, down to pulp content. [Link to this question](#faq-what-is-the-black-book-model-used-for) ### Why is privacy a concern for Coca-Cola's data use? Because Coca-Cola operates in 206 countries, cultural attitudes toward data tracking vary widely. Chief Privacy Officer Katherine Fithen noted that practices like grocery stores tracking purchases or using GPS data are acceptable in some cultures but considered creepy in others. Coca-Cola has spent ten years on a data governance journey to respect these differing societal sensitivities. [Link to this question](#faq-why-is-privacy-a-concern-for-coca-cola-s-data-use) ### How does Coca-Cola use Point of Sales data from retailers? Coca-Cola leverages Point of Sales data from retailers like Walmart, which alone accounts for $4 billion in annual Coca-Cola sales, to build customer profiles and create centralized iPad reporting across the company. This data also enables Collaborative Planning, Forecasting and Replenishment within their supply chain, helping them respond to changing market conditions. [Link to this question](#faq-how-does-coca-cola-use-point-of-sales-data-from-retailers)