Finding a Needle in a Haystack

By Justin McIntyre

The volume of data flowing through the banking business and accounting systems is monumental. But what happens if we need to find a single piece or portion of information that meets extremely specific criteria? Perhaps regulators have asked you to comb through loan or deposit data. Or external auditors have suspicions of fraudulent activity but need to narrow down tens of thousands of records to investigate only the most likely.

These and similar tasks are like searching for the proverbial needle in a haystack. Done manually, this process can take days, weeks, or even longer. But technology solutions have dramatically developed over the last two decades, and the latest cutting-edge software was developed specifically to classify and organize data and has made the process much more efficient and straightforward. This complex software conducts fine-toothed data searches to help organizations meet regulatory guidelines, answer stockholder and client questions, and fulfill audit and examiner requirements. Below are two real-life examples of how expert wielding of this tool can quickly cut through complex data analysis tasks.

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