Why being data-driven is no longer a strategic choice, but a necessity

Across many industry sectors, the use of disruptive technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), robotics, and Internet of Things (IoT) are transforming businesses. Most organisations are already including these technologies in their strategic agendas.

As the adoption of emerging technologies grows, the volume of data creation will only increase. Therefore, building the capabilities and foundations to manage, as well as unlock the potential of your business’s data is no longer a strategic choice, but a necessity for survival in the new transformative age.

This article provides an overview of why, if you’re not already, you need to be a data-driven business, and the competencies and challenges your business will need to address in order to become one.

What is a data-driven organisation and why should I want to be one?

A data-driven business seeks to continually analyse its data to generate insights and intelligence. With these insights, the business can then make more informed decisions on key business areas such as customers, operations, risk, and regulations.

Being data-driven will allow you to realise a deeper understanding of your market, your internal processes, and be better equipped to achieve your business objectives. Businesses that fail to adapt and evolve, could risk being left behind by the market. Through the implementation of a data-driven culture, your organisation will be in a stronger position to innovate, react faster and be more agile to changes in the market. Being data-driven is becoming integral to the new normal and therefore if you fail to make that transition, then you risk conceding market share to the competitors who are.

How to become a data-driven company.

“To move forward… you need to know where you’ve been”

In a modern digital twist on Charles Williams’ famous quote, becoming a data-driven business starts by first reviewing the foundations of your underlying data, and how it is currently being governed and managed. This analysis will uncover the characteristics of your current data environment such as its quality, architecture, and overall management. It will identify and distinguish the granularity of your business’s different data classes (i.e. master data, transactional data, and process data), and how these could be used to generate valuable insights.

Additionally, the assessment will identify the competencies you need to build, and the challenges you need to overcome, to become a data-driven organisation. The analysis of your data in conjunction with your strategic goals and directions, will reveal what areas you need to prioritise and develop, to successfully become a business that maximises its data’s potential.

Challenges to overcome

The most common challenges we see restricting businesses from being data-driven are;
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• understanding where to start;
• how to navigate the journey; and,
• having access to sufficiently trained resources.

In many cases, organisations either don’t have an adequate data infrastructure, or the required in-house capabilities to manage the data. As data analytical skills are well sought after, it can be difficult for organisations to build the internal capabilities required to reap the rewards from their own data.

A solution to resolve this challenge is to have a trusted advisor who can also be your data partner. Albeit finding the right partner and provider and obtaining the right level of service can present its own challenges. This approach can provide a viable method to help an organisation to harness the power of its data, and its resources on areas to deliver organisational value and growth.

How can we help?

If you are interested in learning more about how Mazars can help you make the most of your data, as well as our AI-enabled analytical tool Curious, please get in touch via the button below.

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