Did you know that 72 percent of business leaders say an acceleration to digital transformation has made their business more reliant on data and data insights? Our latest data management research uncovered how businesses’ data perception and usage has transformed this past year and why high-quality data is essential in this everchanging market. Let’s talk digital transformation.
Three reasons why you want quality data backing your digital moves
- Improved decision-making: Data helps you make better and faster decisions, so you know how to approach and drive your digital strategy.
- Better customer experience: The right consumer data can help you know who your customers are and how to reach them through preferred channels—online, email, text messaging, and more.
- Accelerated digital initiatives: Data sets you on a course to achieve digital transformation faster than ever before—which is necessary with the drastic shifts we’ve seen in the market and consumer buying behaviours.
Our study finds that 84 percent of business leaders say there has been more demand for data insights in their organisations with COVID-19. Why? There has been a dramatic change in their customer’s behaviour in the last year and digital transformation has made them more reliant on data.
Take note: You want high-quality data. Without the right information, you won’t have momentum to kick off key projects like digital transformation and, even more importantly, inaccurate data could put your business at risk of steering in the wrong direction and targeting unengaged customers.
How to get started on data quality
Davenport and Redman say it best in their Harvard Business Review article, “Data presents an interesting paradox: Most companies know data is important and they know quality is bad, yet they waste enormous resources by failing to put the proper roles and responsibilities in place.”
Talent, technology, and processes are the three areas you need to consider when getting started on data management.
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- Think about your end goal. Is this a one-time project or a larger initiative to become a data-driven business? Determining your data goals will help you establish your plan—and what people and processes you need to get there.
- Implement user-friendly technology. Integrate real-time or bulk contact data validation into your tech stack. This will ensure you are capturing the right information in your database. If you are looking to go big, think about implementing a data quality platform (We have the perfect one for you here!)
- Establish data processes. Not only do you want to ensure you are capturing valid data at all times, but you also want to make sure the right information is getting into the hands of your data professionals and business users. This way, your organisation is leveraging data for decision-making.
- Hire the right talent. Take you data management program to the next level by hiring the right people. This could be data quality analysts, data governance managers, data engineers, and more. Not only can these roles focus on your data, but they can help motivate a data-literate workforce.
Our research shows what data management initiatives businesses are prioritising this year. Here it is:
Why data security is crucial
The rapid need for digital transformation has made businesses, like yours, reliant on data. Most likely, businesses already had a data strategy at some level—whether it was reactive, proactive, or fully data driven. What has come just as important as the need for data is data security.
Data security has been a top priority for businesses over the last few years but, like we’ve seen with other initiatives, it’s more crucial today than ever before. In fact, on average, half of businesses have been prioritising data security for the last three years, according to our 2021 Global data management report.
With the vast volumes of data and increased usage, protecting data is necessary to minimise risk of data leakages, potential fines, and more. A Tech Radar Pro article, “Why organisations need to prioritise data security,” says, “Imperva research shows there’s been a 93 percent rise in data leakage attacks over the past year.”
If you are growing your data management program today, make sure you are establishing the right security measures to protect your business, customers, and future.
Digital acceleration has called for data transformation. Don’t wait on this opportunity to overcome economic shock, grow your business, and secure your future. Investing in your data can help you act quickly on your digital strategy.
Learn what quality data can do for you today
Read our 2021 Global data management research