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Unlocking the Power of Data: Effective Data Governance Strategies
13. 07. 2023
In the ever-evolving landscape of business and technology, the term "data-driven organization" has gained significant traction. But what does it truly mean to be data-driven?
At its core, a data-driven organization is one that places data at the heart of its decision-making processes and operational strategies. It goes beyond merely collecting information, embracing a culture that values data-backed insights and evidence. In a data-driven organization, data is not limited to a byproduct of operations, but a precious resource actively sought, analyzed, and utilized to gain a competitive advantage. From customer behavior patterns and market trends to operational efficiencies and performance metrics, every aspect of the organization is underpinned by data-driven insights. This reliance on data empowers businesses to make informed choices rather than relying on gut instincts or historical practices. Data-driven decision-making enables organizations to optimize processes, seize new opportunities, mitigate risks, and deliver superior products and services tailored to their customers' needs.
But what has led to this shift and focus on data-driven culture and what is the need for the companies to become data-driven now? Data-driven culture has frequently been mentioned in the literature as a clear success factor for large enterprises (LEs) creating competitive advantages in the market, but SMEs have fallen behind in the development because they lacked the resources and knowledge to enable data-driven culture. According to Ross, Beath & and Quaadgras (2013), enterprises that have a culture where decision-making is evidence-based, enterprises can experience business improvements and tend to have higher profitability than enterprises that lack the culture. Data-driven organizations tend to have higher productivity, greater business value, and opportunities to make quick and better decisions. When organizations have enough grounds for making the right decisions, it generates satisfaction, mainly when the profitability is linked to the performance through analyzing it in connection to others.
Components of Data-driven
- Data – properly defined, relevant to the task in hand, structured, easy to understand and of high enough quality that it can be trusted. Proprietary data is an asset ot the organization as it can provide them competitive advantage. The main problem is that the data is scattered in silos within the organization and the quality of that data is poor and the associated costs to extract that data are high.
- Monetizing the data – Companies need a business model to put the data to work at profit. The data can be sold, built into products and services, used as input for analytics and for making better decisions. There should be a plan to use analytics to create business advantage and execute.
- Organizational capabilities – This includes talent, structure, and culture. Organizations lack talent or assign quality to wrong people. The organization silos also make it difficult to share data, effectively limiting the scope of the effort.
- Companies need technologies to deliver at scale and low cost. This includes both basic storage, processing, and communications technologies as well as more sophisticated architectures, analysis tools and cognitive technologies that are engines of monetization.
- Defense – This is minimizing risk which includes actions such as following the law and regulations keeping valued data safe from loss or theft, meeting privacy requirements, maintaining relationships with customers, matching the moves of a nimble competitor, staying in front of a better funded behemoth, and steering clear of legal and regulatory actions that stems from monopoly power.
Principles of Data-driven
Enable a data-driven culture in a service-based Industry
There are plenty of identified theories and approaches to identifying enablers for a successful data-driven culture. The following can be defined as principles of data-driven which when put in place can enable organizations to achieve the data-driven culture.
1. Identify Your Data Sources and Requirements
All types of data need to be considered (source-aligned, aggregate, and customer-aligned)
2. Establishing Data as a product (DaaP)
Encompasses infrastructure, integration, analysis, building KPIs (consuming, transforming, and serving the data)
3. Implementing Data Governance
Includes data life cycle management, data security and privacy, data interoperability, policies, audits, etc.
4. Building a Data-driven culture in the organization.
Data-driven decision-making, Leadership support, experimentation, and ideations
Becoming Data-driven: A Roadmap for Organizations
In today's data-centric landscape, organizations that harness the power of data can gain a competitive edge and make informed decisions. Becoming data-driven is not an overnight transformation, but a strategic journey that yields significant rewards. Here's a concise roadmap for organizations seeking to embrace a data-driven culture:
- Data Infrastructure: Establish a robust data infrastructure to capture, store, and process data efficiently. Invest in modern data management systems, data warehouses, and data lakes.
- Data Governance: Implement strong data governance policies to ensure data quality, security, and compliance. Define roles and responsibilities for data ownership and establish clear data access controls.
- Data Literacy: Promote data literacy across the organization. Provide training to employees on data analysis, visualization, and interpretation to empower them to make data-driven decisions.
- Data Integration: Break down data silos by integrating data from various sources. Unify datasets to gain comprehensive insights and facilitate cross-functional collaboration.
- Data Analysis: Employ data analytics tools and techniques to extract meaningful insights. Use descriptive, diagnostic, predictive, and prescriptive analytics to drive informed decision-making.
- Key Performance Indicators (KPIs): Define relevant KPIs aligned with organizational goals. Regularly track and measure these metrics to monitor performance and progress.
- Data-Driven Decision-Making: Foster a culture that values data-driven decision-making. Encourage teams to base their strategies and actions on data-backed evidence.
- Experimentation and Iteration: Embrace a culture of experimentation. Encourage teams to test hypotheses, learn from failures, and continuously improve based on data insights.
- Data Privacy and Ethics: Prioritize data privacy and adhere to ethical data practices. Safeguard customer information and adhere to data protection regulations.
- Leadership Support: Garner support from top leadership to drive the data-driven transformation. Leaders should champion data initiatives, allocate resources, and promote a data-driven mindset across the organization.
By following this roadmap, organizations can create a data-driven culture that fosters innovation, optimizes operations, and enhances customer experiences. Embracing data as a strategic asset will enable organizations to stay ahead in today's rapidly evolving business landscape.
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Why Adastra?
For over two decades, Adastra has transformed businesses into digital leaders, helping global organizations innovate, achieve operational excellence, and create unforgettable customer experiences, all with the power of their data.
Adastra brings to bear over 20+ years of experience in designing and deploying Information Governance strategies and frameworks. Gartner has recognized Adastra’s data governance capabilities, as we’ve proven our abilities to establish a vision for our client’s data that supports their business strategy and objectives.
At the forefront of Artificial Intelligence, Data, Cloud, Digital and Governance services, Adastra delivers solutions to enterprises to leverage data that they can control and trust, connecting them to their customers – and their customers to the world.
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