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What are the hurdles to becoming data-driven?

Written by Tom Ryan

Photo: Getty Images/kupicoo

A new survey of chief data or analytics officers finds that only 26.5 percent believe they have created a data-driven organization. NewVantage Partners’ “Data and AI Leadership Executive Survey” found less than half (47.4 percent) replying that they were competing on data and analytics. Only 39.7 percent said they were managing data as an enterprise business asset, and just 19.3 percent have established a data culture. For the fourth consecutive year, over 90 percent of executives (91.9 percent in 2022) point to culture as the greatest impediment to achieving this business outcome. Only 8.1 percent cite technology limitations as the primary impediment. A new survey among CIOs, chief data officers and VPs in data-oriented positions from cloud software provider Domo found the top cultural or attitudinal challenge for using data effectively is that too few people across most organizations understand how to access useful data or use it to drive meaningful decisions. Domo’s study pointed out that the two most common explanations for the significant data decision gap were BI tools being disconnected from business processes and a lack of training. A survey of c-level executives from last fall from the credit reporting agency Experian found a leading 44 percent of respondents say that a key indicator of being a data-driven organization is a high level of trust in the quality of data, followed in the top-three by the presence of easy to use data management tools (40 percent) and speedy, flexible access to data that can be scaled as needed (39 percent). In a column for the Harvard Business Review, Randy Bean, founder of NewVantage Partners, said organizations can accelerate the journey to becoming data-driven by focusing on three principles:
  • Think different: “There is no shortage of analytic algorithms. These need to be matched by critical thinking, human judgment and a view to creative innovation.”
  • Fail fast, learn faster: “Companies that are prepared for faster iterative learning — fail fast, learn faster — will gain insight and knowledge before their competitors.”
  • Focus on the long-term: “Becoming data-driven is a process.”

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