IT pros can lead businesses to peak data performance
The notion of a data-driven organization – where people have easy access to the insights they need to guide their decision making – has spread fast over recent years.
Even before Covid, organizations of all sizes were facing chaotic and uncertain trading environments. Globalization and advances in technology meant that new threats and opportunities could emerge at a moment’s notice. Industries were transformed almost overnight.
The names Blockbuster, Kodak and Xerox were once giants in their respective industries. Now they serve as salutary reminders that organizations must evolve and adapt quickly to keep their competitive edge.
Adapting requires a deep and fundamental understanding of what is happening to the organization in as close to real-time as possible. And it means turning that insight into action without delay.
Small businesses can rely on human intuition when making decisions, because it is easier for their leaders to have a holistic picture. But you cannot manage a larger organization that way. Large and medium-sized companies are too complex to manage by gut-feel. They are also less agile, and have much more to lose than their smaller counterparts.
At the same time, the world is becoming more aware of the limitations of the human mind. The Me Too and Black Lives Matter movements have led many to recognize how emotions and biases can distort decision making, stunt progress and leave large parts of society (and the workforce) feeling ignored and marginalized.
Academic studies show that more diverse organizations tend to deliver higher sales, profits and shareholder returns. Leadership teams with a wide range of experience and backgrounds are proven to produce more innovative products.
Data-driven organizations, especially those with a robust way of tackling any bias in algorithms, find it easier to become more inclusive and embrace the benefits of diversity, because evidence helps to correct prejudices and preconceptions. They are also equipped to recognize and react to changes in their businesses and the wider world faster and with more certainty.
Although the majority of organizations we speak to recognize the importance of becoming more data-driven, there is a data-divide at the heart of the UK’s business community.
Research commissioned by Peak Indicators shows that most organizations are struggling to move to this new way of working. Our study found that:
Even where systematic data analysis is in place to support decision making, it can be slow and prone to human error.
A third (34 percent) of large organizations still rely on individual and departmental spreadsheets for collating data. Although tried and trusted, spreadsheets require lots of human interaction and are not well suited to revealing new insights fast.
Our study found that the situation was worse at medium-sized businesses.
Poor data practices paralyze decision making. They make it harder for large businesses to react to new threats and opportunities, and increase the risk of making ill-informed, biased and emotional decisions.
