5 steps to digital transformation using GIS

Geographic information systems (GIS) empower analysts to query complex data sets to thoroughly understand their data and create actionable insights. These five steps show how spatial analysis can be used to transform an organisation

1. Bring all your data together
Start by ditching your data silos and empowering your whole organisation to access accurate information from one reliable system. Spatial analysis enables you to work with data stored across your organisation as well as external data you have found, bought, collected or crowdsourced.
National Grid use spatial analysis as part of a business transformation programme that is expected to lead to cost savings of around £35 million per year.
As a core part of its transformation, National Grid took the radical decision to reduce its business systems from 40 to four to create a simplified, standardised and integrated systems landscape.

GIS was the only solution National Grid carried forward to the new IT environment. GIS software was integrated with National Grid’s enterprise asset management (EAM) system and customer relationship management (CRM) system from SAP, as well as its Syclo mobile applications.
The integration of GIS with SAP eliminates data duplication and inconsistency and makes more accurate asset information accessible to support decision making.
Up to 5,000 National Grid employees now use GIS to work more productively, improve operational efficiency and make better-informed decisions.

2. Expose hidden relationships
Mapping and analytics platforms allow organisations to work with layers of data. No more tables, sheets or pages of data to compare – users can instantly visualise their data sets on a map, layer by layer, taking away the complexities of finding relationships by making them vividly apparent.
Large data sets can be interrogated easily by adding and removing variables from different data sets, to expose hidden trends and patterns that would otherwise be difficult to find.
In a key business initiative, Red Kite Community Housing is working with layers of data to identify areas of land suitable for development.
“GIS is revealing strips of land, previously not identified as having development potential, and unlocking new revenue opportunities for the business,” says Jessica Horwitz, insight team leader at Red Kite Community Housing.

3. Create actionable insight
Add immense value to decision making with advanced analytics capabilities. Spatial analysis tools can be used to query large, complex, data sets to understand behaviours, identify hotspots and predict future outcomes – making it easy for analysts to uncover actionable insights that will help shape a sustainable growth strategy.
Sompo Canopius , a global insurance business, underwrites billions of pounds worth of business with domestic, commercial and reinsurance customers on every continent every year. Consequently, it needs to be able to collate, analyse and, critically, understand vast amounts of information about potential natural catastrophes at millions of separate locations all around the world.