Most business leaders feel the constant pressure to become more data driven, however they have no idea how to manage their data as an asset to derive the most value from it. Let’s start a journey to uncover how we can turn this into a competitive advantage and improve productivity.
Over the last few years, data has become more available. The result is that we have access to multiple complex data sources. This can be overwhelming. So how do we turn that into a competitive weapon?
The starting point should always be to understand the strategic direction a company is moving in. Then identify data needed to support the strategic intent. Articulating a company’s information needs is a fine art and calls for a business analyst. Therefore their role is to interpret the business needs and turn it into specifications for IT.
One pitfall companies regular step into is to use the terms “reporting” and “analytics” interchangeably. These concepts are very different in their use and outcome. Reporting provides a historical overview of specific metrics that your company tracks monthly, quarterly or annually. In contrast, Analytics uses historical data to model scenarios that may present itself in future.
What are the opportunities out there that we can make sense of the information overload world that we live in? I recommend the following 5 steps to improve efficient data availability:
- Articulate your needs – What data do I need, when, why and how will I use it . What will happen if I do not get the data?
- Define a few metrics for Reporting
- Develop a Data Governance Framework to ensure quality data
- Automate by using an ELT tool
- Data extraction / combination
- Data transformation
- Output reporting
- Use a visualisation tool to provide in-time storytelling for customers