One of the most talked about things in our day and age is the word “Data” or “Big Data”, being the buzzword of our day and age. From machine learning, artificial intelligence, data analytics and many more.
Although this mostly concerns the technology aspects of how we conduct business in many industries, there appears to be a small misunderstanding of the commercial and policy aspects of it all. There are certain ways to comprehend the technology side of things without ever considering where the business side of things comes into play. This is what business analytics is all about.
Looking into these various trends coming about, you always have to ask yourself, as a tech savvy individual that you may think you are, how much of this constant inflow of data will help larger bodies at work to leverage it and use it to their advantage, in order for policies to be put in place? The faster action is taken, the easier it will be for the next batch of experts or practitioners to carry out decisions. So let me get to the point of all this.
How may different organizations use Data driven strategies to strengthen their Business Intelligence:
- Utilization of already established systems to help analyze data collected: A great example is using Point Of Sale (POS) machines in various institutions such as restaurants to generate data and use the various purchase histories from clients to develop their future business decisions. Using what we have to our advantage without the need of looking too far.
- Transfer of skills: Training people in different departments interpret data. This makes things a whole lot easier, as opposed to having a few people who understand how to do this sort of task. With technology transforming faster than ever, clients and customers need to be up to speed on what tools to use and how to use them, on a consistent basis. So as to build a more informed environment, hence creating developing better solutions.
- Updating Data: Within data management, there are always small cracks that develop while carrying the process, which may lead to poor or outdated data. This can affect a company’s strategic overview, leading to poor decision making. Ways to maintain accuracy can be through:
i) Automation of Error reports: Investing in software that can automatically detect the errors within the systems being used.
ii) Use of Cloud Based Digital Databases: As data is being updated, the most recent data are uploaded and kept correctly in real time, as opposed to doing it by hand which can come with huge amounts of errors.
iii) Train staff: As new systems are constantly coming into play, it’s beneficial for those that use them or might come across them get an idea of how to use it and encourage user adoption.
4. Focus less on the tech side and more on management: Any business, from a strategic viewpoint, must examine its goals and objectives and seek to enhance them, as well as how it will devote time and attention to improving the processes in place (the technology). While the technology used to create data is important, considering data management may help your company’s overall strategy.
“Data literacy can help non-data professionals read and understand the data and use it to inform their decision-making. As such, data literacy is increasingly important not just for executive leadership, but for managers and employees who want to increase the value they bring to their organization. ”~Harvard Business School’s Business Insight Blog on Data Literacy.
Among other things, I believe that gradually transforming the work environment so that everyone from the top to the bottom of an organization may be data literate is critical, because depending on a small number of people to manage and visualize data can be detrimental in the long term. Given the constant digital transformation, data literacy should be included not only from a technological aspect, but also from a policy and decision-making one.
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