EDITOR ’ S QUESTION

The annual Global Data Management report , which surveyed 905 data practitioners and data-driven business leaders worldwide , found that the majority ( 75 %) of businesses who have improved their data quality in the last year have exceeded their annual objectives in some way .

This includes objectives relating to customer experience , managing talent and workforce development , data security and improving business resilience . Meeting these objectives will ultimately help these organisations reach their revenue growth targets .

Recognising data as a critical asset to build business resilience , most businesses ( 89 %) say that contact data is key to customer engagement , indicating its use in building a recovery plan . Similarly , 88 % suggest data management has allowed them to keep up with understanding their customers ’ rapidly changing needs that continue to be impacted by the pandemic .

88 % suggest data management has allowed them to keep up with understanding their customers ’ rapidly changing needs .

Almost every business respondent ( 97 %) said they plan to make their data management programme more flexible and agile over the next 12 months .

Improving customer experience is a top priority ( 52 %), with businesses eager to use data to enable more customer centricity through better operational efficiency ( 48 %) and better customer experience for customers offline and online ( 44 %), for example .

However , inherent barriers are hampering businesses from maximising on data usage , such as a lack of data skills and a decline in data accuracy . Over threequarters ( 77 %) say that inaccurate data hurt their ability to respond to market changes during the pandemic , while 39 % say poor quality data has negative effects on customer experience . Meanwhile , 84 % think a lack of data skills in the business hampers agility and flexibility in their organisations .

“ The last year has tested every industry , with a new requirement for business models to be agile and change in line with their customers ’ rapidly shifting demands ,” said Andrew Abraham , Global Managing Director , Data Quality , at Experian . “ Our research shows that businesses who have improved their data quality were not just better equipped for this but exceeded their performance expectations too .

“ However , business experiences with data accuracy and issues around how data is managed remain and are unlikely to improve unless businesses upskill current employees and continue to work with wider industry and government on addressing the data skills gap .”

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