COVID-19 outbreak – an eye-opener for the use of smart data
The COVID-19 crisis is unprecedented in human history and caught the entire world by surprise. A report based on in-depth interviews produced by Kairos Future reveals that the new business environment has negatively affected some companies’ journey towards data-driven operations, by halting investments. On the other hand, the crisis has also shown how big data can be used to provide much-needed support for decision making, which has been an eye-opener for those not used to working with analytics and data.
The Bisnode-report Data-driven Masterclass - 10 Lessons from the European Leaders in Digitalization concludes that the path to a data-driven future is unique for every company, and that was true even before COVID-19. Support from the entire executive management team is required to drive a cohesive approach within the company to ensure the appropriate priority and funding, in order to achieve real business value from the use of smart data.
“Most businesses want to become more data-driven – to e.g. prioritize sales & marketing efforts on the right segments and accounts, to manage risk and better understanding what partners to do business with. This is still relevant during Covid-19 times as we cannot simply stop doing business in times of great uncertainty.” says Rikard Candell, Director Group Analytics at Bisnode. “In order to become data-driven, you need to focus on the problem you are trying to solve, start small and work in iterations. The big picture should serve as your guiding light along this journey.”
Key insights from the report
Data-driven Masterclass highlights certain steps that a company should take when setting out on a journey to become data-driven. Kairos Future has conducted in-depth interviews with 22 company executives/senior leaders to gain insights and in-depth understanding of what it takes to become data-driven.
Start with the aim, what you want to achieve. When setting out on the journey to become data-driven, it is a common pitfall to start by looking at the data. But to avoid spending time and money on expensive collection, cleaning and storage of data, start with a clearly defined purpose and goals.
Ethics and regulations. When implementing a data-driven approach to business, data ethics is one of the most important things to consider. Before handling data, ethics or data principles should be in place to protect the company from violations, potential incidents and avoid trampling on privacy. This will also ensure that the company is better equipped for current and future regulations. The Data-driven Masterclass-report concludes that only 40 percent of the respondents had ethical guidelines regarding the use of data
Start from the top. To succeed the top management must be driving transformation which must then be anchored throughout the entire organization. Support from the entire executive management team will be required to drive a cohesive approach within the company to ensure the appropriate priority and funding, to achieve real business value from the use of smart data. Engaging the entire company in all functions is key.
Let go of control. Trust the data and the people handling it. Identify the right competences externally and internally. Start small, learn how to scale quickly. This is an effective way to gain trust, since lack of trust in the data is a common obstacle.
Choose the right data - Avoid bad data. You need to understand and accept that a lot of data, including external and internal data, might not be of the quality that you are expecting or quality assured in-house. You need to be consistent when scaling data initiatives, even when you have different technology conditions across the company.
About the survey
This survey was commissioned by Bisnode and conducted by Kairos Future. The report is based on in-depth interviews with 22 senior leaders in IT, data, marketing and business development functions in Europe, from companies that already have applied a more data-driven approach to business than their industry peers.
For further information, please contact
Tomas Hedenius, Marketing Manager Bisnode Scandinavia
Mobil: +46 70-247 29 02
E-mail: tomas.hedenius@bisnode.com
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