What’s Getting In the Way of Successful Data Initiatives

A new study on data analytics suggests CEOs have a much more optimistic view than managers of the current status and benefits of data initiatives within their organizations.

The study  (opens in a new tab), conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit and sponsored by analytics platform provider Teradata, surveyed employees in general management, finance, marketing, business development, and various other positions at companies around the world to try and decipher some of the cultural gaps that can impede organizational data strategies.

For example, almost half of CEOs believe employees have access to data they need to do their jobs, but roughly a third of lower managers agreed with that statement.

“What I strongly suspect is the classic scenario where the CEO is always going to get the rosiest picture painted for him or her by the person below them,” Bill Franks, chief analytics officer of Teradata, told CIO magazine  (opens in a new tab). “I think part of it could be the fault of the chain of communication in terms of not wanting to deliver bad news to the C suite.”

The other two-thirds of managers said that some departments in their organizations have better access to data than others, and 42 percent of respondents said accessing data is cumbersome and not user-friendly.

Further adding to the data conundrum, more than half of respondents reported that their organizations do a poor job of converting data into insights. And, while respondents did report an abundance of internal data, external analytics, such as market data and customer demographics, were less prolific.

“Opportunities for analytics are expanding every day,” Franks said in a statement. “Transforming from gut-led to data-driven requires cultural changes and because companies are struggling in this area, they are missing opportunities.”

The survey also identified some of the benefits successful data-driven organizations often reap from effective analytics initiatives, including a greater ability to generate higher profits. These organizations are also two times as likely to report having creative and innovative cultures.

Do you recognize any of the above cultural gaps within your organization? Let us know in the comments.

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