Perception Isn’t Always Reality: New Report from HFS Research and Syniti Makes the Case for More Effective Data Management

Global Study Shows Struggles with Quality, Execution Remain Even as Organizations’ Data Management Matures

New research conducted by HFS Research in conjunction with Syniti, a global leader in enterprise data management, shows that while data is a clear focus area for the C-suite, there are still organizational disconnects in terms of execution. Significant investments in data management strategies and solutions are being made, but survey respondents still struggle with usable data, primarily due to governance and monitoring shortcomings.

The study, Perception Isn’t Always Reality: The Case for More Effective Data Management, was conducted during fourth quarter of 2022. More than 300 senior level executives at mid-to-large size enterprises across the globe were interviewed, representing a variety of industries including manufacturing, life sciences, healthcare, CPG and retail. Among the report’s findings:

Large delta between perceived trust and usability: While a whopping 80% of respondents said they trust their data, the same group said only 60% of their data is actually usable. Compliance, fragmented systems and a lack of coordination and collaboration across the organization are limiting better data management.

Data quality execution must improve: Ninety-five percent of executives believe their companies would be more competitive, more innovative, and able to make faster decisions if their data quality were two times better. Key areas of major business improvements with improved data quality included superior customer experience (65%) and financial performance (55%) with improved data quality. More than 25% of respondents say they believe bad data cost their organization 20% or more in revenue.

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Data management is a C-suite mandate: Data has truly come to the forefront of the C-level agenda; more than 90% of respondents stated that the C-suite owns and sets data objectives. Of those surveyed, 65% of respondents have fully implemented a data modernization effort and 73% have implemented a centralized company-wide data management strategy.

Managing data needs to move beyond IT: While progress has been made, there is a disconnect between the C-suite and line of business organizers in terms of perceived data confidence versus implementation of processes that support data confidence. For many organizations, managing data remains an IT issue and one that is largely internally focused.

Phil Fersht, CEO and chief analyst, HFS Research, said: “With the current economic challenges, we’re seeing a genuine rapid pivot towards the autonomous enterprise, where leadership continuously seeks to refine the data it needs in real-time to be successful. Successful leaders are focusing deeply on their talent, tech infrastructure, automation and AI to deliver centralized data that will drive success with minimal manual interventions that impede progress and speed.”

Kevin Campbell, CEO, Syniti, said: “Rapid digitalization has created a proliferation of data, and businesses still struggle to connect their data management to business outcomes. The good thing is that the C-suite is responding to calls to implement clear governance and data strategies. The next step is to put these strategies into play at the line-of-business level. At Syniti, we are committed to helping companies tackle these challenges and maximize the opportunities of their greatest resource: data.”

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