As Global 2000 companies recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, revenue and growth have taken center stage. Nearly two-thirds (63%) of data professionals surveyed in the latest Alation State of Data Culture Report out today say their data strategy is focused on enabling business growth. The report found that generating revenue topped the list of key drivers of organizations’ data and analytics priorities, with 54% ranking it #1. Coinciding with the focus on growth and revenue, 61% of data leaders cite sales and/or marketing as top proponents for data and analytics needs.
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“In what has been an extremely challenging year, a strong data culture has again asserted itself as an essential ingredient for organizations regaining their footing”
Produced by Wakefield Research for Alation, the leader in enterprise data intelligence solutions, the Alation State of Data Culture Report provides a quarterly assessment of the progress enterprises have made in creating a data culture, the challenges they face in embracing data-driven decision-making, and the progress they have made in leveraging data to drive business value.
As a part of its analysis, the report includes the Alation Data Culture Index™ (DCI), a quantitative assessment of how well an organization is positioned to enable data-driven decision-making across three key disciplines: data search & discovery, data literacy, and data governance. Enterprises are ranked low-, mid-, and top-tier based on how widely adopted these disciplines are across the enterprise.
According to the report, 75% of top-tier data culture companies met or exceeded revenue targets. Also at top-tier data culture companies, product innovation is tied with generating revenue (51%) as a top data and analytics priority.
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“In what has been an extremely challenging year, a strong data culture has again asserted itself as an essential ingredient for organizations regaining their footing,” said Julie Smith, Director of Data & Analytics, Alation. “Any strong data culture needs data literacy which thrives when there is engagement between employees and data. Driving that engagement through the right technology, one that embraces the community element of data culture, is a foundational step towards this.”
While revenue and growth take precedence for organizations, many still experience challenges with a lack of data democratization, which impedes utilizing data to drive business goals. Nearly all (97%) data leaders surveyed cite negative consequences due to inadequate data democratization, including:
- 77% citing negative impact on the bottom line
- 67% citing negative impact on innovation
- 61% citing negative impact on reporting and forecasting
Despite this, only 30% of data professionals say that data democratization is a top priority, leaving companies vulnerable to these consequences.
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