With the growth of smart technologies and the ever-growing transition to digital services, the world is accumulating data at an astonishingly fast pace, with over 4 billion internet users and approximately 40 trillion gigabytes of data (40 zettabytes). Large volumes of data are being generated by machines and connected devices at individual and organisational levels. However, we are still in the “early adoption phase” with data and analytics and there is a growing need for business strategies to use such information as critical organisational asset and analytics as a tool.
So what does this mean for you and your organisation?
Like most organisations you’re collecting a lot of data in some way or another. But what are you doing with that data? To gain a competitive advantage, the goal should not be to collect as much data as possible but to get as much value as possible by using the data you are collecting for decision making.
Most organisations use multiple systems for business operations and want to understand how to leverage the data from these systems to make better decisions. Business intelligence has proven to be a competitive advantage, and so they are looking for ways to aggregate and correlate data from various parts of the organisation—such as finance, business development, sales, marketing, and operations. In addition, they want to leverage data from third-party sources for further analysis and insight.
Data-Driven Decision Making
Data is the fuel that supports teams in the decision-making process. Making data easily accessible to business users is the first step in empowering teams to make data-driven decisions. When data is made available to users with the right analytics tools, they can transform massive amounts of information into actionable intelligence.
Connecting the Dots Across the Business
Advancement in business technology are rapidly changing the traditional operational oversight process. Smart, data-driven companies are taking advantage of these advancements to connect the dots across the business and to help them manage operations in real-time. Analytics combined with automation helps organisations connect workflows and automate tasks across the business to streamline complex operations and management processes. Such automation helps drive standardisation and ensure consistent, quality delivery across their business and processes.
Real-time Visibility and Insight
Metrics and performance measurement are a key aspect of operational excellence. Organisations must be able to measure and track performance on a consistent basis to streamline operations and to grow the business in a healthy and sustainable manner. With a modern analytics solution connected to their backend systems, teams can get real-time visibility across their operations without having to log into multiple systems.
Interactive dashboards and automated reports make it easy to track key performance indicators such as production and sales volumes, high-performing markets, and potential areas of development. When organisations have complete visibility into where they stand on revenue, profit, compliance, staffing, production schedules, deadlines, and more—it can significantly improve operations and minimise risk.
Continuous Value Creation for Customers
Continuous improvement—looking for ways to continuously improve the organisation’s processes, products, and services— is a key aspect of operational excellence. However, that in itself is not enough. In order to grow and increase competitive advantage, an organisation also needs to ensure that they are continuously increasing value for their customers. A business that stops delivering value to its customers is not sustainable over time.
To increase value for the customer it’s important to understand what the customer needs, the quality they expect, and the price they are willing to pay. Modern analytics solutions can give organisations valuable intelligence into their markets, products/services, competitors and customer segments. The solution can capture Voice of the Customer (VoC) information in multiple ways to provide insight into how to improve the customer experience. When this information is made available to teams across the organisation, it helps to create a culture focused on delivering value to the customer.