Dive Brief:
- Speeding up data analysis, data integration and finding high-skilled talent are the top three challenges of data management, according to a CompTIA survey of 400 U.S. businesses.
- As companies turn up the dial on digital in more processes, the demand for quick data-driven decisions has risen, the report said. A number of factors within companies' data architecture can slow the process of ingesting data and turning it into action.
- To a lesser extent, companies are struggling to manage new data formats within the existing architecture, since the formats typically require a separate workflow rather than plugging in new formats into existing processes.
Dive Insight:
Efficient data management practices are essential to power businesses. Yet just 25% of companies said their data management strategies are in an ideal state, that's down from 31% in 2015 according to CompTIA.
The list of key data management hurdles is indicative of how many touchpoints data can have within an organization. It impacts people, by driving up the skill level required from staff. It transforms process since it requires higher levels of compliance.
It also exerts pressure on the technology, since companies are called to meet the storage, networking and integration needs of an efficient data management strategy.
Being a data-driven firm requires a level of resources that make it more difficult for smaller firms to thrive. Levels of satisfaction regarding data management strategies is higher for medium companies, at 28%, while small companies sit at 21%.
The process of turning data into insights is "very or extremely challenging" to 41% of business leaders, according to a Forrester report.
For companies trying to use data to drive sales forecasting, the quality of data may play a significant factor in missed estimates. Just 45% of sales leaders and sellers say confidence in their organization's forecasting accuracy is high.
