Four Pillars for a Data-Driven Business

Businesses are willing to invest in data infrastructure to achieve results, but to be successful, it requires a culture shift.

By Sophie Kim

What does a data-driven business look like?

You might hear executives say, “The data suggests” as opposed to, “My gut tells me.”

You might see live data feeds outputting key figures and alerting factory managers to potential anomalies on a production line.

You might interact with visualizations that allow you to drill into your key business questions.

A data-driven business is a business wherein decisions are powered by data; where every decision can be made a little better, the benefits will quickly compound.

According to Forbes, data-driven businesses are:

• 23x as likely to acquire customers
• 6x more likely to retain customers
• 19x more likely to be profitable

The figures are compelling, and as a result ,leaders are investing in data.

Most businesses aren’t unlocking value from their data assets

Approximately 67% of businesses have already invested in a business intelligence tool with the global market for BI tools expected to reach $33.3 billion in 2025. According to a 2021 study by NewVantage Partners, however, only 24.4% of companies have forged data-driven cultures within their organizations.

So while most organizations are investing in the right tools, they’re not achieving a data-driven state or realizing the return they were hoping for from their investment.

What’s missing?

While most powerful when driven by data, decisions are ultimately made by people. Technology is simply an enabler. Furthermore, key business decisions are generally not made by the data and analytics team. It’s people throughout the business and beyond the core data team that make a data-driven culture.

People are busy — they have mountains of meetings and competing priorities. For data-driven decision-making to be sustainable, everyone must have a belief that data and insights will add value to their day-to-day, and insights must be available, understood, and perhaps most importantly, trusted.

So to enable a data-driven culture in your organization, the four key pillars are:

1. Willingness — Inspiring openness and enthusiasm to encourage data-driven decision-making through the whole business
2. Availability — Ensuring the data is accessible when (and where) it’s needed
3. Understanding — Enabling stakeholders to interpret and pull insights from the data that is relevant to them
4. Trust — Establishing trust in the data so decisions can be made with confidence

While data availability and enabling tools are often at the top of the list in data transformation programs, availability is only part of what’s required to create a successful, data-driven culture and ultimately a data-driven business.

To learn more about the above pillars, stay tuned for my next blog in the series that covers the four pillars in more detail and how they can drive efficiency, clarity, and agility within your organization.

Slalom is a global consulting firm that helps people and organizations dream bigger, move faster, and build better tomorrows for all. Learn more and reach out today.