Effective data strategy gives enterprises a competitive advantage

Businesses are increasingly recognizing the value of data, but most acknowledge that they could do better in using it to drive business transformation.

A new report from DataStax, based on a survey of over 500 technology executives and practitioners, reveals that while 96 percent of respondents say they have some level of a data strategy, only 38 percent of enterprises give themselves top grades when it comes to using data to create value for customers.

"Organizations undoubtedly understand the importance of data, but according to our research, many of them are still looking for ways to transform into truly data-driven enterprises. Those that already have -- are winning," says Bryan Kirschner, vice president of strategy for DataStax. "Organizations that make smart investments in the right data stack, open source technologies and hybrid cloud have the opportunity to change their trajectory and find new paths to innovation and revenue growth."

The study also shows that data-driven enterprises are leaning towards open source software (OSS) -- they are four times more likely to have deployed Apache Cassandra, Kubernetes, and a combination of other open source tools, with 71 percent of data leaders believing a robust OSS data stack gives them a big competitive advantage. They're keen to make the most of the cloud while preserving flexibility too and 97 percent are building a hybrid data infrastructure.

The report makes clear that data strategy needs to involve the whole business too. Assigning line of business accountability for data governance and aligning tech infrastructure to data strategy triples the chances that a company drives at least 20 percent of its revenue with data and analytics.

Interestingly COVID-19 has driven positive change at a majority of the top organizations, with 88 percent of leading companies agreeing that adapting to the new market realities caused by the pandemic has boosted their pace of innovation.

You can download the full report from the DataStax site.

Image credit: AndrewLozovyi/depositphotos.com