We are currently living in the digital era, in which technology has transformed the way we work and communicate. Figures such as connectivity, automation or cloud technology have revolutionized many aspects of society and have created new opportunities for innovation and economic growth.
In the digital era, data plays a key role in the transformation of companies and society in general. Aspects such as the economic value that data can generate for organizations by facilitating decision making, the ability to analyze large volumes of information to detect behaviors or trends, or the possibility of personalizing the user experience are some of the utilities that companies can obtain in current times. With this evidence, it is increasingly common for organizations to understand that the data they generate is a strategic asset for them and there are many reasons to consider it as such:
- Volume: The amount of data generated every day is enormous and is expected to continue to increase.
- Value: Data can be used to make informed decisions, improve products and processes, and create new products and services.
- Versatility: Data can be used for a wide range of applications, from market analysis to medical research.
- Accessibility: Technology has made it easier to access and analyze data.
- Interchangeability: Data can be shared and used in different contexts and applications.
As a result, many companies are investing in initiatives to leverage the value of their data and improve their competitiveness, but… are all initiatives the same, what types of initiatives can be deployed in enterprise environments?
Depending on the effort-impact ratio of an initiative, it is possible to differentiate between 3 main blocks:
- Tactical initiative: is an action plan that focuses on achieving short-term objectives (quickwins) and is used to support an organization’s overall strategy. These initiatives are designed to solve specific problems or take advantage of limited opportunities in the market. In general, tactical initiatives are more specific and concrete than long-term strategies and are implemented quickly to achieve tangible, visible results. For example, a tactical initiative can be to analyze the reports that are made in a certain department and detect possible duplicate work, inefficiencies or unnecessary information that is missing or surplus in search of an operational improvement for the users that elaborate or consume the report.
- Use case: with a medium effort and impact on the organization is the use case, focused on solving a specific problem that may occur within a team and with which a higher return is obtained than with tactical initiatives. Usually a use case initiative can define requirements for a future larger project, making a proof of concept to focus on the next steps or develop the use case initiative with the objective of scaling massively depending on the results obtained. A use case could be to put into practice the definition and implementation of the quality methodology for a given domain/area before scaling up to the whole organization.
- Data product: Contrary to the previous initiatives, Data Products are focused on the long term, developing an end-to-end product that solves a problem or satisfies a general need. The efforts to be invested in developing a project of this type are usually high, but the benefit obtained usually also generates a great impact on the organization. A Data Product could be a dashboard that allows users to visualize and monitor data quality in real time. This dashboard could include key data quality metrics such as completeness, accuracy and consistency, and provide detailed information on any quality issues that are detected. In short, a complete data quality measurement solution from both a technological and functional point of view.
The different types of initiatives (tactics, use cases or data products) can be represented in a matrix that allows visualizing the effort-impact they will generate for the organization, which will facilitate deciding the prioritization given to each one.
Thus, the organization will prioritize those initiatives that are of most interest according to the objectives pursued.
Therefore, to determine which initiatives are interesting for the organization, it is necessary to quantify the effort it would take to implement them and the impact that their implementation would represent for the company, having to choose those that best suit the needs of the company and its reality.
Do you want to squeeze all the value of data in your organization? From Keepler we help you to know what type of initiative best suits your needs and we design the end to end of it, from its definition to its execution.
Image: Freepik
Data management associate at Keepler Data Tech, certified in DAMA (CDMP). I have developed my professional career in the field of Data Governance, Data Quality and Data Management in general.
"Squeezing all the business potential that data has is my main objective when we face a new project with my clients"