Digital transformation is underway in practically every industry in the world. Companies, businesses and organizations throughout the world are leveraging their assets, big data and analytics for an edge over their competitors. In fact, data analytics and big data have gained popularity to the extent that data analysis for differentiation is considered advantageous by nearly 91% (click to learn more) of executives. What’s more is that information-based products are impacting the revenues in a very positive way for at least one-third of Global 2000 companies.
How is a digital transformation changing the way in which organizations work?
The digital economy has already arrived and will expand. In fact, it is only a matter of years until most of our systems, processes and activities go completely digital. Whether they are ready for the transformation or not, it is required of organizations to revamp the way they think and carry out their business activities.
The organizations and businesses of today must think far beyond the traditional confines of an enterprise and need to consider the entire ecosystem to ensure that they are making the right decisions which can help with survival. It is now essential for organizations and businesses to take several factors into consideration, the most prominent of which are the customers, suppliers, competitors, and consortiums which the organization or business might be a part of. Fortunately for many, a digital transformation makes all of that—and much more!—possible.
The importance for organizations and businesses of evaluating and analyzing data streams in the world today cannot be emphasized enough. With all of the digitally enhanced experiences, services and products being offered by businesses and organizations today, it is not surprising that the executives of today are trying different approaches to increase their revenue from all of these different and innovative things we now have access to in the digital world.
There is a lot that organizations need to do in order to keep up with the ever-changing digital world. It is not uncommon to see organizations struggling due to the lack of agility and the ability to make the right decisions. As a result, there is a visible gap between the organizations which are progressing and those which are even struggling to survive.
One of the major reasons why organizations fail to thrive in the digital world is because their business models are not in line with the digital economy. Without a business model which supports the digital transformation of the enterprise or industry, it is practically impossible for an organization or business to plan and execute market strategies which are efficient and optimal. In addition to exploring and experimenting with new revenue streams and data streams, for progressing in the digital world, companies and organizations also need to constantly revamp their back-end systems and the way they work.
Being an integral part of every digital transformation, organizations also need a platform to manage data of any kind and size. Only after studying trends and properly evaluating the data and changes that need to be made will organizations be in a position to leverage digital competencies to their advantage by not only creating relevant business models, but also innovating with the products and services being offered. The implementation, integration and wide scale use of a management platform will, therefore, improve the performance of the organization and improve the quality of the solutions which are guaranteed to boost the customer experience and revenue.
The importance of digital data management platforms
Digital data management platforms are a necessity for every enterprise and organization in the world today, regardless of the industry that it belongs to. Spanning across several domains of the business, a digital data management platform is essential for integration and providing solutions which are elaborate and comprehensive. A proper enterprise platform should contain the five service layers: engagement, integration, development, data and modern core IT which are the key components of every digital business.
As mentioned above, for an organization to limit its focus to only transactional data is a recipe for disaster. Organizations understand that the world is heading towards digital at an unprecedented rate, but it is estimated that fewer than 25% of them have successfully reaped the full benefits of data analytics and been able to extract the highest value possible from the analysis of data. It is, however, unfair to say that organizations are not trying. Since they realize that they will be responsible for their own demise if they rely solely on the traditional methods of running a business and progressing by focusing on transactional data alone, approximately 65% of organizations have started measuring and tracking other key performance indicators in the last two years.
Executives at every level understand that without Big Data and analytics, they are at the constant risk of underperforming. This is exactly why they do not hesitate in questioning the status quo and need instant access to information which they can use to their advantage. With the help of a data management platform, these executives will not only have to stop worrying about data preparation, but they can also derive all of the necessary conclusions for the business to not only survive, but thrive and progress. Needless to say, the use of digital enterprise platforms can give organizations and businesses the competitive edge.
The data layer of enterprise digital platforms also increase connectivity between the different systems of the business and has an impact on the activities which are essential for the business or organization. Often, these cloud-based platforms not only allow data integration and data management, but they also help maintain the integrity of the data and help with data curation. As organizations work towards digital maturity, they will have to rely more and more on these platforms to ensure that their activities and processes are demand-oriented, driven by the data which needs to be analyzed to maximize personalization and craft elaborate solutions, and also executed digitally.
Another added advantage of using these enterprise digital platforms for data management is that all of the data which needs to be analyzed can be done in real time. This not only allows the data to be immediately leveraged, but can also help change operations and analytics in real time. The interactions that customers have with businesses and organizations are not only limited to certain domains and span across desktop, email, mobile, broadcast and print all of which can be separately evaluated and taken into consideration to use customer segmentation for increased profits.
The availability of complete data is another plus which comes from the use of enterprise data management platforms. Accessibility is increased and data mapping options increase the ways in which you can use the data. What’s more is that the use of such platforms allows businesses and organizations to understand the user experience which is bound to attract customers and users from far and wide within the ecosystem—something which would not have been possible without the efficient use of analytics and data management platforms.
Investing in data management tools and a platform which support digital maturity is something which enterprises both small and large cannot afford to work around. Once implemented, configured and the technologies are bootstrapped, the benefits which enterprises can reap from big data management platforms are practically endless.
About the Author
Ronald van Loon is an Advisory Board Member and Big Data & Analytics course advisor for Simplilearn. He contributes his expertise towards the rapid growth of Simplilearn’s popular Big Data & Analytics category.
If you would like to read more from Ronald van Loon on the possibilities of Big Data and the Internet of Things (IoT), please click “Follow” and connect on LinkedIn and Twitter.
