Today, data-driven benefits abound. However, the ability to seize new business opportunities, create new products, and deal effectively with competitive issues requires strong data management and analytics capabilities.
The processes involved are complicated by rapid data growth as well as more options than ever for storage—spanning cloud, on-prem, and hybrid scenarios. But the point, of course, is not to simply gather and store all this data. Making it available for decision making by users who need it—when they need it—is the goal.
The approaches that organizations are taking to avoid downtime and ensure the continued viability and availability of data flowing through their organizations were explored in a recent survey report released by Unisphere Research, a division of Information Today, Inc., and sponsored by Dell Technologies (“Managing Data in a Demanding Digital Economy: 2022 Quest IOUG Database Insights Report”). The research revealed that mundane database administration and maintenance tasks are taking their toll on organizations, and, to address this burden, they are embracing approaches such as database consolidation and the adoption of cloud-based services.
According to Unisphere Research analyst Joe McKendrick, maintaining system stability—patching, fixing, and upgrading—is considered the costliest part of data managers’ jobs, identified in the responses of close to half (49%) of respondents to the survey. In addition, 40% indicated that much of their time and budget goes to ensuring security, while 36% see significant portions of their time and budgets dedicated to testing and quality assurance. The leading strategy being undertaken to mitigate this resource drain is consolidation of databases and data centers and approaches that incorporate virtualization and cloud (31%).
If the level of corporate or management support can be gauged through budget commitments, then a recognition of the critical role of data management in ensuring the success of business operations is evident, McKendrick points out. Nearly 80% of respondents expect an increase in corporate spending on data and IT management in the coming year, which is twice the percentage of respondents who anticipated increases in a survey 2 years ago.
Shifting time and effort from routine tasks to make way for innovation is critical. Another recent survey of IT and business decision makers looked at how data fuels the innovation engine, the ways in which organizations with mature data practices are more innovative, and how they bring data to innovation. The study done by Enterprise Strategy Group and Splunk (“The State of Data Innovation 2021”) found that respondents whose organizations were classified as data innovation leaders excel at product and service enhancement, data monetization, employee productivity, and application development enablement.
A key benefit of data-enhanced innovation for all respondents to this survey is getting closer to the customer by providing better digital experiences, being able to engage via new channels, or offering new products that better fit customers’ needs. Across the board, the report found, data innovation helps organizations achieve higher customer satisfaction (60% of respondents), improved customer retention (54%), better customer conversion rates (48%), and improved brand perception (47%).
The message is clear: Business leadership understands that creating resilient IT systems and pipelines for high-quality, trustworthy data moving into employees’ workflows for decision making is essential. To help bring new resources and innovation to light, each year, Database Trends and Applications magazine presents the DBTA 100, a list of forward-thinking companies seeking to expand what’s possible with data for their customers. Spanning the wide range of established to cutting edge, the DBTA 100 is a list of hardware, software, and service providers working to enable their customers’ data-driven future.
Beyond our list, there is also a “View From the Top” section featuring articles written by industry executives detailing how they are helping customers handle their data management problems and maximize opportunities. We encourage you to learn more about these innovative organizations by visiting their websites. And, to stay on top of the latest news, IT trends, and research, go to www.dbta.com.