When asked to identify the biggest barriers to using data, the single biggest challenge cited was that data was from too many sources and of different types was identified as according to 43 per cent of the respondent. Poor quality of data was cited as the second biggest challenge to data being used within the organisation

Only 23 per cent of UK decision-makers closely align business strategy to data already held by their organisation according to new research commissioned by Rosslyn Analytics, a data technology company.

The research also reveals that less than half (44 per cent) of business leaders thought that data was considered a strategic asset, suggesting there is still some way to go for the importance of data to achieve widespread recognition.

“It’s shocking that most organisations continue to make decisions without data,” said Charlie Clark, CEO, Rosslyn Analytics.

“Rosslyn Analytics believes business leaders need to renew their efforts and focus on improving the accessibility and quality of data required to make informed decisions that are aligned to business objectives. In today’s age of intelligent, self-service data technologies, there is no excuse for data not to be in the hands of decision-makers.”

The research coincides with the launch of Rosslyn Analytics’ new business user report entitled, Data: The Art of the Possible, a guide to understanding how all decision-makers can easily create value from multiple different data sources.

Other statistics identified by the research include:

• When asked to identify the biggest barriers to using data, the single biggest challenge cited was that data was from too many sources and of different types was identified as according to 43 per cent of the respondents
• Poor quality of data was cited as the second biggest challenge to data being used within the organisation
• Only 40 per cent of respondents believe their organisation effectively exploits its internal data to gain competitive advantage
• When asked to rate what type of data was most valuable to the organisation, “product data” was considered, on average, the most valuable
• “Customer data” was rated as second most valuable type of data; “financial data” and “spend data” were seen as third and fourth most valuable respectively; “employee data” was seen as least valuable of the data categories

“Our research shows that only 30 per cent of business leaders explore data with a set question,” Clark said.

“Understanding data is key to achieving data-business alignment, where data not only informs business strategy but the business strategy also dictates the type of data owned by the organisation.”