Experian Data Quality, a leading provider of data quality software and services, today announced the release of a new research study, The 2016 Data quality benchmark report. The study finds that while the majority of organizations feel data usage is evolving to support significant business outcomes, like the customer experience, decision making and governance, the data still is not at the quality level required to achieve these goals.

On average, organizations believe 23 percent of their data is inaccurate, and organizations are seeing a high number of consequences from bad data. In fact, 75 percent of organizations believe inaccurate data is undermining their ability to provide an excellent customer experience. The level of inaccurate data mainly stems from internal challenges, as organizations lack the knowledge, skills and human resources around data to manage and govern it properly.

“Businesses are evolving to make more intelligent decisions based on data, but they haven’t updated their data management processes to ensure they’re using high-quality information,” said Thomas Schutz, senior vice president and general manager for Experian Data Quality. “Organizations still are struggling to find data issues and correct them across the business. While some of this is certainly due to a higher volume of more diverse data types, many of these organizational struggles are internal. For example, a business may lack a central data owner or data staff. For data to fully support the business’ strategic needs, data management strategies need to catch up to data usage. Ultimately, that transformation starts with creating a culture around data.”

The study also found that:

• Seventy-five percent of businesses believe their organization is more likely to quantify and measure data department by department, rather than across the organization as a whole
• Eighty-four percent state that data is an integral part of forming a business strategy
• Seventy-five percent find it difficult to predict when and where the next data challenge will arise

To obtain a copy of The 2016 data quality benchmark report from Experian Data Quality, please visit https://www.edq.com/white-papers/2016-global-data-management-benchmark-report/.  

About Experian Data Quality

Experian Data Quality is a global leader in providing data quality software and services to organizations of all sizes. We help our clients to proactively manage the quality of their data through world-class validation, matching, enrichment and profiling capabilities. With flexible software-as-a-service and on-premise deployment models, Experian Data Quality software allows organizations around the world to truly connect with their customers by delivering intelligent interactions, every time.

Established in 1990, with offices throughout the United States, Europe and Asia Pacific, Experian Data Quality has more than 13,500 clients worldwide in retail, finance, education, insurance, government, healthcare and other sectors. For more information, visit https://www.edq.com.

About Experian

We are the leading global information services company, providing data and analytical tools to our clients around the world. We help businesses to manage credit risk, prevent fraud, target marketing offers and automate decision making.

We also help people to check their credit report and credit score, and protect against identity theft. In 2015, we were named by Forbes magazine as one of the “World’s Most Innovative Companies.”

We employ approximately 17,000 people in 37 countries and our corporate headquarters are in Dublin, Ireland, with operational headquarters in Nottingham, UK; California, US; and São Paulo, Brazil.

Experian plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange (EXPN) and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 index. Total revenue for the year ended March 31, 2015, was US$4.8 billion.

To find out more about our company, please visit http://www.experianplc.com or watch our documentary, “Inside Experian.”

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