Data democratization: Why it matters today

Over 200 days ago, stay-at-home orders were put in place. Since then, working, learning, and social activities have been online or socially distant. With such large numbers of people still at home full time, people have had to learn to work with the resources that are at their fingertips—which can be challenging and limiting.

Data democratization can help.

Defined as the process of making data insights accessible to a wider range of roles, data democratization helps with better and faster decision-making, improved customer experience, operational efficiency, and much more. In turn, these are the key components to navigating a new work environment and finding success in an unpredictable market. What’s more, is this only touches the surface as to why data democratization is so important today.

Let’s dive into the top reasons why business-wide data accessibility is becoming essential in a pandemic-struck world.

Reason 1: Living in a digital environment.

Our latest study found that 87 percent of business leaders we surveyed say, data insight is essential to managing the customer experience and operational efficiency in the digital environment.

Everything is online these days—from your operations to delivering your customer experience. Having reliable data to inform these initiatives is your first step to delivering a personalized customer experience. Your next step is fueling these initiatives by getting data into the hands of the people driving your marketing and customer experience. AKA: Democratize your data.

Reason 2: Working from home.

That same study discovered nine out of ten report data democratization is more important than ever with large numbers of employees working remotely. Sound familiar?

No matter what your feelings are about being remote, one thing is certain: There was a time when you needed to transfer the essential information that was once easily accessible in the office, to your home network. For many, this wasn’t easy.

This is why data democratization is important. For employees to better perform and operate effectively, they need access to reliable and relevant insights.

As a quick tip, business leaders have begun to put data into the hands of more people across the business by:

• Generating timely reports.
• Granting users access to BI and analytics tools.
• Hosting staff-wide meetings to share data intelligence.

Reason 3: Increasing performance.

We touched on it above, but business leaders are saying almost every employee across the business should be using data insights to improve their performance. And, in an unpredictable economy, improving individual performance can certainly help increase business growth.

Think about it this way: Your marketers are brainstorming a new loyalty program to win back customers. To better understand who these customers are, their new lifestyles, and what matters most to them, your marketers need in-depth, validated, and enriched consumer information. Otherwise, they would be going with their gut feeling. That’s why you want to one, validate and enrich your current database and, two, give marketers access to these insights to find a message that will resonate with customers and increase engagement.

Democratizing your data today means securing tomorrow’s future. Putting data in the hands of your team means having the ability to pivot seamlessly with the everchanging market and adopt a long-term work from home lifestyle, all while sustaining growth.