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Data and Analytics: Two Sides of the Same Coin

CDOs must unify data management and analytics across the organization.

The transition to digital business requires chief data officers (CDOs) to shift their organizational mindset. They need to align and coordinate a wide variety of data management and analytics initiatives to enable innovation, drive efficiencies and meet their business objectives.

Gartner’s second annual survey of chief data officers (CDOs) recently identified the top three business objectives for the office of the CDO as creating greater customer intimacy, increasing competitive advantage and improving efficiency.

In order to address these challenges, CDOs need to ensure organizational harmony around three essential capabilities: blending internal and external data; applying the right analytical techniques and ensuring the findings are applied at the moments that matter to the business.

“A unified data and analytics agenda is already proving to be the dominant model for practicing CDOs,” said Valerie Logan, research director at Gartner. “The survey found that more than 66 percent of the 180 respondents are responsible for coordinating a range of both data management and analytics initiatives, and exploiting new data and analytics solutions for competitive advantage.”

“However, creating and sustaining a cohesive enterprise data and analytics capability requires significant organizational change management. CDOs should approach data and analytics as a core strategic capability within a larger digital business strategy rather than simply as a set of related initiatives.”

Digital business is comprised of key platforms and capabilities, with the data and analytics platform as the central engine.

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“This represents a major shift in thinking as data and analytics move beyond being just a set of related disciplines, and instead become a multidisciplinary field within a larger digital business strategy,” Ms. Logan said. “By adopting the strategic approach of viewing data and analytics as part of the fabric of digital business, an enterprise will be well-positioned to support digital business through the development of intelligent business processes.”

Digital business is challenging long-held beliefs about process and is driving radical transformation of business processes and business models in most industries. Smart or intelligent business processes are among the most important modern technology areas in which enterprises should invest over the next five years.

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Client Research
Gartner clients can learn more in the reports “Gartner CDO Survey Reveals That Chief Data Officers Drive Both Data Management and Analytics for Maximum Impact,” and “Mastering Data and Analytics: ‘Table Stakes’ for Digital Business.”

Gartner Data & Analytics Summit
Gartner analysts will provide additional analysis on data and analytics leadership trends at the Gartner Data & Analytics Summit 2017, taking place March 20-22 in London Follow news and updates from the events on Twitter using #GartnerDA.

Data & Analytics Hub
Visit Gartner’s Data and Analytics hub for complimentary research and webinars.

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