How do companies use data to create value?

There is so much talk about big data and analytics that I wonder whether organisations are really looking at it all as a business opportunity or an IT problem (or covering their ears hoping that it will all go away). Businesses have always used data to some extent to improve how they operate, serve their customers and create value; however the explosion in data being generated and captured within organisations appears to leave large swathes of data stored but not analysed and certainly not converted into information and insight - I was recently told by an 'expert' only 1% of company data is analysed currently. With further data availability from Internet of Things (cars, home appliances, sensors etc) then something has to change

I hear these fantastic ideas that AI or machine learning will be able to do all the work; unfortunately I don't believe that leaving the complexity of business and human interactions to a machine (or its code developer) will select and solve the biggest issues, which will create most value for each specific organisation. Clearly computing power is required, but data really needs to be seen as a business asset. Potentially we will need to deploy data 'product managers' working across the business to identify and drive potential business opportunities where there the data, in combination with other data sources and external context, will add value. To really

On a whim I attended an event at Excel centre in London last Thursday, called Big Data World(!), which covered topics on Internet of Things, Data Analytics and so on. I have been interested in the combo of IoT (ostensibly data generation) and analytics (turning data into something valuable) for a while - so was interested to see what the industry leaders think about getting value from the data that is being generated.  There are some sectors that appear to be further ahead on this journey (primarily media, tech, FS and retail), but apart from a few high profile businesses or specialist data aggregators, there does not seem to be much out there to help organisations explore the value in their data or how they might monetise it. Unfortunately I only saw technologists looking for problems to solve, software sales claiming their new SaaS solution will machine learn everything and provide the answer (to what) and Googlers...

Don't get me wrong, it was interesting to hear the various approaches and ideas but it left me wondering who is taking a business first approach to using data to create value. I had a similar feeling when I was at KPMG with some of my clients - the data seemed to come from finance to improve MI/BI (aka financial reporting) or IT who seemed to want to build massive data warehouses, but with limited regard for actual business impact. To be honest data warehousing feels like the new ERP approach - massive cost and disruption to organisations, but often with marginal business impact!!

Now of these sectors that appear to be embracing data and see the potential to transform their business and operating models. Several of these sectors are going through a painful journey as data-driven upstarts disrupt their market - with the upstarts rapidly taking market share and being valued at astonishing multiples. Media was probably the first data monetising sector, using audience/demographic data to value advertising revenues (though the fall out from the Google/YouTube advertising furore suggests that there are limitations on the application of data without judgement). Retail ranging from Tesco's use of its ClubCard powered by dunnhumby analytics through to Amazon and its ability to build a picture of customers has been a fast data adopter; Banking too is taking the opportunity to use a massive amount of transaction data to create value. More mundanely utility and logistics & supply chain businesses have had to use data to drive down cost whilst enhancing service to ever more demanding customers. However even these sectors are not truly unlocking the opportunities to create value.

So what can be done?  Well if you have read this far, then I assume that you also have an interest in data and how to look at creating value. It would be interesting to hear your perspectives, as I finesse my approach. More anon.