How Organizations Can Capitalize on the Next Wave of Data-Driven Business

In an earlier post, ‘Why businesses need to stop passing around the Data Science hot potato, I discussed the importance of capitalizing on the benefits of Big Data.

While there is still a fair way to go before the whole of Asia catches up in this particular area, we should already be thinking ahead about the next wave of data-driven business. To remain competitive against our cousins in EMEA and the US, Asian businesses must keep pace and strive as a region to put plans in place that will support the region’s growth.

But before we talk future plans, it’s worth noting 3 emerging trends and what they can offer to Asia.

1. Cognitive computing refers to systems that use data mining, pattern recognition, and natural language processing to mimic how the human brain works and “learn” from their experience. The applications for this are numerous, particularly in healthcare, financial, security, and retail sectors, where rapid decision-making and customer experience is everything. Imagine being able to run your customer service help desk, which could learn the best ways to support and interact with your customers and provide progressively better service – with less human intervention. This would allow your businesses to streamline operations, reduce human errors, increase customer satisfaction, and redeploy your best and brightest employees to revenue-generating areas of the business. According to IDC, global spending on cognitive systems will reach nearly $31.3 billion in 2019, and Asia-Pacific is expected to be part of this trend. 
2. Data monetization looks for ways in which businesses can turn their data into a revenue stream. In its simplest form this means generating revenue from available data. Other forms take a more indirect method and create new information products or services that use this data. For example, a mobile operator might sell location data to advertisers to allow for a more personalized marketing experience. For organizations looking to grow fast, direct data monetization holds obvious benefits; namely, selling customer data will certainly generate quick capital. It’s a trend that is escalating rapidly; while only 10% of enterprises took their data to market in 2014, 30% reported data commercialization efforts in 2015, a 200% increase. And, in 2016, an increasing number of firms will look to drive value and revenue from their “exhaust data” – data produced almost as a by-product of their normal operations.
3. Actionable information is when an insight from big data directly drives an outcome. For example, if social media analysis indicates there will be greater demand for a product in one region than another (when cross referenced with weather forecasts, for example), production and distribution can dynamically and in real time be advised to switch things around. If you’re thinking this sounds like a pipe-dream for your organization, don’t think you’re alone. Many organizations are only at the start of the journey to making this a reality. Research we conducted last year suggests that business leaders are still limited in this area, with less than a third of businesses (30%) able to act upon their information in real time and almost half admitting to not knowing how to get value from their data.

In a world almost exclusively driven by data thanks to Information Generation, staying ahead of the curve is crucial to survive, let alone, thrive in the digital world. IDC cites 2016 as the year when “digital transformation scales up”. With markets being disrupted more frequently than ever before, and barriers to entry being lowered, there is certainly no time like the present to learn how these three emerging trends can significantly impact operations in organizations throughout Asia.

While every organization is on a different curve of the Big Data Maturity Index, EMC works with customers large and small to ensure they are able to maximize the opportunity data can provide to them. Enablement continues to remain the key to success in this journey, and many Asian organizations are stepping up to this challenge.

Want to learn more, or have questions on how your organization can capitalize on the next wave of data-driven business? Leave comments in the box below or message me directly!

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