In the early days of the information age, the power of data has remained mainly in the hands of a few data analysts with very specific skills. The reason for this is that most employees were not trained to use the growing flood of data effectively.
However, many other roles within the company could benefit and make decisions based on data. The knowledge we gain from data can improve business performance and that is why data needs to be accessible and usable by all departments, without barriers to access or understanding.
The emergence of advanced technologies
The emergence of technologies capable of making data available for sharing and interpretation by non-data analysts has been a decisive step in the flow of information for companies. This task is called data democratisation, and it ensures that data passes safely from data centers to the various parties involved, bringing value to all.
True democratisation of data solves three key challenges:
- It allows users to access information generated throughout the organisation that would otherwise be confined in a data lake, data warehouse or information silos.
- It makes it easier for technical and non-technical users to search for data and find the answers they need to improve production processes.
- It produces actionable analysis and information that is easily understood by the average end-user, not just technical professionals.
What does data democratisation involve?
The democratisation of data is pushing companies to rethink how they manage, distribute and consume data. It often means driving a significant cultural change for financial gain.
It also means freeing information from the silos created by internal departmental data, customer data, external data, and turning it into an information ecosystem without borders.
In addition to changing mindsets, democratising data requires an organisational investment that encompasses three main blocks:
- Budget: this can be a major obstacle as it is a long-term investment. As with all projects that an organisation undertakes, a budget line will need to be used to assume an investment in appropriate tools and in empowering employees so that leaders in all functions can consult data independently before acting.
- Tools and Software: companies must acquire the appropriate means to ensure easy access and correct interpretation of data by employees. This is facilitated through advanced self-service analysis tools, which must be correctly installed and aligned with KPIs.
- Training: teams must be trained in how to use tools, concepts and processes. In addition, employees must be motivated and committed to think, manipulate data and ask questions. Best practice includes involving them in regular seminars on key concepts, tools and new technologies.
Benefits of data democratisation
The ability to instantly access and understand data will translate into a competitive advantage for these companies over slower, less proactive businesses.
The more people with diverse experience who have the ability to access data easily and quickly, the more the organisation will be able to identify and take action on critical business knowledge, unlocking the following benefits:
- Eradication of bottlenecks: having the data accessible, there are no ‘bottlenecks’ that can slow down information or block the resolution of a problem. Therefore, decision making becomes faster and more effective.
- Empowerment of workers: teams are infinitely more motivated as they have more freedom and responsibility to act.
- Increased proactivity: empowering workers and making them more informed increases their proactivity and their ability to make decisions, solve problems and propose new ideas.
- Transparency: provides a source of truth for all relevant key performance indicators and metrics, improving the system of analysis.
- Total data visibility: data is available in real time across all departments, encouraging cohesion between all teams.
The success of data democratisation
Democratisation and management of data and macro-data is the future of business, transparent and connected businesses. If you want to benefit from the power of data democratisation you will have to invest and build a roadmap to guide your business along the way.
Success and getting the most value out of data requires the right tools and providing employees with the knowledge to make smart decisions. Similarly, knowledge of data science must be shared and ensure that people who partner with self-service analysis platforms have an essential understanding of what goes on behind the basic, easy-to-use interface provided by the platform.
Extract value from your data with Nexus Integra
The Nexus Integra platform will help you increase the profitability of your business with an integrated operations solution. Through a single framework that manages all your facilities, unifies and standardises data from different sensors, machinery and databases, tools.
Nexus Integra has been designed to offer you a standard and open operations environment to develop value added services thanks to the new disruptive technologies that are now part of the Nexus Integra technological ecosystem.
Contact us to improve your company with the latest technology!
