Most businesses across the European continent believe the pandemic has inadvertently improved the way they harness data, according to data platform Splunk.
The experience businesses have had with their data over the last year has highlighted its importance to long-term success, mostly because it helps drive innovation and improves the decision-making process.
Almost all (90 percent) European businesses surveyed said visualizing real-time data helped them make better decisions.
The biggest change to how data was being used was in who was using it; before the pandemic it was generally an IT function, but is now seen as a strategic company asset used by upper management.
While some use it for regular performance metric monitoring, others use it to explore customer interactions, spot upcoming trends and develop new business.
But Covid-19 also exposed the weaknesses businesses have in their IT infrastructure, with many losing confidence in their infrastructure during the pandemic.
For Frederik Maris, VP of EMEA at Splunk, Covid-19 was a clear sign for businesses that they need to embrace data in order to survive. He believes that companies that build a data strategy that’s “carefully tied” to business objectives will enjoy better outcomes.
“However, this cannot be done in isolation,” he concludes. “Businesses need to keep consumers and their data concerns front of mind if they are to succeed in the Data Age.”
