Data-driven firms more confident, agile in Covid-19 crisis

Singapore

IN THE midst of the Covid-19 pandemic this year, companies have had to make numerous major decisions with little time for deliberation.

The success or failure of these decisions made at speed could be attributed to a number of factors, but data may be one of the biggest, showed a study by analytics platform Tableau Software and market research company YouGov.

More than 2,500 managers at medium level or higher and information technology (IT) decision-makers in small, medium and large enterprises in Singapore, Australia, India and Japan participated in the study, which found that 82 per cent of companies that consider themselves to be data-driven reported reaping critical business advantages during the pandemic.

These included being able to make strategic business decisions faster, having more effective communication with stakeholders, increasing cross-team collaboration, and making their business more agile.

About 62 per cent of respondents classified themselves as data-driven, while 34 per cent said their businesses were not data-driven.

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Among the non data-driven companies, only 39 per cent saw data as critical in helping them navigate the pandemic.

Singapore had the highest proportion of data-driven organisations of the four markets surveyed at 67 per cent, while Japan had the lowest proportion with 51 per cent.

JY Pook, senior vice-president for Asia-Pacific and Japan at Tableau, noted that this year's "extremely uncertain environment" has proved the importance of data, and analytics is becoming ubiquitous.

However, there is a "data divide" among organisations in their ability to leverage data as a strategic asset, he said.

"The biggest hurdle for organisations is to create a change in mindset and get all hands on data," he said.

"Going into 2021, the use of data is going to set companies further apart, and a data culture is no longer a nice-to-have but rather a must-have for organisations to navigate the uncertainty and continue thriving."

Overall, data-driven companies were more optimistic about the health of their business in the next six months, with 63 per cent expressing optimism compared to 37 per cent of non data-driven companies.

Data-driven companies were seen making data skills a priority, with 82 per cent of them planning to increase or maintain their current levels of investment in such skills over the next six months.

In contrast, 32 per cent of non data-driven organisations said they would reduce their investment in data skills, or not invest in them at all.

Damien Joseph, assistant dean (undergraduate) at the Nanyang Business School in Nanyang Technological University, urged companies to invest in data skills to stay competitive.

"Data skills are essential for the agility required for strategic and tactical decision-making and for effective communications," he said.

"So, firms that do not invest in developing data skills are at risk of being on the wrong side of the data divide."

Tristan Tan, vice-president of data and analytics at healthcare services provider Zuellig Pharma, said a critical mass of the company's staff understand the importance of embedding data practices and assets into business processes.

For example, its warehouse operators are required to review real-time operational key performance indicators (KPIs) and dashboard-driven statistics on how various warehouse processes are impacting the KPIs, whether positively or negatively.

"At Zuellig Pharma, having a data culture means that our team collectively values, practises and encourages the use of data in the making of all key operational and strategic decisions," Mr Tan said.

Luxasia, an omnichannel partner for luxury beauty and lifestyle brands in the Asia-Pacific, was able to respond quickly to emerging trends based on data insights as stores closed and consumers moved to online shopping.

Said Avis Eastel, regional head of consumer at Luxasia: "We were able to pivot to high-performing content, categories and channels. We could test faster and get responses even faster. The outcome we were able to achieve kept consumers engaged and continued to allow them to purchase."