Data enablement has become a hot topic among growth teams and across multiple business sectors. Recognised as a critical strategy for business growth, it has been championed by firms like PwC, which calls it "your new superpower."
Despite its importance, many organisations struggle to organise their data effectively. According to a 2021 Statista report, the average organisation uses 110 SaaS applications. Without robust data enablement strategies, organisations risk compromising their security, scalability, and competitiveness.
What is Data Enablement?
Data enablement is about maximising the value of your data. It involves making data actionable, accessible, and flexible, and connecting people with the data they need to impact business outcomes directly. These are the core principles of data enablement.
When data is enabled, it is structured for easy access across teams, departments, and business units. This ensures that marketing and business development teams have all relevant data to win new business.
A crucial aspect of data enablement is real-time updates, often requiring automation to keep data current and accurate. This ensures that self-service data access is always available and reliable.
Data Enablement vs. Data Management/Governance
While data enablement, data management, and data governance are related, they are distinct concepts:
- Data Enablement: An outcome-focused discipline aimed at providing access to the right data at the right time, empowering actionable insights.
- Data Management: According to Oracle, it is "the practice of collecting, keeping, and using data securely, efficiently, and cost-effectively."
- Data Governance: Tableau defines it as the policies and procedures around data, including questions about ownership, access, security measures, and regulatory compliance.
Data management is a broad practice encompassing data storage and utilisation. Data governance focuses on compliance and access decisions. Data enablement, while sometimes seen as an extension of governance, is a distinct strategic discipline ensuring efficient, timely, and easy access to data for those who need it. It also fosters a culture that values data.
Why Data Enablement is Crucial for Success?
Gartner identifies the challenge of delivering tangible business value from data-driven programs as a significant hurdle for data leaders. Without data enablement, extracting value from data is nearly impossible.
Data is one of the most valuable assets in any organisation, offering endless opportunities to leverage existing stores of information.
Data is one of the most valuable assets in any organisation, offering endless opportunities to leverage existing stores of information. This is why "data-driven organisations" are increasingly popular. Data provides a significant advantage in business growth, innovation, and market competitiveness.
From a practical standpoint, data is expensive. Without data enablement, you waste valuable resources, including money, time, and personnel. No matter how much data you collect, it's worthless if you can't put it to effective use.
Data enablement is a strategic discipline that integrates with data governance and management to maximise the value of data. By ensuring data is actionable, accessible, and up-to-date, organisations can drive customer engagement and business growth, enhance decision-making, and gain a competitive edge.
Investing in data enablement is essential for any firm aiming to thrive in today's data-driven world.
Data Enablement bridges the gap between data collection and data utilisation.
Visualising Data Enablement
To further illustrate the concept of data enablement, let's consider a simple visual representation of the steps involved.
Investing in data enablement is not just an option—it is a necessity for businesses striving to thrive
Data is the new currency, so investing in data enablement is not just an option—it is a necessity for businesses striving to thrive, regardless of their industry and their customers.
Industry snapshot benefits of a Data Enablement program
Banking
Example: By enabling data, a bank can enhance its fraud detection capabilities. Real-time data analytics can identify suspicious transactions instantly, reducing the risk of financial fraud and improving customer trust. Additionally, personalised financial advice can be offered based on customer transaction data, increasing customer satisfaction and retention.
Councils
Example: Data enablement helps councils improve public services by analysing data from various departments. For instance, predictive analytics can identify areas needing maintenance before issues arise, optimising resource allocation and enhancing community satisfaction.
Education
Example: Data enablement in education allows institutions to track student performance and identify at-risk students early. By analysing attendance, grades, and engagement data, educators can provide targeted support, improving student outcomes and overall academic performance.
Enterprise
Example: For enterprises, data enablement streamlines supply chain management. By integrating data from various sources, companies can predict demand more accurately, optimise inventory levels, reduce costs, and enhance operational efficiency, leading to increased profitability.
Retail
Example: In retail, data enablement enhances customer experience through personalised marketing. By analysing purchase history and browsing behaviour, retailers can recommend products tailored to individual preferences, boosting sales and customer loyalty.
Understanding what data enablement could mean to your organisation and customers can start with a simple conversation. Let’s talk.
