This was revealed in a Dell Technologies study as part of a globally-commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting.
Titled ‘Unveiling Data Challenges Afflicting Businesses Around The World’, the study is based on a survey with 4,036 data decision-makers from 45 locations, including the UAE and Saudi Arabia. The findings build upon the biennial Dell Technologies Digital Transformation Index study, which assesses the digital maturity of businesses around the globe. The 2020 DT Index revealed that “data overload/unable to extract insights from data” was the prime barrier to transformation, up from 12th place in 2016.
Dell Technologies commissioned the study to understand why and how data can be stopped from becoming one of the key barriers to transformation.
At the Dell Technologies Forum Middle East 2021, the company’s flagship event that brings together senior decision-makers and industry think tanks to discuss emerging trends, challenges and new growth opportunities in the Middle East’s dynamic technology sector, the following data paradoxes were identified:
1. The Perception Paradox
Three-fourth of respondents (75%) say their business is data-driven and state “data is the lifeblood of their organisation.” But only 20% testify to treating data as capital and prioritising its use across the business.
It showed that 86% of businesses in UAE and Saudi Arabia are yet to progress either their data technology and processes and/or their data culture and skills. Only 14% of businesses are defined as Data Champions: companies that are actively engaged in both areas (technology/process and culture/skills).
2. The ‘Want More Than They Can Handle’ Paradox
According to the research, 70 % of the respondents in UAE and Saudi Arabia say they are gathering data faster than they can analyse and use, yet 71% say they constantly need more data than their current capabilities provide. This could be because they are not processing data at the edge – where the data is generated; or an IT strategy that doesn’t scale.
Consequentially, the explosion in data it challenging to meet business requirements with 64 percent of respondents stating that their teams are already overwhelmed by the data they currently have.
Mohammed Amin, Sr Vice President – MERAT, Dell Technologies, said: “In a digital economy, data is one of the most valuable business assets, yet today, it stands to be a significant barrier to growth.
“Navigating this modern-day paradox, and turning vast amounts of data into actionable outcomes can seem daunting especially when on a path to digital transformation. At Dell Technologies, we empower regional organisations to tackle these concerns by offering tailored end-to-end infrastructure solutions that not only support a data-driven work culture that is capable of predicting the future, but is also equipped to harness data faster.”
3. The “Seeing Without Doing” Paradox
While economies have suffered during the pandemic, the on-demand sector has expanded, igniting a new wave of data-first, data-anywhere businesses. However, the number of businesses that have moved the majority of their applications and infrastructure to an as-a-service model is still small (17%). The report also cities that on-demand model would help 86% of organisations in UAE and KSA to better capture, analyse and leverage data.
Hope on the Horizon
Although businesses are struggling to adopt robust data management strategies, many have plans to create a better tomorrow. In the UAE and Saudi Arabia, 67% intend to deploy machine learning to automate how they detect anomaly data, 54% are looking to move to a data-as-a-service model and 55% are planning to look deeper into the performance stack to rearchitect how they process and use data.
The study suggested three ways organisations can turn their data burden into a data advantage: modernise their IT infrastructure, so it meets data where it lives, at the edge; optimise data pipelines, so data can flow freely and securely while being augmented by AI/ML and develop software to deliver the personalised, integrated experiences customers crave.
