“Per McKinsey research from June 2022, nearly 70 percent of the top economic performers, compared with just half of their peers, are using their own software to differentiate themselves from their competitors.”
McKinsey went on to state that:
- Digital products are driving the need to embed software across the board
- Increasingly, more value is being derived in products and services from software
- The growth of low cost Cloud and AI programming are putting unprecedented power into the hands of the global workforce
The foundational key to global economies with tightly integrated software into products such as automobiles is DATA. According to the research firm, IDC approximately 175 zettabytes of data will exist in 2025. IDC went on to report that one zettabyte is ONE TRILLION GIGABYTES and that to download this amount of data would take 1.8 billion years.
This amount of data and its criticality to the firm’s success are staggering statements.
How are organizations going to be able to management this new economy in a meaningful way? We can’t all be data scientists.
Enter the Non-Technologist
It is safe to say that data will be used by all aspects of the organization and its extended supply chain. Finance, HR, Procurement, Tax, Sales & Marketing, Researchers, Medical Doctors, Facilities Management, etc. are staffed with experts in those fields not necessarily in IT or specifically Data Management. How are these executives and their staffs be assured the data and software they are using ‘spit out’ the correct results?
This is a daunting challenge today will only get worse. Moreover, the software sector is notorious for it poor quality documentation and many do not follow strict data management protocols.
On the Horizon
This blogger has been dealing with technical and later financial and business data of various qualify and sources since at least 1968. Maybe I have not seen it all, but I have seen a lot including significantly poor data with significant gaps. Management at all levels are not equipped to understand the underpinnings of the data they are using to make critical decisions. Is the data Valid and Reliable (accurate and repeatable)? Many are not even aware of the definition of those simple terms. How can they trust the data provided?
This author is pleased to announce that he recently entered into a contract with CRC Press to draft the book, “Navigating the Data Minefield: Management’s Guide to Better Decision-Making” to be published in 2025.
This book will provide the non-IT software executive with tools and best practices to help her/him assure that the data provided by internal and external provider is of high quality. It will provide a roadmap model that is straightforward and easy to understand. It will also provide data and software experts with an understanding on the type of questions management may ask as well as project deliverables expectations.
Stay tuned we will keep you informed as the exciting project develops.
For More Information
Please note, RRI does not endorse or advocate the links to any third-party materials herein. They are provided for education and entertainment only.
See our Economic Value Proposition Matrix® (EVPM) for additional information and a free version to build your own EVPM.
The author’s credentials in this field are available on his LinkedIn page. Moreover, Dr. Shemwell is a coauthor of the just published book, “Smart Manufacturing: Integrating Transformational Technologies for Competitiveness and Sustainability.” His focus is on Operational Technologies.
“People fail to get along because they fear each other; they fear each other because they don’t know each other; they don’t know each other because they have not communicated with each other.” (Martin Luther King speech at Cornell College, 1962). For more information on Cross Cultural Engagement, check out our Cross Cultural Serious Game. You can contact this author as well.
For more details regarding climate change models, check out Bjorn Lomborg ands his latest book, False Alarm: How Climate Change Panic Costs Us Trillions, Hurts the Poor, and Fails to Fix the Planet.
Regarding the economics of Climate Change, check out our recent blog, Crippling Green.
For those start-up firms addressing energy (including renewables) challenges, the author can put you in touch with Global Energy Mentors which provide no-cost mentoring services from energy experts. If interested, check it out and give me a shout.