Report by Enfo and Microsoft: Nearly 90% have detected data quality issues, challenges affect business .

In the survey, data quality issues meant conflicting or incompatible information found in the company’s systems. Nearly 90% of the respondents had detected challenges in the quality of data. These related to, among other things, data fragmentation, business reporting, master data management, or technical problems.

Almost 70% of the respondents estimated that the issues affect their company’s business. The most common consequence was extra work, which was identified by 39% of the respondents. Other drawbacks included decreased customer satisfaction (16%), difficulty in utilising data (14%), and erroneous decisions (4%).

“There have been issues in data quality ever since data generated by systems has been utilised by companies. To fix them, we must start as close to the data production process as possible, emphasising the importance of data quality”, says Mika Naatula, Chief Technology Officer of Enfo’s Data & Analytics business.

Data findability is a key challenge

Based on the survey, Finnish companies have identified significant needs to improve the quality and usability of data. One of the key factors is data findability. Nearly 40% of the survey respondents said that their company does not have a common process or tool in place to ensure that information is found. Descriptions of data content are also often scattered or completely lacking in the organisation.

“Data being findable, reliable and in usable format is a prerequisite for its efficient utilisation. Reliable and efficient data management is at the core of Microsoft’s business, and we have recently developed many solutions, such as the freshly announced Microsoft Purview, to improve data management and data quality”, says Janne Sipilä, Sales Director, Data and AI at Microsoft.

Manual work and lack of skilled resources were also often seen as challenges in business analytics.

“Importing data from data sources for utilisation is often labour-consuming and error-prone. Routine work and human error can be reduced effectively by automating the development of data analytics. Enfo’s subsidiary Qivada has a good tool for this called the Analytics Development Accelerator, or ADA”, Naatula says.

Improved personal data management and data protection

The management of personal data and user identities has improved in companies. According to the survey, the requirements of EU data protection regulations are well met: almost everyone knows the criteria for the retention period of personal data and where personal data is stored. Centralised identity management is widely utilised, and companies are already generally able to find out what information has been viewed by users. Data protection levels are also commonly in use, and regulations affecting operations are recognised well.

“Regulatory compliance and cybersecurity have taken on a significant role, and fortunately this important area is already at a fairly good level. However, investments are still needed”, Naatula says.

The survey was conducted by telephone in late 2021, with a total of 87 people responding. The respondents were business and IT decision-makers from large and medium-sized Finnish companies and organisations.

Further information:

Mika Naatula, SVP, Data & Analytics Finland, tel. +358 506 5544, mika.naatula@enfogroup.com

Pekka Isosomppi, Communications Lead, Microsoft Oy, tel. +358 40 516 2399, pekka.isosomppi@microsoft.com

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Enfo is a Nordic IT services company with more than 800 digital experts. With our knowledge in digital trust, data and analytics, applications, integration, and managed services, we both build and run IT solutions on cloud. We prioritize a collaborative approach and responsibility in everything we do. We work for a more sustainable and intelligent world where technology empowers people, businesses, and societies and accelerates their progress.

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