Today’s businesses know they need to capitalize on data—but most either don’t know where to start, or are hesitant to invest in a real business data strategy when prior (expensive) investments didn’t realize the benefits they hoped for or expected. Remember: data can always be leveraged to gain a competitive advantage in any industry. Understand your company data and you unlock the key to real business success.
The four key obstacles to unlocking the full value potential of enterprise data are: 1) a lack of data strategy, 2) low quality of data, 3) unmanageable data sources or volume, and 4) insufficient data infrastructure. Businesses can identify specific challenges and opportunities in these areas. What’s required is an in-depth, enterprise-wide data and analytics assessment using industry best practices.
Wavestone’s experts are qualified to lead any business through this assessment. We leverage each company’s enterprise data to enable a winning BI platform and analytics strategy. We advise our clients and help them develop a tailored BI platform strategy that supports their unique needs and puts them in the best position to handle today’s competitive technology landscape.
We approach BI strategies with a 360° view of data and analytics capabilities and evaluate opportunities for scale and value. As we do, we keep two questions in mind:
/ Is the data sufficiently described to maximize its use?
/ How accessible is the data for use in BI and analytics?
Our BI platform strategy development is underpinned by a comprehensive evaluation of a client’s data and analytics environment, spanning five key dimensions:
Evaluate the alignment of data efforts and turn them into a defined business strategy. Key performance indicators (KPIs) that data will drive and enable should be clearly defined and linked to underlying data assets. Assess funding and ROI to ensure data efforts are being appropriately funded and monitored.
Evaluate the governance landscape to align metadata and master data management practices to defined business glossaries. Identify gaps in data and primary areas of opportunity where business can improve data governance and enable greater data utilization.
Assess the level of alignment and understanding between processes that create data and those that consume data. Evaluate the measurements in place to support this alignment, like profiling, cleansing, requirements, and testing.
Review the architectural approach and standards used to manage data. Assess the primary platform(s) used to manage data, metadata, and movement, and how that data is presented. Compare these platforms with Wavestone and find best practices to identify high-value opportunities for improvement and rationalization.
Review current data operations processes that surround data requirements, the management of data sources/targets, and the overall quality assurance (QA) framework used for data. Assess primary data providers and consumers and identify gaps and areas that can be improved.
Wavestone integrates recommendations across all five dimensions and creates a prioritized and actionable implementation roadmap that includes the following:
/ Documented current state analysis and data and analytics capabilities assessment
/ Existing tools and technology rationalization
/ Data and analytics platform design
‣ Detailed technical architecture
‣ Platform-hosting approach (i.e., cloud, on-premise, hybrid, etc.)
‣ Compliance, regulatory, and security requirement support
‣ Order of Magnitude implementation cost estimates
/ Process and organization implications and recommendations
/ Phased delivery roadmap with minimal viable platform recommendations
Once the BI platform strategy is defined and documented and the implementation roadmap is created, Wavestone can assist each client in executing some or all of their initiatives to ensure desired strategic benefits are realized.
CASE STUDY: Broadscale IT and Business Transformation Program
A leading provider of technology-enabled financial solutions to consumers, small businesses, and tax professionals needed a complete current state assessment of its BI capabilities as it worked to move towards a future-state BI platform.
Value: Wavestone completed the assessment and initial implementation of a modern data platform that leveraged Amazon Web Services (AWS) components in a serverless architecture, enabling the client to establish a highly-scalable and cost-effective BI environment.
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