New research by HFS Research reveals organisations based in Singapore and Australia are leading the charge when it comes to overall data governance and management.
Data governance and management in both countries are more centralised in comparison to global counterparts. This may be a function of the chief executive officer setting the data objectives and more involvement by the chief digital or data officers.
“Rapid digitalisation has created a proliferation of data, and businesses still struggle to connect their data management to business outcomes. The good thing is that the C-suite is responding to calls to implement clear governance and data strategies,” said Gary Chua, managing director, Asia Pacific & Japan, Syniti.
Data management firm Syniti worked with HFS Research on the study entitled “Perception Isn’t Always Reality: The Case for More Effective Data Management”, which surveyed more than 300 senior level executives at mid-to-large size enterprises across the globe.
“Organisations in Singapore and Australia are model examples, with stronger data governance and overall management globally,” said Chua.
Organisations struggle with usable data
Overall, the study reveals that while data is a clear focus are for C-level executives, there are still organisational disconnects in terms of execution—survey respondents still struggle with data quality and usable data.
In Asia Pacific, one of the reasons cited for bad data includes inconsistent taxonomy in different operations. Globally, respondents cited a lack of governance and monitoring as the main factors to blame for bad data.
The good news is that nearly all respondents realise the value of data quality in driving business outcomes. Overall, 95% of executives believe that their companies would be more competitive, more innovative, and able to make faster decisions if their data quality were two times better—and data management is crucial to getting to this point.
“We can therefore expect a greater focus on more effective data management to enable success,” said Chua.
Below are the research’s key findings, showing how the Asia Pacific fared against global counterparts:
| Asia Pacific Findings | Global Findings |
| More chief executive officers are setting the organisation’s data objectives, in comparison to chief digital or data officers | |
| For majority of the companies in Singapore and Australia, the chief executive officer is setting the data objectives (58%), but the chief digital and data officers are owning them (60%). | The chief executive officer sets the data objectives for 46% of companies and owns the data objectives for 35% of the companies. The chief data and digital officers play a smaller role in the overall management of data objectives. |
| Most organisations have a centralised, company-wide data management strategy | |
| 70% of respondents have fully implemented data management and 90% have a centralised company-wide data management strategy. | Globally, 73% of companies have implemented a centralised company-wide data management strategy. |
| Cross-functional, centralised governance is accelerating | |
| 60% of respondents in Singapore and Australia have a governance office or team that supports cross-functional data governance, and 46% have a proactive governance model. | 44% of companies globally have a governance office or team that supports cross-functional data governance, while 19% of companies are still in the process of defining their governance framework. |
| Usable data remains a challenge | |
| 58% of respondents said that up to 50% of their data was bad or not consumable. | While 80% of respondents said they trust their data, the same group said only 60% of the data is actually usable. |
