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What is data agility and why do you need it?

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By Hebberly Ahatlan

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  • Data agility gives companies realtime visibility into their data supply chain so they can quickly address potential issues and improve the accuracy and timeliness of data delivery
  • Companies can quickly identify trends and patterns in their data, which can lead to more efficient decision making and lead them to new opportunities before their competitors 
  • Data agility also enables companies to automate their data supply chain processes, eliminating manual errors and reducing the overall time and effort needed to manage the supply chain
  • Organizations can quickly share data with different departments and stakeholders and partners, enabling more timely communication and effective collaboration

What is data agility and why is it important?

Simply put, data agility is the ability to distribute and consume data efficiently so the business can respond quickly and effectively. In this article, we will take a closer look at  how it can be used to improve your data supply chain. We will also dispel some of the myths surrounding data agility.

Data agility is essential for several reasons. First, it allows you to respond rapidly to changes in your data. This is important because as the needs of your business change, you need to be able to keep up.

Second, data agility helps you avoid problems down the road. By being able to adapt to changes quickly, you can avoid costly mistakes that could set your business back.

Lastly, it enables you to make better decisions about your data. When you have a good understanding of your data and can process it quickly, you can make informed decisions that help your business succeed.

Here are some other reasons why it’s essential.

Helps meet market demands

To stay competitive, businesses need to be able to adapt quickly to changes in the market. This means being able to respond to changes in customer demand and preferences.If your business wants to enter a new market or serve a new customer base, you need to be able to adapt your data supply chain quickly. This might involve changes in the types of data you collect or how you process and store it.

Enables you to make better decisions

Data agility also enables you to make better decisions about your data. When you have a good understanding of your data and can process it quickly, you can make informed decisions that help your business succeed.

For example, if you want to launch a new product, you need to be able to assess whether there is demand for it and what kind of impact it will have on your existing products and services.

Helps reduce supply chain costs

An efficient data supply chain is crucial to reducing costs. Data agility can help you achieve this by allowing you to adapt to changes in your data quickly. This includes everything from changes in volume or type of data to changes in how the data is being used.

Besides that, data agility also helps you avoid problems down the road. By adapting to changes quickly, you can avoid costly mistakes that could set your business back.

Supply chain process streamlining

Data agility is also essential for streamlining your supply chain process. When you have a good understanding of your data, you can more easily identify bottlenecks and inefficiencies. This allows you to make changes that can help improve the efficiency of your supply chain.

Improves customer satisfaction

Data agility can also help improve customer satisfaction. When you have a good understanding of your data, you can more easily identify and solve problems that could impact your customer experience.

How can you improve data agility?

There are a few things you can do to improve data agility. First, make sure you have a good understanding of your data. This means knowing where it comes from and how it flows through your system.

Second, invest in the right tools to support data agility. Through these tools, you must be able to connect existing sources of data and then distribute those sources to the people that need them in an efficient way. 

The Intertrust Platform, for example, uses data virtualization to achieve this. It allows you to very quickly connect new data stores without having to run expensive ETL processes. Through virtualization, you can create data sets that contain data from one or more physical data stores and blend the data. So your data access is more efficient and flexible, and the data gathered is more comprehensive and contains richer intelligence, leading to improved insights.

Your data also is more real-time and relevant, without having to wait for batch processes.

When you have a good understanding of your data and can process it quickly, you can make informed decisions that help your business succeed.

Who needs data agility services?

Data agility services can be beneficial for any company that relies on data. This includes companies of all sizes in a variety of industries.

If your company collects, stores, or processes data, you can benefit from data agility services.

Some of the most common benefits of data agility services include:

  • The ability to quickly adapt to changes in data
  • Improved decision-making about data
  • Faster processing of data
  • Reduced costs associated with data storage and processing

If your company wants to improve its data supply chain, consider investing in data agility services. These services can help you overcome some of the most common challenges of managing large amounts of data.

Common mistakes made with data agility

While data agility can be beneficial for any company, there are a few common mistakes that companies make when implementing data agility.

One of the most common mistakes is not investing in the right tools. Without the right tools, it can be difficult to manage large amounts of data.

Another common mistake is not being prepared to change how you collect, store, and process data. If you’re not willing to change your processes, you won’t be able to take advantage of all the benefits that data agility has to offer.

Lastly, another mistake that companies make is trying to do too much at once.

When you’re first starting out with data agility, it’s important to focus on one or two key areas. Once you’ve mastered those areas, you can then start to expand into other areas.

By avoiding these common mistakes, you can set your company up for success with data agility.

Data agility done right

A more traditional approach to handling data is to load everything to a data warehouse and try to optimize throughput and how you gather insights. But the result of that choice is that you have to wait on data. Another way is to enable greater data governance with data stewards within the organization. This ensures the right people have the correct level of data access, and it also brings more efficient and agile decision making. 

One of the most interesting applications of data agility is from connecting multi-party data ecosystems. Businesses looking to expand into data-driven business models and revenue streams are starting to use data and collaborate with third parties outside of their organizations. They aggregate data from multiple parties and multiple providers and take their data supply chain to a whole new level. 

Data agility is not a new concept, but it is often misunderstood, especially where it spans beyond the borders of an organization. When done correctly, implementing data agility into your data supply chain can help to improve efficiency and quality while also reducing costs.

Are you ready to take your data supply chain to the next level? We help organizations define and execute their data agility strategies, and ensure trusted data interoperability between all stakeholders, inside the organization (and outside too). Contact us today to learn more!

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