Gartner: Data, Analytics Investments Rising But Leaders Not Finding Value

Enterprise investments in data and analytics are on the upswing although there are several barriers to success, according to a survey released at the Gartner Data and Analytics Summit in Orlando this week.

While the mean reported data and analytics budget is $5 million, several functions are receiving increased investment, including data management (65%), data governance (63%) and advanced analytics (60%), according to the survey of 566 data and analytics leaders globally.

The survey found that nearly half (44%) of data and analytics teams increased in size last year.

Although teams are increasing in size, fewer than half (44%) of team leaders said their team is effective in providing value to their organization.

Data and analytics leaders who rated themselves effective or very effective across different leadership traits aligned with those who rated themselves high in organizational and team performance.

While 19% of low performers reported effectiveness in committing time to their personal development, 43% of top performers committed time to it.

“Top-performing chief data analytics officers invest in their success by developing skills to thrive in ambiguous circumstances, articulate compelling value stories and identify data and analytics products and services that can drive business impact,” said Alan Duncan, distinguished vice president analyst at Gartner.

Related:The 7 Disruptions on the Horizon: Gartner Summit

Top challenges for teams mostly were related to personnel issues. For example, the lack of available talent leads the list (39%) followed by lack of resources and funding (29%), culture challenges to accept change (26%), lack of stakeholder support (26%), not enough authority (24%) and poor data literacy (23%).

Chief data and analytics officers have broad responsibilities, according to the survey. These include defining and implementing strategy (60%), oversight of data and analytics strategy (59%), creating and implementing governance (55%) and managing data-driven culture change (54%).

Corporate or organizational strategy and vision were identified by 78% of data and analytics leaders as one of the top inputs to their own strategy while 68% prioritize their initiatives based on alignment to strategic goals.

This article first appeared on IoT World Today's sister site, AI Business.