Smarter data drives real sustainable change

Today’s business leaders need data to make informed decisions for their organisations, but the conundrum of a ‘data overload’ is a very real thing.

Globally we produced 79 zettabytes of data in 2021.

In comparison, just five years prior we produced 16 zettabytes, and in 2025 we are projected to produce 181 zettabytes.

With so much data being created and collected, how we organise it will become as important as the insights it can produce.

In 2022, the challenge of having too much data is compounded by the fact this data is being captured across disparate sources each with specific nuances on how they are structured – from Internet of Things (IoT) sensors to embedded technologies.

If business leaders don’t know how to collate and shift through the data, it’s difficult to make decisions that can benefit the profitability, productivity, innovation and efficiency of an organisation.

Which brings us to the importance of intelligent data.

At IFS, we tell our customers to use our cloud platform as the digital core, a single source of truth for all their data.

Why?

After the financial challenges of COVID-19, business leaders need the operational intelligence to guide their organisations through a competitive market with an eye to sustainability.

By taking all those different feeds into one centralised system, it provides a common view or what we deem a ‘single source of truth’, allowing organisations to make informed decisions based on combined data they can trust in real time.

And it’s not just great in theory. We’ve already seen this approach across a range of industries.

In the age of the digital revolution, they say data is the new gold. Photo: Getty

In 2022 we are seeing in real time the effects of how organisations have pre-planned (or a lack thereof) for fragmented supply chains.

The difference between having supply or undersupply can often be down to the level of foresight backed by intelligent data.

This data lets organisations digitally twin, or simulate, through accurate models based on historical company data and artificial intelligence so they plan for the short, medium and long term.

Forward-thinking organisations are also extracting operational data from large assets for a better understanding of what they are in control of.

Take mining for example – collecting data from excavators out in the field allows organisations to predict when the vehicles are going to break down.

By sending technicians out ahead of time, organisations can reduce the potential downtime and extend the life cycle of the asset.

That same data platform can also capture operational metrics to assess whether machinery is working efficiently, providing organisations with operational intelligence to understand ways to achieve both operational and sustainability targets.

And intelligent data is fast becoming important for organisations to measure how they are tracking against their sustainability goals for 2022 and beyond.

Capturing data that feeds into a centralised source, or digital core, gives organisations full visibility over their processes.

Having sustainability targets is no longer theoretical – intelligent data plays an important role in allowing organisations to measure and make changes to the business in accordance.

And moving on from a position of governance, organisations can use this same operational intelligence to avoid resource waste and inefficient processes – transitioning from a stance of compliance to one of efficiency and profitability.

In the age of the digital revolution, they say data is the new gold. But what is clear – across 2022 and beyond – is that organisations don’t just need data to succeed. They need operational intelligence gained from intelligent data that truly represents their operational processes.

It’s what is needed to make informed decisions, to succeed in a competitive market.

Sponsored opinion: Jason Pearce is the Chief Technology Officer for IFS in Asia-Pacific, Japan, Middle East & Africa, where he is responsible for a series of initiatives, exploring emerging technologies and their application to business challenges.