© Copyright Acquisition International 2025 - All Rights Reserved.

Article Image - Data Quality Holds the Key to Greater Profits, Finds Report
Posted 18th March 2015

Data Quality Holds the Key to Greater Profits, Finds Report

A new report by Experian confirmed that while businesses are increasingly aware of the potential of their data – with estimates that it could improve profitability by up to 15%- more than 90% still find data improvement challenging.

Mouse Scroll AnimationScroll to keep reading

Let us help promote your business to a wider following.

Data Quality Holds the Key to Greater Profits, Finds Report
Image

Data Quality Holds the Key to Greater Profits, Finds Report

A new report by Experian confirmed that while businesses are increasingly aware of the potential of their data – with estimates that it could improve profitability by up to 15%- more than 90% still find data improvement challenging.

The research, which interviewed representatives of 1,239 organisations in the UK, US, France, Germany, Spain, Australia and the Netherlands, establishes that most now understand the importance of their customer data and its potential to drive value. But despite this growing level of understanding, many are still struggling to harness the strategic value of that data.

According to Experian, there are two main reasons for this. The first being a lack of ownership and co-ordination – with almost 63% of organisations lacking a coherent, centralised approach to data quality. And the second being the use of outdated methods to check data accuracy – with 29% of organisations still manually cleaning their data.

Boris Huard, Managing Director of Experian Data Quality said: “What is particularly encouraging is that companies are increasingly switching on to the value of their data assets, with 95% of respondents stating that they feel driven to use their data to either understand customer needs, find new customers or increase the value of each customer. They recognise that more emphasis on data management and strategy will enable them to satisfy escalating customer expectations.

“However, there is still some way to go. As the research reveals, many challenges persist – the number who suspect that they have data inaccuracies is up from last year and the majority still think they lack a clear approach to data quality.

“As our Dawn of the CDO research demonstrated, a new breed of data professionals will have a key role at the heart of this challenge. Chief Data Officers, Chief Digital Officers and Director of Insights, are emerging new roles which have come about in response to the pressure and opportunity presented by big data.

“It also means taking a step back and asking some fundamental questions such as, “Why are we collecting this data and what is it for?” Once you are sure about what you need, then you can decide on the technology to support your strategy.

“Of course, putting automated systems in place makes a big difference and will clearly reduce errors. However, the effectiveness of any system depends on how you use it. You will need the right processes and people in place to manage it – not just in IT, but in business roles where it really matters.

“We hope that our latest research will go even further in helping businesses to identify their data goals for the coming year, and how best they can achieve them.”

Key Findings

Businesses see data as a strategic asset

  • More than 90% of organisations say they are leveraging both data and data quality to help deliver more interesting and relevant communications to customers and prospective customers.
  • Meanwhile, 95% of companies feel driven to use data either to understand customer needs, find new customers or increase the value of each customer.

Data quality is correlated with profitability

  • CIOs believed their business could increase their profits by an average of 15% if their data was of the highest quality
  • CIOs went on to cite savings from investing in data quality tools to be less than £1million whereas, comparatively, CDOs state this to be in excess of £5million.

Awareness of data problems is growing

  • The number of organisations who suspect their data might be inaccurate in some way has increased to 92%, up from 86% last year
  • The volume of inaccurate data is also rising. On average, respondents think that26% of their total data may be inaccurate, up from 22% in 2014 and 17% in 2013
  • With 23% of businesses saying that revenue has been wasted as a result, an increase from 19% last year.

Businesses are planning to improve

  • 92% of respondents say they find some element of data quality challenging
  • However, most organisations are making an effort to improve what they do. In 2015,84% of companies plan to make some sort of data quality solution a priority for their business, either implementing a new system or improving what they already have.

A need for greater data sophistication

Organisations were asked how they saw their approach to data quality, ranging from basic understanding and processes to a highly sophisticated system of data management.

  • Only 26% of companies placed themselves in the most sophisticated category – and these were mostly larger companies with 5,000 or more employees
  • Similarly, only 35% say they manage data quality in their organisation through a single director
  • 57% say data quality issues are only found when reported by employees or customers.

Taking ownership is key

  • Almost 63% of organisations lack a coherent, centralised approach to data quality
  • Many of these companies say they have some level of centralisation, but more than half (51%) say individual departments still adopt their own strategy; while 12% say all departments manage their own data quality in an ad hoc way.

Using technology for maximum benefit

  • 88% of organisations have some kind of technology solution in place
  • Many already use automated systems such as monitoring and audit technology(34%), data profiling (32%) or matching and linkage technology (31%) to clean their data
  • However, a high proportion of companies (29%) are still using manual checking to clean their data
  • The findings show improving data quality reaps rewards given that 70% of companies whose profits have risen sharply in 2014 also plan to invest more during 2015.

Categories: Finance


You Might Also Like
Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
Falcon Certified Public Accountants
Finance
26/01/2017Falcon Certified Public Accountants

Falcon Certified Public Accountants Ltd., registered with the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants, specialises in providing audit, tax and corporate advisory services to a wide range of clients. Founder Gilbert Loke talks us through the firm an

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
New product Increases Engagement In Games
Finance
06/08/2015New product Increases Engagement In Games

Mobile Engagement Company First to Unite the Power of Predictive Analytics and Mobile Messaging to Target Key Player Groups, Generating Impressive Results Including 11% Decrease in Churn, 18% Increase in Number of Sessions and 50% Increase in Revenue.

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
PenFed Credit Union Announces Merger with Belvoir Federal Credit Union
M&A
31/03/2016PenFed Credit Union Announces Merger with Belvoir Federal Credit Union

PenFed Credit Union, nearly $20 billion in assets, 1.4 million members and headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia, announced that it will merge with the Woodbridge, Virginia headquartered Belvoir Federal Credit Union, which has $320 million in assets and more t

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
Success That Goes Beyond Science
Innovation
14/02/2020Success That Goes Beyond Science

Cambrex is a contract development, manufacturing and testing organisation, headquartered in Durham, North Carolina. We caught up with Natalee Campbell who gave us a detailed insight into the innerworkings of the successful firm.

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
Questro Expands into Germany: Thorsten Schaus Joins Transfer Pricing firm Questro International
Leadership
11/02/2016Questro Expands into Germany: Thorsten Schaus Joins Transfer Pricing firm Questro International

Questro International announced the opening of a new office in Germany and the recruitment of Thorsten Schaus as their new TP Leader in Germany earlier this month.

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
relayr Completes Second Strategic Acquisition
Innovation
28/02/2017relayr Completes Second Strategic Acquisition

relayr, the global enterprise Internet-of-Things (IoT) platform provider, announces its second strategic acquisition within two months.

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
Serving Customer and Community
Leadership
24/12/2021Serving Customer and Community

Having made itself the ‘Best Home & Maintenance Services Provider’ in 2021 for the UK, Fantastic Services is a home and office services company whose franchise model is helping communities all across the world.

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
York’s Best Kept Secret
Leadership
04/01/2017York’s Best Kept Secret

No.21 York is a multi-award winning Bed and Breakfast housed in a Victorian Terrace property offering homely hospitality in some of the finest bed and breakfast accommodation in York. We invited husband and wife team - Simon Boyle & Andrea Schipper - to tell u

Read Full PostRead - Eye Icon
Going Global Live, London Excel – 27th & 28th of November
Innovation
20/08/2019Going Global Live, London Excel – 27th & 28th of November

On the 27th & 28th of November, Europe’s leading event for expanding business overseas will be returning to the London ExCeL.



Our Trusted Brands

Acquisition International is a flagship brand of AI Global Media. AI Global Media is a B2B enterprise and are committed to creating engaging content allowing businesses to market their services to a larger global audience. We have 14 unique brands, each of which serves a specific industry or region. Each brand covers the latest news in its sector and publishes a digital magazine and newsletter which is read by a global audience.

Arrow