[Column] Kelly Bwambok: Data democratization - the key to success in the digital age
In today's digital age, data is king. Businesses that can harness the power of data to make better decisions are at a significant advantage over their competitors. However, data is not always easy to access or understand. This is where data democratization comes in.
Data democratization is the process of making data accessible and usable to everyone in an organization, regardless of their technical skills. This means that everyone in the organization should be able to access, understand, and use data to make decisions. There are many benefits to data democratization. For example, it can lead to:
- Improved decision-making: When everyone in the organization has access to data, they can make better decisions based on facts and evidence. This can lead to increased profits, improved customer service, and more efficient operations.
- Increased innovation: Data democratization can help organizations to identify new opportunities and develop new products and services. This can lead to growth and increased market share.
- Better customer service: When organizations have access to data about their customers, they can provide better customer service. This can lead to increased customer satisfaction and loyalty.
- Reduced risk: Data democratization can help organizations to identify and mitigate risks. This can lead to a more stable and profitable business.
Of course, there are also some challenges to data democratization. For example, it can be difficult to make data accessible and understandable to everyone in the organization. Additionally, it can be expensive to implement data democratization solutions. However, the benefits of data democratization far outweigh the challenges. In today's digital age, businesses that do not embrace data democratization will be left behind.
Here are some tips for implementing data democratization in your organization:
- Start with a clear goal in mind - What do you want to achieve by democratizing your data? Once you know your goal, you can start to develop a plan to make it happen.
- Make data accessible to everyone - This means providing easy-to-use tools and technologies that allow people to access and analyze data.
- Educate your employees about data - Not everyone in your organization will be familiar with data and how to use it. Make sure to provide training on data tools and technologies, as well as data literacy skills.
- Create a culture of data-driven decision-making - This means creating an environment where everyone feels comfortable asking questions about data and using it to make decisions.
Data democratization is not a one-time project. It is an ongoing process that requires constant effort and commitment. However, the rewards are worth it. By democratizing your data, you can empower your employees to make better decisions, innovate, and achieve your goals.
Enter Google Cloud:
BigQuery and Looker are two Google Cloud services that can help you achieve data democratization.
- BigQuery - is a fully-managed, petabyte-scale analytics data warehouse that can be used to store and analyze large amounts of data. BigQuery is a great option for organizations that want to make their data accessible to everyone in the organization. BigQuery can store data from a variety of sources, including structured, semi-structured, and unstructured data. This makes it easy to store data from a variety of systems and applications in a single place. BigQuery also offers a variety of features that make it easy to query and analyze data, including SQL support, machine learning, and geospatial analysis. This makes it easy for everyone in the organization to access and analyze data, regardless of their technical skills.
- Looker - is a business intelligence (BI) platform that can be used to visualize and explore data from BigQuery. Looker offers a variety of features that make it easy to create interactive dashboards and reports, including drag-and-drop functionality, data blending, and real-time insights. This makes it easy for everyone in the organization to understand and use data to make decisions.
Together, BigQuery and Looker can be used to create a data democratization solution that makes data accessible to everyone in the organization. This can help organizations to achieve their goals, such as improved decision-making, increased innovation, and better customer service. Here are some specific examples of how BigQuery and Looker can be used to achieve data democratization:
- A retail company can use BigQuery to store data from its systems, e-commerce website, and customer loyalty program - Looker can then be used to create interactive dashboards and reports that allow employees to track sales, inventory, and customer behavior. This information can be used to make better decisions about pricing, promotions, and product development.
- A financial services company can use BigQuery to store data from its customer accounts, trading systems, and risk management models - Looker can then be used to create interactive dashboards and reports that allow employees to track risk, performance, and compliance. This information can be used to make better decisions about investment strategies and risk management.
- A healthcare organization can use BigQuery to store data from its electronic health records (EHRs), patient surveys, and clinical trials - Looker can then be used to create interactive dashboards and reports that allow employees to track patient outcomes, identify trends, and improve care delivery. This information can be used to make better decisions about patient care and treatment plans.
These are just a few examples of how BigQuery and Looker can be used to achieve data democratization. By using these two GCP services together, organizations can make their data accessible to everyone in the organization and empower them to make better decisions.
Kelly Bwambok is a Tech Lead at Incentro Africa
With over 10 years of proven expertise in technical consultation and related services, Incentro, the only Google Premier Partner in East, West and Central Africa has become the go-to partner for successful business transformation in the continent.
From Enterprise Collaboration, Cloud Migration and Smart Application Development, we serve over 26 countries in Africa and are growing. Whatever your ambition is, we’ll aim for maximum impact. We dive deep into your organization, challenge your plans, build solutions swiftly and make sure they work.
Matthew Munyiri is the Online Marketeer at Incentro Africa. He is an ambassador for Cloud and Consumer Technology and how it pertains to increased efficiency and productivity in the workplace. Want to know more? Get in contact with Matthew - matthew.munyiri@incentro.com.
