Alation Research Reveals Pending Crisis for Companies – Major Gap Between C-Suite Promises to Invest in Data and Analytics and Actual Funding

REDWOOD CITY, Calif. – April 27, 2022 – New research from Alation Inc., the data intelligence company, reveals that the C-suite is dangerously behind in making needed investments in data and analytics. According to the latest Alation State of Data Culture Report, only 18% of data leaders expect to receive the full amount of funding they say is necessary to get or stay ahead of the competition for data and analytics, even as almost all (98%) cite needing it.

Data leaders feel the pressure to remain competitive and the Alation State of Data Culture Report has repeatedly shown a direct correlation between a strong data culture and an organization’s ability to achieve or exceed revenue goals. More than 600 data leaders globally participated in this research study and the latest report found that organizations with a top-tier data culture remain the most likely to meet or exceed their revenue goals, as almost all (90%) did so over the past 12 months. Yet, 66% of data leaders cite company leadership as an obstacle to getting the funding they need, including 42% who say the C-suite doesn’t follow through on promised investment in programs that drive data culture.

In addition, only 29% of data leaders are very confident that their CEO understands the link between investment in data and analytics and staying ahead of the competition. This points to a strategy gap where C-level executives pay lip service to the benefits of investing in data and analytics, but don’t make it a priority, leaving organizations vulnerable to disruption.

“As awareness about data culture grows, executives and their organizations are learning how hard it is to build a solid foundation for it. Early in the life cycle of this research many either thought they were done or barely acknowledged the problem, whereas today, executives know they have a bigger hill to climb. There’s a lack of funding dedicated to creating a data culture that drives revenue and operational efficiency,” said Satyen Sangani, co-founder and CEO, Alation. “If these organizations fail to recognize the power of data-driven decision making, and don’t fund data and analytics initiatives properly, at best they’ll introduce significant risk to their organizations; at worst, be disrupted by competitors that threaten their existence.”

The Data Catalog Remains at the Heart of Establishing Data CultureData leaders have identified several core areas for investment to improve their organization’s data culture, with 87% of data leaders agreeing that data catalogs are very important or essential to their efforts. This is a significant increase from 68% of data leaders in Q3 2021, just 6 months earlier. Respondents also agree the first steps to building a data culture include creating data processes (44%), creating an inventory of existing data (43%), and fixing existing data quality issues (38%).

Produced by Wakefield Research for Alation, the report includes the Alation Data Culture Index™ (DCI), a quantitative assessment of how well an organization is positioned to enable data-driven decision-making across three key disciplines: data search & discovery, data literacy, and data governance. Enterprises are ranked low-, mid-, and top-tier based on how widely adopted these disciplines are across the enterprise.

For more information, download the Q1 2022 Alation State of Data Culture Report and read the blog, The Data Culture Gap: Q1 2022 State of Data Culture Report.

About the Alation State of Data Culture Report The Alation State of Data Culture Report is a study sponsored by Alation and executed by Wakefield Research. Wakefield Research conducted a quantitative research study among 620 Data & Analytics Leaders at enterprises with 2,500+ employees in 14 markets across the US, EMEA, and APAC regions, with a minimum title requirement of Senior Director. Enterprises are polled annually regarding the progress of establishing a data culture — i.e., a culture of data-driven decision making — within their organizations, the challenges they face in embracing data-driven decision making, and the progress they have made in leveraging data to drive business value for their organization.