Featured article by Peter McAllister, Marketing Enthusiast and Independent Technology Author
Every business starts small and that’s fine, we all need to begin somewhere but what that usually means for data management is that you might end up with a series of different systems and processes, often put together as you go, but not really designed for growth long term. Maybe you didn’t envisage growing as fast as you did or grew in a certain unexpected direction but then you are left with data on different systems that don’t exactly work together, share or line up properly. So you need to look at better ways of managing your data.
Why Do I Need To Integrate Our Data?
Aquestion that many business owners will ask is what is the importance of data integration, and it can be answered very simply by saying, it’s for efficiency and therefore cost saving. If your staff are finding it difficult to have all the data ready at their fingertips in a orderly integrated fashion then it’s wildly inefficient and becomes costly not only in time but also in strategic and business planning. It’s said that, 88% of buyers today will pay more for an experience they enjoy and trust this means that using your data wisely gives the customer their best possible experience and you can know exactly who to market to and how.
Data Security
As well as working for you it’s essential to know that your data is secure, how many times have we heard of data breaches resulting in customers financial data being stolen, don’t let this be you! As well as the financial fall-out, the cost of fixing the mess and possibly compensating customers it’s the loss of reputation could be incredibly harmful and might be the difference between a company thriving or going under.
What’s The Solution Then?
The solution is to get a suitable and professional data integration solution, SAP Data Integration will manage data across all your systems simultaneously and in real-time. This ensures all your data is secure and works together for your business needs, so your stock and warehousing data works seamlessly with your sales data and customer records. Everything is in order and you can grow more efficiently and rapidly which is what every business wants.
Data Legislation
It’s also important to be aware of data legislation so that you are on the correct side of the law, fines and penalties for misuse of data as maximum fines can go up to €20 million, or 4% annual global turnoverwhich is not insignificant. But don’t worry, so long as you take the necessary steps to be GDPR compliant then you shouldn’t have a problem, and a big part of this is having your data managed properly, as if you can’t track the flow of your data, how can you know accurately what you’re holding?
So as with anything in business planning and resourcing yourself for data management is key. Ensure you have the correct systems in place, hire the right people to do it and ensure staff are relevantly trained and you’ll save yourself a long-term headache.
