The Data Gap

You might be surprised to see us talk about a gap in customer data, after all we know more our customers than ever before, right? Even though we are awash with data, many organisations struggle to effectively share it internally. A lack of collaboration between a Research/Insights team and the rest of the business means that the data isn’t turned into insight, and that insight never becomes action.

The Strategy Gap

Despite most major brands investing heavily in big data, a third of CEOs don’t trust the reports they get. Part of the problem is that these reports are often top-level facts and not decision-led which leads to a loss of customer focus in everyday decisions. Another issue is ‘analysis paralysis’ where they simply get overloaded by the data available and cannot easily read and interpret it, or by the time it has been analysed, the business problem has changed. Lastly, there is still a disconnect between old-school instincts and new data. Without transparency around insight, and a long-term plan, it will be difficult to change the old ways of working.

The Execution Gap

Without the right insight it becomes more difficult to understand what actions your organisation needs to take in order to become more customer-centric. Often the gap in execution is due to a lack of the right skills and authority. Organisations invest in technology but not the resources to use it properly, or snap up people who can do the sexy jobs, like data scientist, but don’t create the infrastructure which lets them be effective at delivering models or insights which actually solve business problems. None of these gaps can be bridged simply by more, newer or shinier technology.

If a business falls into any of these gaps, the danger is not simply that it will waste money and energy, but that the failure to implement a customer-centric strategy will make it harder to do it properly in the future.