An annual survey of Fortune 1000 and global business leaders shows how companies are doubling down on data projects that they’ve struggled with in the past.
January 02, 2025
Hiroshi Watanabe/Getty Images
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While companies have long struggled to wring value out of their data initiatives, something big has changed in the last two years: Generative AI has spurred greater interest and investment in data quality and broader data capabilities. To succeed with AI, companies are doubling down on finally getting data right. According to an invite-only industry benchmark survey of Fortune 1000 and global business leaders: 1) Corporate investments in AI and data are growing. 2) Organizations are reporting business value from their AI investments. 3) Transformation due to AI will be gradual for most organizations. 4) Organizations are focusing on responsible AI, safeguards, and guardrails. 5) Organizations are hiring chief AI officers as AI and data leadership roles evolve. 6) AI and data leaders are joining the C-suite to drive business goals.
For decades, companies have struggled to capture and integrate data into their decision-making. In spite of protracted efforts, the results have been decidedly mixed. Last year, just 37% of companies reported that efforts to improve data quality had been successful. But recently, something significant has changed: Generative AI has spurred greater interest and investment in data quality and broader data capabilities. After all, great AI relies on great data. Gone are the days when executives dismissed investments in initiatives like these as “just another data project.” Now, to succeed with AI, companies are doubling down on finally getting data right.
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Randy Bean is the author of Fail Fast, Learn Faster: Lessons in Data-Driven Leadership in an Age of Disruption, Big Data, and AI. He is a contributor to Harvard Business Review, Forbes, and MIT Sloan Management Review, and has been an advisor to Fortune 1000 organizations on data and AI leadership for nearly 4 decades. He was previously founder and CEO of NewVantage Partners (NVP), a data and AI leadership advisory firm to Fortune 1000 clients, which he operated from 2001 until its acquisition in 2021. You can contact Randy Bean at [email protected] or [email protected] and follow him on LinkedIn.
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