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Businesses have always needed to keep track of their data, but in today's digital world, data visibility is more critical than ever. Whether you're running a small business or a large enterprise, making your data accessible and visible to the right people at the right time is essential for your company’s success..

Here, we'll discuss the importance of data visibility and how your organization can benefit from streamlined accessibility methods and accurate and global data visibility.

What is data visibility, and why is it so important?

Let’s start by defining data visibility in a business context.

Data visibility is the ability to see, monitor, and manage data across your entire organization. This includes understanding where your data is stored, who has access to it, and how it's used.

Whether you realize it or not, data visibility is critical to your success. Data is the lifeblood of any organization. Regardless of their industry, modern businesses rely on data to make decisions, understand their customers, and track their performance.

As its importance has grown, data has become increasingly difficult to manage and control. With the rise of cloud computing and big data, businesses now have more data than ever before. As data grows and becomes increasingly complex, it becomes more difficult to track, making data visibility a critical consideration.

The business-enhancing benefits of data visibility

Now that we've discussed what it is and why it's important, let's look at some of the benefits of data visibility in your organization.

  • Improved decision-making When you have data visibility, you can easily see all of the data that's relevant to your business. This makes finding the information you need to make informed decisions about your business simple.
  • Greater efficiency Data visibility can help streamline your processes and make your organization more efficient. When you can see where your data is and who has access to it, you can eliminate unnecessary steps and duplicated effort.
  • Better compliance Data visibility is essential for compliance. If you need to prove that you're complying with regulations or industry standards, data visibility can make that verification process quick and easy.
  • Improved security Data visibility also makes it easier to protect your data from unauthorized access or misuse. Seeing who has access to your data and how they’re using it can help you identify potential security threats quickly and take swift action to protect your data.

The consequences of not having data visibility

Of course, there are also consequences to not having data visibility in your organization. Considering the benefits we’ve already mentioned, it's not hard to figure out what they might be.

The most obvious consequence is that you will only be able to see some of the data that's relevant to your business. This lack of visibility can lead to bad decision-making, as you won't have access to all of the information you need to make informed decisions.

Picture this scenario: You're trying to decide whether to invest in a new product line. You have some data on the potential market for the product, but you don't have visibility into all the data that should drive the decision. As a result, you make your investment decision based on incomplete information, and the product fails.

In addition to poor decision-making, not having data visibility can also lead to greater inefficiencies in your organization. When you can't see where your data is or who has access to it, you'll likely have duplicate copies of data floating around and waste time searching for the information you need.

More importantly, without data visibility, protecting your data from unauthorized access or misuse will be challenging — if not impossible. This lack of safeguards could lead to data breaches or other security threats.

Finally, a lack of data visibility can jeopardize your compliance efforts. If you're subject to regulations or industry standards, you need to be able to show you're complying with them. Without data visibility, you won't be able to prove your compliance, which could lead to steep fines that you would've been able to avoid.

As you can see, there are severe consequences of not having data visibility in your organization. If you want to avoid these consequences, it's time to start thinking about implementing data visibility in your business.

3 businesses that benefited from improved data visibility

While the merits of data visibility are clear, it can be helpful to see real-world examples of companies that have reaped the rewards of data visibility. Here are three examples:

Amazon

Amazon is a perfect example of a business that has benefited from data visibility. The online retailer uses data visibility to track every aspect of its business, from inventory levels to customer preferences. This data is then used to inform decisions about everything from pricing to product development.

Data visibility enabled Amazon to obtain real-time visibility into its supply chain, which helped it streamline its operations. They can always see where inventory is and identify potential issues before they become problems.

Additionally, data visibility helped Amazon improve its customer service. With visibility into the supply chain, the retailer was able to provide customers with accurate information on product availability and delivery times.

Uber

Uber has also utilized data visibility to its advantage. The ride-hailing service uses data visibility to track everything from customer demand to driver availability. This information is then used to make decisions about pricing, routing, and other aspects of the business.

Data visibility has helped Uber improve its customer service by giving them a better understanding of customer demand. In turn, this understanding has helped them adjust the pricing accordingly and ensure there are enough drivers on the road to meet customer demand.

Additionally, data visibility has helped Uber reduce its costs. By knowing where drivers are and how they're moving, Uber has optimized routing and reduced the amount of time drivers spend idle.

Coca-Cola

Coca-Cola rounds out our list of businesses that have benefited from data visibility. The beverage giant uses data visibility to track every aspect of its business, from production to sales. This information is then used to make strategic pricing, marketing, and product development decisions.

Data visibility has also helped Coca-Cola reduce its production costs. By understanding where products are being produced and how they're being distributed, the company has been able to streamline operations and reduce waste.

These are just a few examples of businesses that have benefited from data visibility. As you can see, data visibility can positively impact every aspect of your business, from customer service to cost reduction.

Odds are if your organization has found a glass ceiling, it's probably time to start thinking about data visibility.

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How to achieve data visibility in your organization

And so the question remains: how does one achieve data visibility in their organization? The most important thing to remember is that data visibility isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution. The approach you take will depend on the specific needs of your organization.

With that in mind, here are three general steps you can take to get started on the path to data visibility:

  • First, you’ll need a comprehensive inventory to determine what data is of value to the company, and what isn’t.. This will help you focus your efforts on the data that matters most.
  • Next, you need to put processes and controls in place to govern how data is accessed and used. This control will help you ensure that only authorized users have access to your data and that they only use it as you intend.
  • Finally, you need to implement solutions which provide wide-ranging visibility into your data. Panzura’s data services platform provides you with a single pane of glass to view and monitor all of your organization’s data, regardless of where it's located.

Data visibility is critical to the success of any organization. By taking the steps outlined above, you can improve your data visibility and begin making better decisions for your business.

For more information on how Panzura Symphony or our other products can help your company increase data visibility, contact us today!