The data directive is an Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) report, commissioned by Wipro. It seeks to explore the degree to which the ongoing data revolution within business is delivering truly strategic change within companies, as opposed to more incremental optimisation gains. Although many of the issues discussed here stray into the realm of so-called “big data”, this report is not explicitly focussed on that topic and does not deal with any technology-related issues. Instead, it seeks to explore how the wider trend toward a greater reliance on data is affecting the strategic management of businesses at a C-suite level, across a range of industries. The findings and views expressed in this report are those of the EIU alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of the sponsor.

The research draws on two primary inputs:

• The first is a wide-ranging survey of 318 C-suite executives or their direct reports, divided between CEOs (13%), CFOs (20%), COOs (13%), CIOs (12%), CMOs (9%), and other C-suite roles. From an industry perspective, all major sectors were represented, with the largest being manufacturing, including chemicals and aerospace (18%), retail and consumer goods (11%), technology, media and telecommunications (15%), financial services (10%), and professional services (9%). Regionally, respondents hailed from North America (48%), Europe (29%) and Asia-Pacific (24%).
• The second key input is 20 in-depth interviews with business executives and experts, as listed below. In addition, we conducted extensive desk research into the broader topic. James Watson is the author of the report and David Line is the editor. Kim Thomas, Sarah Fister Gale, Priyanka Mehra Dayal, and Fergal Byrne assisted with further interviews. We would like to thank all survey respondents and interviewees for their time and insights (listed alphabetically by company name):
  • Rajendran S, chief marketing officer, Acer India
  • David Johnston, group chief operating officer, Aimia
  • David Almeida, vice-president: sales, Anheuser-Busch
  • Philip Clement, global chief marketing officer, Aon
  • Irvin Newbitt, vice-president: enterprise IT, AstraZeneca
  • Rudy Puryear, director and global head: IT practice, Bain & Co
  • Julian Gray, chief information officer, BP Alternative Energy
  • Professor Andy Neely, director, Cambridge Service Alliance
  • Mike Balay, vice-president: strategy and business development, Cargill
  • Ged Brannan, head of Coutts Experience, Coutts
  • Greg Nichelsen, head of business intelligence, ING Direct
  • Christian Nelissen, director: customer analytics and decisioning, Royal Bank of Scotland
  • Asim Warsi, vice president: mobile, Samsung India
  • Jason Trost, chief executive officer and co-founder, Smarkets
  • Michel Allé, chief financial officer, SNCB Holding
  • Kenneth Cukier, data editor, The Economist
  • Paul Gathercole, vice-president: digital tools, Universal Music
  • Christa Carone, chief marketing officer, Xerox Corporation
  • Chief operating officer, Fortune 100 retail bank
  • Chief financial officer, Fortune 100 chemicals business
  • Chief financial officer, Fortune 500 retailer