‘Data is the new oil’ was term coined by British mathematician Clive Humby 2006. It’s become an overused phrase largely meaning that if your organization has access to vast amounts of data, you can use it to aid decision making and drive results.
While there is great truth in that having access to data can lead to greater business intelligence insights, what companies actually need is access to ‘good’ data and its insights. However, knowing what makes data valuable is something that many still struggle with. With considerations often including factors such as quantity, age, source or variety, not truly understanding what type of data is good for business means it’s easy to get lost in data sets that are ultimately poor quality and bad for decision making.
