For data to deliver value, it must be visible to the right people, accessible when and where needed, and trustworthy in its integrity. Mid-market businesses can enhance these aspects in several ways:
- Unify Data into a Single Source of Truth: Consolidating core data from multiple sources into one authoritative repository greatly improves integrity and consistency. By integrating their data and establishing one “golden record,” mid-market companies ensure that everyone bases decisions on the same consistent data. This avoids the chaos of duplicate or conflicting records and saves time that would be wasted reconciling “which metrics are correct.”
- Break Down Data Silos for Greater Visibility: Disorganized data spread across siloed systems leads to a lack of visibility and discoverability. Implementing a centralized data catalog or repository helps teams find the data they need. For example, a good catalog will surface what data exists and where, mitigating issues like duplicate datasets or hidden data pockets. When employees can quickly discover and access relevant data, they can make timely, data-driven decisions instead of operating blindly.
- Improve Data Accessibility (with Governance): True accessibility means appropriate access – giving business users easy, self-service access to data without compromising security. Mid-market firms can achieve this by setting up role-based access in data platforms, creating user-friendly dashboards, and fostering a data literacy culture. In practice, many are deploying unified data portals or dashboards that let authorized staff explore data from various sources in one place. Such single-pane-of-glass access is high on wish lists because it simplifies getting to the data while still enforcing permissions and audit trails.
- Ensure and Monitor Data Integrity: Data integrity hinges on accuracy, completeness, and reliability. Tactics like data validation rules, periodic quality audits, and tracking data lineage all help maintain integrity. Instituting data stewardship (where stewards regularly verify and clean datasets) prevents errors from propagating. As part of governance, define standards for data entry and transformations so that data isn’t inadvertently altered or corrupted. Many mid-market companies find that formalizing these processes (even at a basic level) greatly boosts confidence in the data’s integrity – turning “I don’t trust the data” into “we know our data is sound.”
Enhancing visibility and integrity also involves cultural change. Organizations should encourage collaboration around data, so that insights aren’t trapped in one team. By improving how data is cataloged, governed, and shared, mid-market businesses increase transparency and trust. In short: make good data easy to find and use (for those with the right credentials), and your team will naturally use data more effectively in day-to-day operations.