UK CTOs share their biggest data challenges

Almost half of CTOs (47%) say that a lack of data is slowing down their decision making, according to a newly released poll from data streaming platform Confluent.

Surveying 50 CTOs in the UK on their organisations’ approach to data and decision making, Confluent found that the majority of CTOs are struggling to access the right data at the right time. Over half (51%) worry that by the time data reaches the most important senior decision makers, it’s already out of date.

Other barriers slowing down decision-making include a lack of visibility into customers (35%); inconsistent reporting processes (33%); and too many layers of middle management (20%)

With outdated insights limiting their ability to act, many CTOs are calling for change. In fact, more than half (53%) plan to completely overhaul their organisation’s approach to data.

For many organisations, this overhaul is in the form of a switch to real-time data streaming rather than traditional batch processing. More than half (58%) are already investing in data streaming technologies, with over a third (37%) considering investing in the future.

Commenting on these findings, Peter Pugh-Jones, director of strategic accounts, Confluent, said, “CTOs are too often caught between a rock and a hard place. They recognise the pressure to enable real-time decision-making, but are held back by outdated data and gaps in visibility. They know that their business can no longer afford to rely on legacy approaches like batch processing, but lack the systems required to deploy a meaningful alternative.

“To stay competitive, businesses need to rethink how data flows through their organisation. It’s encouraging to see CTOs recognising the issue and turning to data streaming. It’s a big step to ensuring decision-makers have instant access to the insights they need, when they need them.”