Enterprise
Intelligence is a
Team Sport
IDC research shows that organizations invest in intelligence primarily to drive
specific business outcomes. Technology investment is important to improving
enterprise intelligence, but on its own, it’s not sufficient. Organizations must
also ensure they have the right skills, structure, culture, and supporting
ecosystems to use data insights to improve business outcomes. Thinking about
enterprise intelligence as a team sport can be a helpful way to think about how
and where to focus enterprise intelligence investments across the organization.
Organizations have high ROI expectations when it comes to their enterprise
intelligence initiatives. Technology buyers increasingly gauge the success of
their intelligence technology and services purchases on whether or not they
generate the desired outcomes. This emphasis on ROI has driven a shift toward
use case-driven initiatives that focus on faster, higher-quality data analysis and
decision support, which in turn helps organizations become more agile and
resilient by arming themselves with the right insights at the right time to make
the best possible decisions.
Enterprise intelligence teams are critical to designing, implementing, and
supporting purpose-built, business-specific initiatives, which rely on deep
domain knowledge and the ability to apply insights to make business decisions.
Enterprise Intelligence is a Team SportIDC eBook
IDC defines enterprise intelligence as the ability to
synthesize information, the capacity to learn from
that information, the ability to apply those
insights at scale, and a strong data-driven culture
that enables organizations to improve business
outcomes. The four pillars are driven by a
technology platform foundation that in turn drives
enterprise intelligence.
Source: IDC, 2021
Enterprise Intelligence is a Team SportIDC eBook
But, for these purpose-built intelligence initiatives to be successful, there needs to be agreement across the organization about
the desired business outcomes, the roles that team members play in achieving those outcomes, and a culture of learning that
helps improve decisions over time.
Levi Strauss & Company provides an instructive example. In early 2020, Levi Strauss created its Strategy and AI team with the
objective of using data and AI to identify areas of commercial value, automate processes, and create digital assets for the
company. The team has since grown into an integrated, horizontal function that partners with business functions to build and
deliver AI solutions.
One of these solutions is a mobile application – Retail Insights – which enables store managers to access sales, inventory, and
product performance metrics without leaving the store floor. In a recent blog post on the company's website, a store manager was
quoted as saying: "I like to use the app to compare my store's performance with similar stores. It allows my team and I to level set
and create bolder goals for ourselves. I encourage my team to reach out to those stores who are seeing success to gain best
practices."
For more information about Levi Strauss’ initiative, visit https://www.levistrauss.com/2022/01/18/insights-in-the-palm-of-store-
managers-hands.
Architecting and deploying enterprise
intelligence platforms are far from the
only challenges organizations face
when seeking to improve their
enterprise intelligence. According to
IDC's Future of Intelligence Survey,
conducted in August 2021, seven of the
top 10 most difficult enterprise
intelligence challenges had more to do
with people — particularly, how people
relate to each other and to the data
they need to make decisions — than a
lack of technology platform.
One of the biggest challenges
organizations face in enterprise
intelligence a lack of common language
across the organization and lack of
investment in artificial intelligence (AI)
and automation technologies.
Challenges of Building Enterprise Intelligence
IDC eBook Enterprise Intelligence is a Team Sport
n=1,170
Source: IDC's Future of Intelligence Survey, August 2021
% of respondents
Q. Please rate the level of difficulty for each of the following Enterprise-Intelligence related challenges.
IDC eBook Enterprise Intelligence is a Team Sport
The next two top investment address the
technology platforms and the infusion of more
intelligence into applications supporting
ongoing workflows, which requires new
development methodologies and collaboration
across data, IT, and business teams, which
requires new development methodologies and
collaboration across data, IT, and business
teams. The survey data shows that companies
also recognize the need to invest in internal
reorganization and change management to
make enterprise intelligence investments stick
for the long term.
n =1,170
Note: Respondents could select up to three investment areas.
Source: Future of Intelligence Survey, IDC, August, 2021
(% of respondents)
Q. Which of the following will be your organization's most important investment areas in the
next 12 months in terms of building Enterprise Intelligence?
Issues with data integration and lack of investment in artificial intelligence (AI) and automation technologies are also in the top 10
list of challenges. But simply investing in those technologies will not solve overarching organizational issues that impede enterprise
intelligence. These technologies must be viewed as enabling and supporting teams of people working together to make the right
decisions that drive better outcomes for the business.
Investment in internal enterprise intelligence capabilities is a broader trend in the market. According to IDC's 2021 Future of
Intelligence Survey, data literacy skills training for internal talent is the top investment area for enterprise intelligence.
The Enterprise Intelligence Roster
IDC eBook Enterprise Intelligence is a Team Sport
Executives use data and enterprise intelligence to make decisions. They are also responsible for establishing and promoting a
data culture across their organizations.
Managers typically own specific outcomes in departments or processes they oversee and use operational insights to make the
decisions in those roles. They also play a key role in enabling their direct reports to develop skills and relationships related to
data literacy, knowledge sharing and collective intelligence.
Employees use information to make decisions and building knowledge and subject matter expertise in their roles. They are
also building knowledge and subject matter expertise in their roles that should be considered an essential component of
organizations' capacity to learn.
Enterprise intelligence teams will look different for every organization, but most will include a similar roster of team players.
Interestingly, hiring outside data experts is a comparatively low priority, suggesting that organizations recognize that enterprise
intelligence is not something that any outside technology or service provider can sell or deliver. It is a capability that needs to be built
from the inside, starting with people and processes. Professional services providers, however, can support organizations' efforts to build
enterprise intelligence capabilities internally in several ways, including supplying talent to fill critical skill shortages on intelligence teams,
offering best practices and frameworks to help clients develop data and organizational strategies that improve their capacity to learn,
and enabling employees to build data awareness, literacy, and skills through boot camps, workshops, and training resources.
IDC eBook
Technology, such as artificial intelligence, analytics, automation, data management, and cloud, is part of the intelligence team
in the way technology capabilities augment human capacity to consume vast amounts of data with the speed and accuracy
required for the pace of business decision making.
Third-party service providers support intelligence teams in a variety of ways, such as strategic advice, best practices,
methodologies, domain expertise, technology skills, solution development, co-innovation, business analysis, and training.
Industry and academic ecosystems partners expand organizations' ability to build collective intelligence through creating
networks, establishing common standards, sharing data and insights, recruiting talent, and driving innovation.
Enterprise Intelligence is a Team SportIDC eBook
Advice for the Technology Buyer
Focus first on people and processes to establish your organization's baseline capacity to learn. Think beyond executives and
managers and include other roles across the organization that would help drive improved business outcomes through better,
more informed decision-making.
Assess internal data literacy skills and determine what you need to make data literacy pervasive across your organization.
Assess your organization's culture, structure, and knowledge management systems, and their impact on promoting data-driven
decision making throughout the organization.
Enterprise Intelligence is a Team Sport IDC eBook
Learn more about building enterprise intelligence in IDC's report: Enterprise
Intelligence Teams Expand Capacity to Learn.
Learn more about IDC's research in our Future of Intelligence video or visit
idc.com/FoX.
Make technology platform choices that serve your business' unique enterprise intelligence needs rather than letting
technology drive your initiatives. Think about how to incorporate technologies such as AI can to augment your organization's
human intelligence and how these technologies can drive desired business outcomes
Consider opportunities to bring your broader network into your enterprise intelligence team and improve your organization's
capacity to learn. Look for best practices and lessons learned by other organizations inside or outside your industry.
Seek out professional services partners that can work with you as an extension of your internal intelligence team and provide
advice, methodologies, and solutions to address challenges across people, processes, data, and technology.
www.idc.com
How You Can Leverage IDC’s Enterprise Intelligence Index
Your buyers are looking for a personalized conversation, focused on their needs. But meaningful
engagement starts with understanding their desired business outcomes. At the very core of IDC’s
Enterprise Intelligence (EI) Index is an interactive experience; it enables a dialogue, based on direct
insights from your customers, that helps you better position your solutions to help them
accomplish their business outcomes.
A Facilitator of Meaningful Two-Way Dialogue With Your Buyers
IDC's Enterprise Intelligence Index is most powerful when used as an assessment tool, and
paired with IDC solutions that give you an audience with your buyers. Ask us about how you
can leverage the Index to have deeper buyer conversations, with IDC solutions like
webcasts, virtual roundtables and speaking engagements.
Organizations With Excellent Enterprise Intelligence are Reaping the Benefits
Improved time to market
with new offerings by 10+%
Increased their revenue
growth by 10+%
Increased their customer
acquisition rate by 10+%
55% 35% 47%
IDC.com/custom-solutions
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Meaningful Buyer Interactions Begin With Asking
The Right Questions
Using the Index as an assessment tool, before a digital event or
workshop, can create more compelling conversations, because
the results from the assessment will allow you to draw from real
insights, direct from your customers.
