The Technology, Media, and Telecommunications (TMT) industry is rapidly transforming, fuelled by remote working, the advent of 5G networks, and other groundbreaking innovations. This technological revolution has led to the generation of vast amounts of data, often left untapped, hindering organizations from realizing their full potential.
Harnessing this data strategically through data governance is pivotal for organizational success. Establishing clear policies, processes, and roles within a data governance framework empowers telecom providers to optimize their use of big data and make informed decisions.
This blog explores:
- Importance of data governance in the telecommunications sector
- Challenges faced in data governance implementation
- Benefits of data governance in telecommunications
- Establishing data governance role
Importance of data governance in telecommunications
Data governance is crucial from both a business and operational perspective. The stakes are exceptionally high in the TMT industry, where vast amounts of data are spread across disconnected systems. It aids in identifying and validating personal data across ecosystems, ensuring compliance. Due to rapid growth, data governance has not always been a priority for TMT companies. It addresses issues like data quality, unstructured data stores, increased regulatory pressure, such as GDPR and CCPA, is creating urgency.
Challenges faced in data governance implementation.
Despite progress in data governance within the telecommunications industry, only 17 percent of providers report having a mature data governance program.
Barriers to better data governance include.
- Data Silos: Siloed data in the telecommunications sector can lead to inefficiency, poor decision-making, and customer dissatisfaction. They also pose data quality and compliance issues, increasing IT complexity and hindering innovation.
- Data Retrieval Complexity: Telecom operators often face inefficiencies in data retrieval. For instance, pulling customer engagement reporting for decision-making involves navigating multiple platforms, contacting different departments, and understanding varied data processing methods. This complexity hampers accurate and timely insights, leading to suboptimal decision-making.
- System Integration challenges post-mergers: Legacy systems from the newly acquired entity have evolved independently with standards differing from your organization’s. Failing to promptly assess and integrate their data systems after the acquisition can result in redundancy and hinder the merger process.
- Organizational Buy-In and Cultural Shift: Implementing a robust data governance strategy requires leadership buy-in and a cultural shift throughout the organization. This shift necessitates convincing stakeholders about the value of data governance, often requiring external expertise and budget approval.
- High Customer Churn: In the telecommunications industry, high customer churn is a frequent problem due to issues like billing errors, price hikes, and poor customer service.
Benefits of Data Governance in Telecom
- Enhanced Customer Experiences: Effective data governance enables telecom providers to understand customer needs deeply, leading to personalized and customizable experiences. By analyzing customer data comprehensively, providers can anticipate customer preferences, enhance services, and foster customer loyalty.
- Network Optimization: Data governance plays a pivotal role in optimizing telecom networks. Providers identify areas for improvement through detailed analysis of complex data sets, enhancing network performance.
- Risk and Cost Reduction: Data governance uncovers operational inefficiencies and potential fraud incidents, significantly reducing risks and operating costs.
- Reducing Customer Churn: Telecos can use predictive analytics, enabled by the correct data, to accurately forecast customer demand. This approach enhances business targeting and reveals opportunities for up-selling and cross-selling, ultimately improving customer satisfaction and loyalty.
- Informed Decision-Making and Business Growth: By implementing data governance, organizations can enhance forecast accuracy, gain deeper insights into customer behavior, and make more informed decisions to foster business growth, increased sales, cost reductions, and a competitive advantage in the dynamic TMT industry.
Unveiling Data Governance’s Role
Data governance refers to internal standards and policies ensuring data cleanliness, effectiveness, and efficiency. It empowers organizations to attain their goals and make informed decisions.
Establishing Data Governance
- Crafting Data Policies and Standards: Creating policies and standards consolidates data in reporting and analytics platforms, ensuring data’s fitness for various purposes. Determining access rights and assigning data management responsibilities is paramount.
- Streamlining Operational Processes: Well-defined processes are critical for implementing policies and standards. They should encompass training, promote strategy adoption, and involve key individuals to drive implementation.
- Roles and Responsibilities: Early designation of positions enhances success. These leaders form committees or groups, ensuring policy adherence, standards, and processes.
Data governance in the telecom sector is not just a best practice; it’s a strategic imperative. Overcoming challenges and reaping the myriad benefits of data governance, telecom providers thrive amidst technological advancements and changing consumer demands.
Empowering Telecommunication Governance with Artha Solutions
Artha Solutions, in partnership with Qlik, offers innovative solutions to address telecommunications challenges through collaborative proof of concept and solution delivery engagements. We empower telecom companies to gain valuable customer insights by leveraging big data technologies and streaming analytics. This transformative approach is poised to reshape the telecommunications industry. Our services are designed to benefit you with:
- Enhanced Call Blocking and Labelling Visibility and Control
- Robust Fraud Detection Solutions
- Predictive Analytics Capabilities
- Efficient Network Management and Optimization
- Effective Customer Segmentation Strategies