A view from CIOs: How to lead on cloud and analytics

Genpact's study, Digital transformation insights from CIOs for CIOs, shows that 82% of CIOs are building a culture of data-driven decision-making – powered by cloud and analytics. However, nearly 70% say their teams are not fully prepared to withstand a significant business disruption.

Here, we'll explore how CIOs can build a cloud and analytics strategy that supports agility, collaboration, and resilience.

To thrive in our fast-paced, hypercompetitive world, technology leaders must build resilient and agile organizations. To achieve this, they first need a robust data on cloud strategy. This strategy helps them democratize access to data, empower employees to make data-driven decisions, reduce operational costs, and move more quickly from experimentation to action.

The need for a data on cloud strategy is also part of the evolution of the CIO role. Our study shows that technology leaders are increasingly taking on the role of innovators who must partner with other senior leaders, like CEOs and CFOs, to power digital transformation across the organization.

Getting to and living on the cloud

Many organizations are still focused on simply getting to the cloud. However, getting to and successfully living on the cloud is a journey, so a clear plan is essential. The most innovative CIOs follow a data on cloud strategy to truly live on the cloud. This undertaking involves modernizing their cloud infrastructure to maximize the value of data and analytics.

After all, cloud is the foundation of innovation. With data on cloud, CIOs can make the best use of their talent – their employees – and can build a culture of data-driven decisions. And it's not just employees who benefit. By living on the cloud, CIOs can also use data to make informed decisions on new products, services, and customer experiences.

Of course, every cloud strategy will look a little different. In our Conversations on cloud series, Genpact's cloud leader, Vikrant Karnik, stresses the need for a bespoke approach. "Leaders must develop a cloud strategy that fuses industry expertise with process expertise. They must focus on what they're trying to achieve and how they can leverage the power of engineering to deliver better business outcomes."

Cloud and analytics are also crucial for building business resilience, ensuring organizations stay ahead of the competition. In fact, about 40% of CIOs thank migrating data centers to the cloud and advanced analytics for helping them to adjust to changing business conditions.

In summary, getting to the cloud is only the first step. A solid data on cloud framework will help CIOs and technology leaders live on the cloud.

Case study

Building multichannel resilience

A media and entertainment company that relies heavily on revenue from live events and venue admission realized the necessity for data-driven decisions amid the COVID-19 lockdowns. Facing indefinite closures, the business needed to enhance online engagement to retain customers and revenue. With a move to the cloud, focused on connecting its cloud and analytics strategy, the company translated physical customer interaction data into virtual customer interaction opportunities. Today, the company can explore real-time actionable insights to attract, engage, and retain customers in a virtual world.

So, how can CIOs get to and live on the cloud? Here's our checklist:

• Connect your data to your cloud strategy – cloud and analytics should be intrinsically linked
• Live on the cloud through modernization – migration alone doesn't deliver innovation
• Transform with talent – embrace new ways of working and a collaborative cloud culture
• Develop a bespoke strategy – fuse industry and process expertise with the power of engineering

Accelerating innovation with data and analytics

Data is the lifeblood of digital transformation. Almost all (98%) of the CIOs in our study agree that their companies make data-driven decisions to realize business value. Of course, all this data lives in the cloud. As enterprise leaders try to get closer to customers by building resilient, purpose-led organizations, they realize that data on cloud can unlock the actionable insights they need.

But to generate insights at scale, enterprise leaders must unify all their data sources in one place – a colossal task that calls for industry expertise. When you connect all data, building a data-driven culture is also critical. Employees need the ability to process, analyze, and extract insights from the treasure trove of data at their fingertips.

As our global analytics leader, Amaresh Tripathy, explains, "People are suddenly seeing that the decisions they make, the processes they follow, and the metrics they value are not just 'their' metrics. They're starting to understand that the actions they take have implications for others, and sometimes those decisions make it harder and harder for other teams to do what they need to do."

As data becomes an integral part of every function, all employees need access to the tools and skills to unlock its power. "Being a data-led organization is absolutely imperative to our success," says Rogan Moore, chief digital and information officer at Livekindly. "We can't be an intelligent, data-driven business if our data is fragmented and inaccessible."

At Genpact, for example, we launched DataBridge, an initiative to embed data literacy across our organization and shift employees away from transactional projects and into insight-generating roles. By democratizing access to data and learning, we ensure all employees have a fair shot at advancing their skills and apply that knowledge to serve clients better.

Nonetheless, these efforts will only deliver results with a reliable data on cloud foundation.

Case study

Powering accurate forecasting

Electronics multinational Panasonic struggled with a lack of data visibility across its complex supply chain, negatively impacting demand forecasting accuracy and employee productivity. That was until Genpact deployed full-stack analytics built on Cora, our AI-powered digital business platform. We worked with employees to understand their challenges, wants, and needs and developed a data on cloud approach that gave employees visibility of end-to-end supply chain data. This achievement meant they could forecast daily instead of monthly, all while improving accuracy.

So, how can CIOs harness the power of analytics? Here's our checklist:

• Remove analytical silos and organize your data – this needs to happen before the cloud transition
• Seek industry and functional expertise – then build data on cloud solutions specific to your business needs
• Upskill your workforce to embrace a data-driven culture – employees can then rely on facts to make business decisions
• Build resilience with data on cloud – use data-driven insights to get closer to your customers

Living on the cloud, forging ahead with analytics

Almost all of the CIOs in our study (98%) also agree that their responsibilities will evolve over the next two years, prompting them to become more strategic and collaborative with other business leaders. This partnership will be crucial to help their enterprises withstand the next significant business disruption.

Despite shifting roles and an ever-changing business landscape, CIOs can look to the future with confidence – if they have a comprehensive data on cloud strategy. By living on the cloud and leading with analytics, they will uncover actionable insights to boost agility, resilience, employee satisfaction, and profits.