Biz leaders identify data & analysis as most important tech: EY Korea

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By Anna J. Park

More than half of local business leaders point to data and analysis as the most important investment as well as technology that is expected to create the highest value to corporations during the next two years.

This is according to “EY Tech Horizon 2022,” a global survey of more than 1,600 senior executives, including in Korea, on the role of technology in their business transformation strategies.

Of the surveyed local business leaders, 53 percent chose data and analysis as the area of top priority for the sake of establishing innovative strategic goals. Other tech infrastructures were also selected as key areas of investment, including the internet of things by 51 percent of the local respondents, cloud services by 47 percent, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning by 42 percent and blockchain technology by 18 percent.

While only 21 percent of the Korean businesses surveyed said they've completed transformations towards becoming data-centered organizations, the proportion is expected to grow further in the future. Data-centered organizations refer to corporate structures in which data information is integrated and consolidated under united business strategies, rather than partially managed by IT departments, so that a company can draw upon insights in various corporate decisions from data analysis.

Yet, surveyed leaders said the country's strict requirements as well as inadequate guidelines on cyber security and personal information protection are functioning as hurdles for accelerating corporations' digital transformation.

“In the current era, data serves as a key corporate asset as well as (the basis of) businesses' competitiveness,” Kim Jung-wook, EY Korea Consulting's lead partner, said. “Companies need to draw up data strategies to elicit corporate insights by appropriately allocating investments in key digital infrastructures, such as cloud technology, the internet of things, AI and cyber security devices,” he stressed, adding that a consolidated data-driven eco-system would facilitate the process of firms coming up with profitable business models in new areas.