Data-drivenness: (big) data and data-driven enterprises - A multiple case study on B2B companies within the telecommunication sector

Abstract: In the digitalization era where increasingly larger amount of data is created every day, companies have a great opportunity at their disposal: data-drivenness. It essentially implies that enterprises can exploit big data through Big Data Analytics (BDA) in order to gather relevant insights for their decisions. However, the author realized the presence of little qualitative and scientific studies on data-drivenness as well as a major focus on US companies. Hence, this study aims at qualitatively exploring how enterprises are dealing with data-drivenness and how these are changing to become data-driven. It consists of a multiple case study on four Swedish-based B2B enterprises within the telecommunication sector. This choice seems to be intriguing for two main reasons. On one hand, B2C companies are often conceived as data-driven given their larger consumer base. But what about B2B ones? On the other hand, companies operating in the telecommunication sector are the building blocks of digital revolution that is the engine for the creation of data. But are they also exploiting data insights to run their businesses? The findings from the study revealed that case companies are aware of what a data-driven enterprise is, and which are the elements characterizing it. First and foremost, big data and BDA are at the basis, not so much for the amount but for the ability of companies to combine various sources of data to generate actionable insights. However, data-drivenness results to be implemented at different degrees within case companies, mainly because of their different size and key characteristics. Moreover, for these having the target of full data-drivenness, some critical challenges preventing it are highlighted such as data quality issues, investments in human skills and technologies and the overall process of change. In particular, the last is undertaken by companies to become data-driven and respond to external influence and pressure from competition. In this regard, change entails tangible and intangible modifications that often encounter some resistance. De facto, it is plausible to believe that companies decide to start the journey toward data-drivenness in the light of opportunities connected to it such as the possibility of taking more accurate decisions (strategic and/or operational), finding innovation avenues and following market trends that might result in improving enterprise’ competitive position. Finally, the research reveals that data-drivenness is a hot topic and the future prerequisite for companies to survive in an increasing digitalized and evolving world.