Introduction

Robert Butler ⁽¹⁾, probably like many others, has drawn an analogy between water and data in that there is enough to drown in but none that can satisfy our thirst. He recognises that we have a thirst for data but without the ability to make proper use of it. From personal experience I can agree with Robert. The thirst for data is one that cannot easily be quenched, regardless of the climate; there seems to be an assumption that the more we have the better able we will be to control our systems and processes. But, in the maelstrom of data, he is coming from the perspective of someone whose aim is to bring calm by delivering analytical product.

Why would we want to enter the maelstrom in the first place? Simply put it is very often the case that we are searching for what some regard as the Holy Grail of IT - Organizational Transformation through the application of Information Technology - to become effective and efficient. But why exactly? We live in a competitive world where it is no longer enough to have a business strategy of being a low cost producer/service provider or maintaining one's market share. Today it is also the ability to respond quickly to opportunities and threats, to reduce time to market, to improve customer service, and to improve the quality of our products and services, particularly in a climate of tighter and reducing Resource Control Totals. Organizations recognize past failures and/or inefficiencies and they know that they can do better. IT is the enabler for making sense of their considerable data resource and the answers lie in the maelstrom of data. However, we must recognise as others have done that IT in itself cannot bring about organizational transformation.

 Organizational Transformation