Vanson Bourne and Dell EMC recently collaborated on the third installment of the Global Data Protection Index (GDPI) project – based on a survey of 2,200 IT Decision Makers across 18 countries – to better understand:

• The maturity of their data protection strategies
• The value they place on data
• How prepared they are during this era of rapid technological change

The study also generated a maturity index designed to illustrate the characteristics of leaders vs. laggards. After reviewing the findings in detail, it’s clear to me that we are collectively experiencing a fundamental shift in the way that we perceive data.

To provide context, in the early days of the digital economy we generally viewed data as a byproduct of the broader business. This may have included customer databases, archived documents, and applications necessary to “keep the lights on.” As the data deluge grew, new requirements took shape – storage capacity had to quickly expand, heating and cooling systems were constantly under strain, and IT was tasked with managing a complex and ever-expanding data lake.

This explosion of data isn’t slowing down.

According to the GDPI research, the volume of global data rose from 1.45PB in 2016 to 9.7PB in 2018 – an increase of 6X. While it may be intuitive to continue categorizing this rapid data growth as a challenge that needs to be managed, it’s becoming more apparent that this accumulated data contains untapped value. According to the study, 92% see the potential value of data while 36% consider data to be extremely valuable.

Not too long ago, organizations began to realize they could deliver more value leveraging data analytics – enabling the proliferation of convenient customer-centric features such as customized recommendations provided by Netflix and Amazon. However, this shift in the perception of data is about much more than data analytics. In fact, many modern business models are entirely based on data – where data is the product. The most obvious examples are social media platforms and search engines, where our own preferences and behavior are what is monetized. Data has quickly become the most valuable asset for countless organizations globally, and it is also the fuel that drives the next generation of technologies and workloads such as IoT and Artificial Intelligence.

At Dell Technologies, we use the term Data Capital to describe the wealth or value that has been unlocked from data. According to the GDPI study, data protection maturity leaders have 18X more data under management compared to laggards. With the heightened value that has been placed on data, and the sheer volume of data necessary to establish and maintain a competitive advantage, naturally there should be a corresponding increase in value placed on the IT infrastructure solutions responsible for storing, managing, and protecting that data.

At this point we all know how important it is for mission critical data and applications to be safe and available, so it’s important to partner with a vendor you can trust. According to the GDPI survey data, organizations with multiple vendors are 27% more likely to have experienced unplanned system downtime and 43% more likely to have experienced data loss compared to those with one vendor. Furthermore, the average cost of downtime is more than double and average cost of data loss is almost double for those with multiple vendors.

Dell Technologies is the only end-to-end infrastructure provider with both an extensive storage and data protection portfolio (and much more). Working with one trusted vendor across both storage and data protection means you’re utilizing technology that is designed with compatibility as a top priority – from the purchase process through deployment and ongoing management. You also receive world-class customer support from one global support organization, and peace of mind through the Future-Proof Loyalty Program – which covers both storage and data protection solutions.

To learn more about the GDPI findings, read the eBook from Vanson Bourne: Protecting Data Capital in your Organization.