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Big data usage in Asia-Pacific hindered by internal roadblocks

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Krystal
New Update

LONDON, UK: The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) released a new report, The hype and the hope: The road to big data. Sponsored by Hitachi Data Systems, the report surveyed more than 500 executives across the Asia-Pacific region.

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The EIU finds that more than half of businesses surveyed in Asia-Pacific have made limited progress in harnessing the power of big data, with 91 percent citing factors in their own company as the main barrier.

Despite lack of progress in adopting big data strategies in the region, the report finds that 45 percent of respondents believe that they can increase company revenues by 25 percent or more by using data to improve decision-making and understand their customers better.

The report also shows that leading economies in the region lag behind in using big data. In Singapore, 47 percent of respondents say they have no big data strategy. In Australia and China the analogous figures are 31 percent and 42 percent respectively. However, in Hong Kong, only 20 percent of respondents say they have no strategy.

The biggest obstacle to emerge from the report is often the company itself. Virtually all the executives surveyed recognize internal roadblocks to adopting big data. The biggest challenges cited are a lack of suitable software (42 percent) and a lack of skills (40 percent).

Concerns about sharing and collaboration are also identified as inhibitors of big data adoption: 36 percent cite an unwillingness to share data as a problem; 36 percent a lack of communication between departments; and 22 percent departmental divisions.