More U.S. Companies Embracing Data Analytics to Improve Operations and Grow During COVID-19 Pandemic

Enterprises in the U.S., the largest market for data analytics services, continue to invest heavily in this area to address top- and bottom-line growth challenges during the COVID-19 crisis, according to a new report published today by Information Services Group (ISG) (Nasdaq: III), a leading global technology research and advisory firm.

The 2020 ISG Provider Lens Analytics – Solutions and Service Partners report for the U.S. finds organizations demanding advanced analytics tools and services, as they seek to better understand customer behavior and improve operational efficiency during the pandemic. The U.S. is seeing increasing adoption, including several large-scale, transformational projects with analytics at the core. A majority of service providers in the report say they derive 15 percent or more of their total data analytics revenue from the U.S., making it their largest market.

“Data is the lifeblood of business, and in volatile times, companies need actionable data more than ever,” said Kathy Rudy, chief data and analytics officer of ISG. “U.S. enterprises are still finding their way through the pandemic, so they want to measure and understand consumer behavior and other success factors as well as possible.”

Banking, financial services and health care organizations are leading the U.S. surge in analytics demand, the report says. The focus for most is understanding and improving customer experience, but business process and operational challenges are also key reasons to invest in these capabilities.

Though many major service providers with data analytics offerings are based in the U.S., demand for data scientists in the country outstrips supply, ISG says. Meanwhile, acquisitions and partnerships among service providers are on the rise as they seek to expand their portfolios, enter new markets or gain technology certifications in specific areas.

As enterprises tap into a wider variety of data types and begin to apply analytics to complex Internet of Things applications, more service providers are adding artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML) and automation to their solutions, the report says. Automation can improve data management functions like cataloging and data parsing and accelerate outputs. While most of current solutions are rules-based, some providers are introducing features with cognitive capabilities based on AI.