While many organizations in the ASEAN have undergone digital transformation, many still struggle to utilize the tools to their full potential. The latest report from IT infrastructure services provider shows that only 7% of organizations in the region are focused on building the right data and (artificial intelligence) AI foundation for their business.

“Trust in the data and subsequent AI models is critical to truly embrace a data-driven DNA across the organization and this trust in the data layer is missing in the majority of businesses today,” said Ullrich Loeffler, CEO of Ecosystm.

The study found that 48% of participants remain challenged with integrating AI solutions with existing systems, 38% with collecting data from multiple internal sources, and 34% with the quality of data. It is interesting to note that amid all the digitalization happening among organizations, only 10% of organizations in ASEAN have business teams managing or maintaining AI solutions. 

Kyndryl Bridge provides real-time insights into complex IT infrastructure
Reliance on cloud solutions to continue in 2023 — Kyndryl

Kyndryl commissioned technology research and advisory firm Ecosystm to conduct a survey among 500 C-Suite leaders in the region to understand data and AI challenges so they can provide recommendations for them to build scalable strategies that deliver business impact.

“Data and AI initiatives across organizations in the Philippines are surging as they seek to drive growth, transformation, and sustainability agendas,” said Wilson Go, managing director, Kyndryl Philippines. “IT and business leaders see potential in leveraging data and AI to unlock real-time insights and deliver the agility that is required to succeed in today’s competitive and volatile market.” 

According to Kyndryl, true insights can only be derived from a consistent and complete dataset that has no data gaps. Building that dataset requires key conditions such as a focus on clean and trusted data, a data interoperability strategy, and synthetic data generation to bridge data gaps. 

The survey also shows that over the next two years, from 2023 through 2024, 77% of respondents will increase the use of AI and data solutions for customer experience, 75% for human resources, and 72% for marketing. 

Data governance

According to the report, lack of an internal policy and limited understanding of the risks (36%) are the two biggest challenges of an effective data governance policy in ASEAN. 

“Data governance policies formulated by data-first organizations should include accountability and ownership guidelines, standardized regulations, a dedicated data stewardship team, and a regular process for re-evaluation of the policies set up,” Kyndryl said.

Building scalable AI will require organizations to empower citizen data scientists through training, and access to user-friendly tools that help them gather the right information for the right insights and make data-driven decisions a norm for the business.

“To truly embark on their transformation journeys, organizations need a strong data management ecosystem as the foundation,” Go said.