A modern data infrastructure is essential for retailers looking to stay competitive today. Companies are abandoning more traditional, on-premises IT infrastructures and moving to more centralized “as a service” (XaaS) models of delivery enabled by cloud technologies, according to McKinsey. Aging on-premises infrastructures are unable to meet demands for agility and innovation, eating up too much time and too many resources for teams trying to maintain them.
The role of the CDO will not suffer the slow rise to prominence other emerging C-level roles have seen in previous years. Modern technologies designed to easily centralize, access, analyze, share, and monetize data have arrived. As a result, data has become the most powerful resource to drive an organization’s transformation. That puts CDOs at the wheel, their foot on the pedal, and their fellow execs holding on tight for the ride of their lives.
The lingering effects of the global pandemic are merging with inflation to create a perfect storm for retailers looking to find the right inventory stature for the seasons ahead. Companies are getting squeezed between rising supply chain costs and falling consumer confidence. To succeed in this volatile market, McKinsey suggests that retailers “accelerate decision-making tenfold.”
