By Sam Woodcock, Director of Cloud Strategy and Enablement at 11:11 Systems
Data is the currency of every business today, but it is under significant threat. As companies rapidly collect and store data, it is driving a need to adopt multi-cloud solutions to store and protect it. At the same time, ransomware attacks are increasing in frequency and sophistication. This is supported by Rapid7’s Ransomware Radar Report 2024 which states, “The first half of 2024 has witnessed a substantial evolution in the ransomware ecosystem, underscoring significant shifts in attack methodologies, victimology, and cybercriminal tactics.”
Against this backdrop, companies must have a data resilience plan in place which incorporates four key facets: data backup, data recovery, data freedom and data security.
Ransomware is Just Business
With ransomware being a low-risk, high-reward opportunity for criminals, as it requires little effort to access sensitive information and demand ransom, it is becoming an attractive career choice for some. It is on this basis that ransomware has evolved into a fully-fledged business with more operations starting up every week. This is also fuelled by the increasing popularity of Ransomware-as-a-Service, a model where sophisticated threat actors develop and sell ransomware platforms to other threat actors.
With this rise in threat actors targeting businesses today, IT security can no longer be a problem for IT teams alone. Every decision is a commercial decision and will carry risk. And every person within an organisation has an important role in being the first line of defence and protecting a company from a breach.
From Passwords to Exploits
People make mistakes, and this makes them an attractive target for most threat actors. According to Mimecast over 70% of cyber breaches in 2023 were caused by human error. Advanced phishing attacks are more convincing than ever, making it harder for employees to distinguish between real and fake emails. It only requires a quick click of the button by a stressed, tired or disgruntled employee for threat access to gain a password that gives full access to the organisation’s data.
As such, while employees must be adequately trained to avoid falling victim to these phishing or ransomware attacks, this is merely the first step to improving a company’s security. However, it requires further security measures to be put in place to protect the organisation and its data.
Testing, Testing
Backups are considered the primary way to recover from a breach, but is this enough to ensure that the organisation will be up and running with minimal impact? Testing is a critical component to ensuring that a company can recover after a breach and provides valuable insight into the steps that the company will need to take to recover from a variety of scenarios. Unfortunately, many organisations implement measures to recover but fail on the last step of their resilience approach, namely testing. Without this step, they cannot know if their recovery strategy is effective.
Testing is a critical component as it provides valuable insight into the steps it needs to take to recover, what works, and what areas it needs to focus on for the recovery process, the amount of time it will take to recover the files and more. Without this, companies will not know what processes to follow to restore data following a breach, as well as timelines to recovery. Equally, they will not know if they have backed up their data correctly before an attack if they have not performed adequate testing.
Although many IT teams are stretched and struggle to find the time to do regular testing, it is possible to automate the testing process to ensure that it occurs frequently. These tools will also provide a realistic view of how resilient the environment is to threats and provide a host of scenarios that could impact the business, helping to prepare for almost any incident.
From testing to reality
While some organisations are surprised that they have been breached, according to Sophos, 83% of organisations that experienced a breach had observable warning signs beforehand and ignored the canary in the coal mine. Further, 70% of breaches were successful and threat actors encrypted the data of the organisation to prevent access to it.
However, as threat actors aren’t using enterprise-grade tools to gain access to data, enterprises are effectively at an advantage if they test and retest regularly, and back up their data effectively. A good guideline for this is the 3-2-1 rule, which states that there should be at least three copies of the data, stored on two different types of storage media, and one copy should be kept offsite in a remote location. Businesses also stand to benefit from partnering with an organisation that can protect the network to defend against threats and has the expertise to help them to recover from an attack.
A poll of data engineers has found data quality is still their biggest frustration and a showstopper for delivering impact and value quickly – with almost half ranking it above other common pipeline challenges.
Over 100 data engineers responded to the poll that was published by recently launched data transformation and infrastructure management tool, Pipeliner.
The poll found that almost 1 in 5 engineers find integrations with other systems to be their biggest challenge, while just less than 20 per cent point to performance bottlenecks. Engineers who took part also stated GDPR compliance, poor team cooperation and lack of access and permissions are high on their list of frustrations when carrying out their role.
Speaking on the results of the poll, Xavi Forde, founding engineer of Pipeliner and a data engineer himself, said:
“It’s no secret that data quality continues to be a root of major frustration for many data engineers. Couple this with an increasing number of organisations looking into adopting AI to support enterprise growth – and data engineers are under increasing pressure to ensure data is insight and AI ready.
“We know data is never perfect – but there are absolutely ways engineers can reduce the chances of data being compromised as it moves through the pipeline, and it all starts from having a well-documented pipeline with a complete traceability between your intended data transformation rules and your data transformation code so that no engineer has to spend hours and hours trying to untangle someone else’s badly written sql.”
To support data engineers in tackling some of their most common obstacles, Pipeliner launched its meta-data driven data transformation and infrastructure management tool in July. It takes mapping specification as an input and delivers data pipeline and infrastructure code directly to a data engineers’ GitHub repository, accelerating the development of data lakes, all while enforcing data governance.
With the Pipeliner, an engineer can go from a mapping specification to a live pipeline in a few minutes as opposed to hours if not days. It specialises in bespoke data pipeline design and implementation, enabling organisations to streamline data integration, optimise workflows, and uphold data quality through automated end-to-end pipeline creation.
Talking about the innovation behind Pipeliner, founder, Svetlana Tarnagurskaja, who will be hosting a panel of Great British Data Founders at Big Data LDN, says: “Pipeliner can help you build production-grade complex data transformation pipelines significantly faster – it’s a tool built by engineers for engineers, with users retaining a full control and ownership of their code, which was of paramount importance to us.
“The mission of Pipeliner is to make the build and maintenance of high-quality bespoke data lakes more affordable and accessible for the industry, whether it’s a small team in a charity sector or an established engineering team under a pressure of unlocking cost-savings in a large enterprise. Pipeliner automates the most-time consuming part of infrastructure and data transformation code creation to remove bottlenecks, increases productivity and reduces cloud costs. It could save engineers days, even weeks of time.”
Pipeliner works through a typical three stage process:
Define – analysts or engineers define source to target transformation logic and data structures that need to be created, it is captured in a mapping specification
Generate – Pipeliner takes the mapping specification as an input and generates the ETL jobs and infrastructure code.
Deploy – Pipeliner delivers fully editable code straight to the Git repo of your choice, ready to be deployed, allowing the engineering team to retain full control of their code.
Backed by a team of experienced data engineers and leveraging cutting-edge technology, Pipeliner empowers businesses to extract actionable insights, make informed decisions, and foster growth through efficient data management.
Today, the threat of a cyberattack has become so pronounced that in a survey of Fortune 500 CEOs in 2023, the #2 threat CEOs cited to their companies was cybersecurity. We live in a data-driven world and protecting data assets is a constant challenge for all enterprise organisations. As Professor Stuart Madnick from MIT wrote in his recent paper, there was a 20% increase in the number of data breaches between 2022 and 2023 and this frequency continues to increase dramatically year-after-year.
One issue behind the rising incidents involving data breaches is that the connection between cyber security resilience and data storage systems tends to be overlooked by CTOs, CIOs, and CISOs. Enterprise storage is sometimes regarded as being at the more traditional, staid end of the technology stack compared with other newcomers, like Gen AI and EDGE computing. And yet, the type of storage in use within an organisation plays a critical role in their ability to recover quickly from a cyberattack. In this respect, storage can be considered one of the missing links to a comprehensive enterprise cyber protection strategy.
In addition to sub-optimal awareness of the vital connection between storage and cybersecurity, another contributor to organisational vulnerability is the lack of automated integration between the infrastructure where data is stored and cybersecurity monitoring systems employed. This is another enterprise security oversight. Cybersecurity monitoring systems like a SOC or SIEM, and SOAR cyber security applications, need a direct link to storage systems because this is the only way to ensure that immutable snapshotting of data – to enable a safe recovery – is automated. Cyberattacks are so prevalent today that most CTOs, CIOs, and CISOs will acknowledge that some form of ‘cyber-incident’ is likely to take place inside their organisation at some point. This is an inevitable part of doing business. The question is not if an organisation will suffer a cyberattack, but when and how often.
So, the goal now for security administrators needs to shift towards firstly protecting the organisation as effectively as possible and secondly, ensuring that the recovery phase is seamless and creates minimal problems. How can they be fully confident that primary and back-up data is safe and can be restored in minutes? And what tools exist to enable storage admins to shrink the threat window and minimise consequences of an attack?
Reaching this point calls for a brand new, more joined up approach to cyber security strategy development, employing strengthened enterprise storage security and automated cyber-scanning. And now, a unique new solution developed by enterprise storage specialists, Infinidat, does exactly this. It has already been given rave reviews by IT industry analysts because of its potential to transform cybersecurity recovery capabilities.
As several of the leading storage industry analysts have noted –
“Infinidat is one of the top enterprise storage companies in the world today, so it’s no surprise to see them launch compelling new solutions anchored in next-generation storage capabilities. With the new G4, the expanded InfiniSafe software, InfuzeOS Cloud Edition for Microsoft Azure, and all the enhancements on the InfiniVerse platform, Infinidat has solidified its position as a ‘go-to’ solution provider for hybrid multi-cloud storage infrastructures. It’s because of innovations like these that Infinidat is now synonymous in the enterprise with high performance and lower TCO for cyber resilient storage. The company is also making the right strategic investments in its InfiniVerse platform, delivering a strong Storage-as-a-Service offering that gives enterprises even more flexibility in deploying business-critical storage.” Steve McDowell, Chief Analyst, NAND Research
“Infinidat has carved out a unique leadership position as the only storage vendor to offer an automated enterprise storage cyber protection solution that seamlessly integrates with cyber security software applications. Infinidat’s newly launched InfiniSafe Automated Cyber Protection (ACP) that easily meshes with the SIEM, SOAR or Security Operations Centres is exactly what enterprises need to include enterprise storage as a comprehensive approach to combat cyber threats. This proactive cyber protection technique is extremely valuable, as it enables taking immediate immutable snapshots of data at the first sign of a potential cyberattack. This provides a significant advancement to ensure enterprise cyber storage resilience and recovery are integral to an enterprise’s cybersecurity strategy. ACP enhances an enterprise’s overall cyber resilience by reducing the threat window and minimising the impact of cyberattacks on enterprise storage environments.” Chris Evans, Principal Analyst at Architecting IT
“The new InfiniBox G4 hybrid and all-flash arrays represent a significant generational advance in cost economics and ultimate performance for enterprise-class infrastructure solutions. In EMEA we’re seeing a rapid acceleration in the Digital Shift and IT is becoming responsible for customer experience and becoming the foundation of modern business models. In addition, the performance demands of GenAI is pushing storage requirements to the limit. Infinidat has built on its proven and scalable storage platform to deliver a storage architecture that can deliver not only on today’s demanding requirements, but also on future storage needs as application demands continue to inexorably increase.” Andrew Buss, Senior Research Director, EMEA Future of Digital Infrastructure, IDC
In a world where data breaches are increasingly frequent and sophisticated, the connection between data storage and cybersecurity can no longer be overlooked. A convergent approach is paramount and there is a real need for integrated, automated and intelligent data storage solutions that offer a robust defence mechanism with added data protection and recovery capabilities. By taking a more holistic approach to cybersecurity, where storage and security are working together, enterprises can mitigate the impacts of cyber incidents and safeguard their most valuable asset: data.
Document shredding is a crucial aspect when it comes to protecting your business’s sensitive information. As a business owner, it’s your responsibility to ensure that your company’s confidential data is not exposed to unauthorised access, theft, or misuse. With the increasing number of fraud and cyber-attacks, it’s essential to take necessary precautions and choose the right shredding service for your business.
Here are some tips and insights into document shredding best practices that can help you make an informed decision when selecting a shredding company:
Consider your shredding needs
Before you choose a shredding service, it’s essential to determine your shredding requirements. Do you need a one-time purge of old documents, or do you need regular shredding services? You must select a shredding service that can cater to your business’s specific needs.
That’s exactly what Restore Datashred do, tailoring their services to meet your needs, find out more about their services below:
It’s crucial to choose a shredding service that is i-Sigma certified. This certification ensures that the company has strict standards for security and privacy. The i-Sigma certification ensures that the shredding process follows industry-standard policies and procedures for the safe destruction of confidential information.
Evaluate the shredding process
You must choose a shredding service that prioritises security during; collection, transportation, and shredding. The shredding service provider must take the necessary precautions to protect the information from unauthorised access during the shredding process and must provide a certificate of destruction after each shredding process.
Once you’ve chosen a shredding service, it’s essential to establish protocols and policies for document shredding within your business. Here are some document shredding best practices to consider:
Establish a document retention policy: It’s essential to determine how long you need to keep certain types of documents before they are shredded. You must ensure that the document retention policy adheres to the legal and regulatory requirements of your industry.
Train employees on proper shredding procedures: It’s essential to educate and train all employees on the importance of document security and the proper disposal of sensitive information. Employees must understand the risks associated with not following the shredding process and the implications it can have on the business.
Implement a shredding schedule: Regularly scheduled shredding ensures that sensitive documents are disposed of in a timely manner. You must establish a shredding schedule that meets the needs of your business and ensures that all confidential information is destroyed promptly.
In conclusion, document shredding is an essential aspect when it comes to protecting your business’s confidential information. Choosing the right shredding service provider is crucial to ensure that your business is compliant with industry-standard policies and procedures for the safe destruction of confidential information.
For additional information or advice on document shredding best practices, please contact Restore Datashred.
Leeds-based data company, Oakland, one of the few data consultancies to earn B Corp certification through its commitment to high social and environmental standards, announces significant growth in excess of 25% for its financial year ending 31st March.
This success highlights Oaklands’ mission to transform and grow businesses by liberating and activating data.
Expansive Growth Through Strategic Partnerships
This year has seen Oakland enhance its client portfolio with notable additions, including the University of Leeds, Information Commissioner’s Office, Emerald Publishing, and Raw Charging. These partnerships underscore Oakland’s capacity to deliver expert data consultancy services across various sectors:
Data Strategy: Implementing cutting-edge data strategies with the Information Commissioner’s Office and Raw Charging to deliver value focused and sustainable data capability.
Data Platform: Developing a robust data platform for Emerald Publishing, enabling scalable and efficient data management.
Data Governance: Enhancing data governance frameworks with the University of Leeds to ensure data integrity and accessibility.
Innovation at the Forefront with the Launch of the Future Lab
Furthering their commitment to technological advancement, Oakland launched the Future Lab. This new initiative is dedicated to exploring emerging technologies, with its first project focusing on generative AI in partnership with Network Rail. This project aims to pioneer new applications of AI technology, positioning Oakland at the forefront of innovation in the industry.
Richard Corderoy, Chief Executive Officer of Oakland, commented, “This year has not only seen tremendous growth in terms of revenue and client portfolio, but it has also been a year of strategic innovation. Our Future Lab exemplifies our commitment to leading at the frontier of technology, ensuring our clients and partners benefit from cutting-edge solutions.”
The Data City has marked its sixth year of consecutive growth with significant progress against its mission to build a new global industrial classification system.
The company has seen turnover rise 63% to £1.25m in the financial year 23/24 and grown its team to 20.
The Data City has made significant updates to its data platform, with insight now available on female founders, the addition of GVA, company births and deaths, ESG statements, job postings over time, and growth filters.
The Data City has completed large projects, which included helping the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) map innovation clusters across the country to support investment and target growth.
Commenting on the growth, Alex Craven, CEO of The Data City, said: “The Data City continues to go from strength to strength with profitable growth as we expand the platform and target new markets worldwide.
“From founding the company in 2017, The Data City has been on a mission to create a new industrial classification system as an alternative to SIC codes. Our Real-Time Industry Classifications are relevant to the modern economy and dynamic to reflect the rapid technology-driven changes we’re seeing.”
Scale-up technology company, The Data City argues vague SIC codes can lead to a poor understanding of companies and the broader economy. For example, the SIC code 82990 ‘Other business support services’ includes Amazon UK, Sony Interactive Entertainment Network Europe, Santander, Google and Facebook. It is a global problem that has seen a wide range of government, banking and insurance customers use The Data City to help better understand the economy, markets and companies.
The Data City team has also recently worked with the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) and CBI Economics to map the UK’s net zero economy and uncovered the gender investment gap in partnership with Panintelligence.
Craven concluded: “Our plans for the next year are to maintain this pace of growth, expanding the coverage of our global product to eventually include every company in the world. We will continue to scale the team with talented data professionals who want to work in a dynamic environment with other talented people, working on interesting products that make a real difference to society.”
In September, a new six-figure funding round accelerated the global roll-out of The Data City’s AI-driven data platform to over 120 million companies across Europe, the Nordics and the US. The funding came from existing backers, Yorkshire-based venture capitalist firm, Venturian. It values The Data City at £10m.
Helping businesses realize the full potential of their Cisco Partnership
Ensuring strong alignment with Cisco’s market direction and programs in today’s fast evolving commercial environment makes a material difference to the bottom line for Cisco partners.
That is why Vortex 6 is pleased to announce the launch of V6 Cisco Director and V6 Cisco 360 Advisory, a comprehensive suite of tools and services designed to maximize the value of Cisco partnerships. Together, this suite delivers greater management awareness, improved competitiveness, business continuity and better alignment with Cisco programs.
Commenting on the launch Peter Olive, CEO says: “We are driven by a passion for helping our customers fully realize the value of their relationship with Cisco. V6 Cisco Director and V6 Cisco 360 Advisory provide Cisco partners with new opportunities, better alignment, and more control and visibility for all stakeholders. Most importantly it delivers the opportunity to maximize profitability and make a significant difference to the bottom line.”
The Cisco Director suite comprises:
V6 BOM Analyzer
BOM Analyzer is a powerful sales tool for Cisco partners. It provides true deal margin visibility which can typically be up to three times the visible margin. V6 BOM Analyzer lets partners know the margin on the product, applicable VIP, CSPP, Life Cycle Incentive opportunities and Professional Services margin. This is good for partners and good for Cisco.
V6 Cisco Compliance
V6 Cisco Compliance fully automates management of compliance with the Cisco Partner Program in a single dashboard. Delivering full visibility of the current position and providing advanced notice of upcoming changes that will affect program status. It’s a powerful planning tool enabling partners to consider different strategies and includes all the training and costs required for each Certification to make budgeting simple. Partners no longer need to build and maintain custom spreadsheets or find people with deep knowledge of the Cisco Programs. V6 Cisco Compliance reduces cost and risk.
V6 Cisco Incentives
Cisco offers generous incentives and rebates to encourage partners’ business direction and market focus. The V6 Cisco Incentives management solution enables them to take advantage of these by providing a comprehensive view of incentives and rebates including accrued VIP rebate, status of minimum bookings, rebates accrued by client, financial forecasting and upcoming renewals.
V6 Cisco 360 Advisory
We have pulled together all of our expert advisory services into V6 Cisco 360 Advisory. It covers advice on every aspect of a partner’s relationship with Cisco from strategic alignment through to operational efficiency, specialization advice, incentive forecasting, and audit preparation.
V6 LCI Advisory (Life Cycle Incentives)
V6 LCI Advisory offers detailed guidance to unlock rebates across all LCI opportunities, ensuring compliance with Cisco’s criteria for Customer Success Plans and Business Outcomes. This strategic support assists in navigating Cisco program changes, optimizing lifecycle processes for efficiency, and securing maximum rebate potential through expert advisory services.
Vortex 6 is attending Cisco live in Las Vegas from 2-6 June, if you would like to talk to any of the team about V6 Cisco Director and V6 Cisco 360 Advisory please email Andy.Macleod@Vortex6.com
To find out more about V6 Cisco Director and V6 Cisco 360 Advisory, please visit www.vortex6.com.
Scotland Ambulance Services has been forced to apologise to some members of staff after a spreadsheet containing private data was attached to an email on 16 January.
A SAS spokesman confirmed that the email was “sent out in error” and that the incident had been reported to the Information Commissioner’s Office.
“Following a previous incident back in 2018, it is very concerning to see another Scottish Ambulance Services data breach occur that could have easily been prevented with the implementation of safeguarding measures.
“In a world where email is the most commonly used communication tool within organisations, with an estimated 347 billion emails sent and received last year, it’s baffling how such a ubiquitous channel remains vulnerable to digital threats. It’s clear that organisations have still not prioritised the implementation of security measures to mitigate human error, with the ICO reporting that information emailed to the incorrect recipient is the number one cause of data incidents.
“This recent leak reflects the lack of robust cybersecurity processes in place throughout the healthcare sector, and unfortunately, the Scottish Ambulance Services are not the first to have personal data leaked in this way. As we move into an increasingly digital age, it’s vital to remember that taking the appropriate measures isn’t just a way to avoid being the next headline; it’s about recognising that the safety of personal data is sacrosanct. All organisations, especially those that store sensitive health information, must put the appropriate tools in place to protect consumers and their identities.”
Leading brands share their vision for the evolving landscape of customer data, its transformation and its impact on businesses.
Written by Matthew Biboud Lubeck, Vice President EMEA, Amperity
The world of customer data is rapidly changing, and companies are responding with diverse strategies to stay ahead in this dynamic environment. At Amperity’s recent Amplify summit, industry leaders and professionals from iconic global brands like Deloitte, Patagonia, Taco Bell and more converged to explore the evolving landscape of data-driven marketing and the profound impact of first-party data.
Under the overarching theme of “Together We’re Electric,” the event explored critical facets of using customer data for strategic advantage, with a focus on the future of paid media, best practices for Customer Data Platforms (CDPs) and the transformative power of establishing a unified data foundation with Amperity.
Let’s dive in.
The Right Tools for a Shifting Landscape
Amperity CEO Barry Padgett kicked off the event with an analogy: a CDP is like an electrical outlet, with all the circuitry behind the wall making it work and the appliances that get plugged in making things happen. The data foundation is behind the wall, and all the marketing and analytics tools get power from the foundation.
He emphasised the importance of both halves of the customer data equation — what goes on behind the outlet and what gets plugged in — working in harmony to create a seamless flow, from data intake and unification to insights and activation to revenue.
“Customer data should always be two things: reliable and repeatable. Results are only as good as the data you feed it. We must get the data right,” he says. This collaborative approach is even more important at a time of heightened external pressures like regulatory compliance, technical evolution and the demands of knowledgeable and savvy customers.
Next was the keynote unveiling of Amperity for Paid Media, a new solution addressing the challenges to the traditional methods of digital advertising due to the continuing deprecation of third-party data and evolving content and privacy regulations. Amperity CTO and Co-Founder Derek Slager laid out a customer data strategy focused on using unified first-party data to power paid media and be much more effective than a third-party-forward approach.
This isn’t a future state: Amperity is already sending more than 12 billion profiles a day to the majority of top media partners, and brands adopting a first-party data strategy have seen great results, including match rates as high as 85 per cent on key channels, improved return on ad spend (ROAS) by up to 5x, and up to 90 per cent faster activation time for new campaigns. The keynote summed it up as “better data, better results.”
First-Party Paid Media Strategy in Action
Several sessions unpacked the future of paid media, making it clear that this moment in digital advertising is both evolutionary and revolutionary. Things are changing, and they’re not going back.
With third-party-reliant systems growing obsolete, it becomes critical to base your approach on first-party data to navigate the changing ecosystem. We heard from Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Citizen Watch, and Taco Bell about how they’re working with Amperity to unify and use their owned data for advertising, seeing tremendous results.
They shared their experiences with change management when transitioning to a unified customer profile approach. They also discussed how adapting their paid media strategy pushed them to think about other ways to use customer data in different settings, emphasising the critical role of a unified customer foundation in making any of it possible.
Mike Shiwdin, VP, Digital Optimisation, MarTech, Guest Intelligence and Engagement Strategy at Wyndham Hotels and Resorts, shares, “Anticipating your guests’ needs and acting on them is the core of hospitality. First-party data really allows us to truly understand who those customers are and what they want and need across our 20-plus brands globally. So that was really where we first started: How do we better understand who is a budget hotel customer, who is in a registry collection, who’s spending $700 a night at an all-inclusive resort?
“From a paid media perspective, we started with suppression. Without first-party data, we had a one-size-fits-all approach. So that was the clear proof of concept to drive value internally to build momentum in the investment. Now as we’re three years into it, we’re starting to build a robust retargeting effort. And we’re seeing material results. We’re starting to get more of a sense of how we expand out across paid media,” he continues.
“Once we saw the value of paid media at Wyndham, we slowly started to mature into the realisation of how first-party data isn’t just about the next transaction. And we started to see the real value of first-party data and a CDP with Amperity. The next transaction — the value of that is just incremental touchpoints to build a stronger relationship with your guests.”
CDP Best Practices: Scoping, ROI and Use Cases
During the summit, we also dug into the different aspects of using a CDP, including hearing from SPARC Group about building a multi-brand strategy with a unified data foundation and exploring the three pillars of ROI strategy at Vail Resorts.
We had the privilege of learning about how CPG company Reckitt makes a CDP work at a global scale. Bastian Parizot, Global Head of Tech and Digital at Reckitt emphasises, “First-party strategy for us is about how we take control of that ‘seed’ that helps us do better at media targeting, to be more relevant in advertising and start building a direct relationship.”
Sessions with Vince and Citizen Watch walked through a variety of specific use cases for marketing and analytics, with a focus on tying together the customer experience across all touchpoints. For example, Rob Harvath, VP Consumer Insights and Data Management at Citizen Watch, says, “The power of a CDP like Amperity is that it has made my life a whole lot easier, but it’s also made us a whole lot smarter about who our customers are.
“Amperity has helped me tell the company and our sales team who our customers are, all the way down to the individual model of watch they bought. So when you take into account all of our brands, all of the collections within those brands, all the way down to the individual model, guess what? Our data now is structured where I can answer the question, who’s the customer for this particular watch with these attributes.”
We also heard from Taco Bell collaborating with AWS on how it went from having no customer data to operating seamlessly between digital and in-person channels, using data to understand customer preferences and creating the kind of personal experiences that build loyalty. Dane Mathews, Chief Digital Officer at Taco Bell, emphasises, “Loyalty is transforming customer expectations, retail experiences and the QSR business model.”
From Unified Data to The Downfall of DMPs
The speakers emphasised that the success of their marketing strategies hinges on having a unified data foundation as the bedrock. They shared their experience of how important it is to be able to feed accurate data to a whole range of tools for various use cases like omnichannel, multi-databases and real-time profile API.
On the culture and change management side, speakers agreed that each organisation’s initial use cases and CDP rollout plan should be tailored to their specific needs. But regardless of what they’re trying, they need to be able to see ROI quickly.
There was also a session from David Chan, Managing Director at Deloitte Digital discussing the future of customer data. He explained why brands need to make the move from Data ManagementPlatforms (DMP), which were previously popular but dependent on third-party data and thus increasingly less viable. He recommended that brands move to a CDP, which maximises first-party data, and explained how clean-room technology is vital to making that move happen.
Strategies and Tactics Reshaping Customer Engagement
Some of the sessions asked, what does it take to put together a data foundation that can turn customer data into business value? Patagonia Manager, Customer Insights and Analytics, Dan Sundaram, shares, “[With Amperity] we can illuminate touchpoints across the brand that we’ve never been able to see or understand. And that lets us talk to people in a much more relevant, less intrusive way, which in a world of personalisation is the key to valuable customer relationships.”
Databricks also joined Amperity on the stage to discuss the concept of a ‘composable’ CDP, which involves solving CDP-related challenges using individual point solutions, also known as a modern data stack. One of the takeaways was that the point solutions within a composable CDP do not create unified customer profiles — which is itself a highly specialised technical problem that needs to be solved to make the other points work more effectively. (And, incidentally, is the problem Amperity was built to solve.)
The Future of Data-Driven Marketing is ‘Electric’
We’re on the cusp of a remarkable transformation in the realm of customer data. The Amplify Summit offered a glimpse into the future where the power of unified, reliable data is harnessed to drive unprecedented levels of innovation, engagement and growth. The future of data-driven marketing is here — and the possibilities are “electrifying”.
About the author
Matthew Biboud Lubeck, Vice President EMEA, Amperity
Matthew is the vice president of EMEA where he is responsible for the commercial expansion of Amperity, a leading customer data platform trusted by brands like Reckitt, Under Armour and Wyndham Hotels & Resorts. Lubeck joined Amperity in 2017 to help launch the company and has served in a number of key roles building sales, customer success, and marketing functions. Matthew established Amperity’s LGBTQ employee resource group (ERG) and is a trusted advisor and customer-centricity change agent to the C-suite across leading consumer brands.
Prior to Amperity, Lubeck spent 10 years with global beauty conglomerates Estee Lauder Group and L’Oréal as Group Head of Customer Data Strategy and Analytics, leading 30 brands across luxury, mass and salon professional divisions to better use data & unlock incredible beauty experiences, establishing L’Oreal as an industry leader. He resides in London with his husband and four-year-old daughter.
About Amperity
Amperity delivers the data confidence brands need to unlock growth by truly knowing their customers. With Amperity, brands can build a first-party data foundation to fuel customer acquisition and retention, personalise experiences that build loyalty, and manage privacy compliance. Using patented AI and ML methods, Amperity stitches together all customer interactions to build a unified view that seamlessly connects to marketing and technology tools. More than 400 brands worldwide rely on Amperity to turn data into business value, including Alaska Airlines, DICK’S Sporting Goods, Endeavour Drinks, Planet Fitness, Seattle Sounders FC, Under Armour and Wyndham Hotels & Resorts. For more information, visit amperity.com or follow us on Linkedin, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Written by Matthew Biboud Lubeck, Vice President EMEA, Amperity
Research demonstrates that only 3 per cent of consumers feel in control of their data online. Yet trust is crucial to driving customer loyalty and growth. In fact, 43 per cent of people say they’d switch from their preferred brand to a second-choice brand if the latter provided a good privacy experience.
From the strategic adoption of zero-copy data practices to the intersection of customer experience aspirations with data management realities and the ever-evolving landscape of AI ethics and regulations, the year ahead promises to reshape how we approach these critical facets. Let’s dive into the practical implications and emerging trends that will redefine marketing strategies, offering valuable insights into the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.
1. Zero Copy Data: Data Should Live in Fewer Places
The paid media and advertising landscape is poised for a transformative shift, driven by a recognition of the limitations in current practices. A key trend emerging in the coming year is the adoption of a zero-copy data philosophy. This approach signifies a strategic move towards centralising customer information and minimising data duplication across platforms.
Marketers will strategically embrace data minimisation in response to challenges posed by privacy regulations and consumer dissatisfaction with intrusive tracking. The industry will shift away from scattered and duplicated data sources, opting for a zero-copy data philosophy that prioritises efficient and non-redundant data access.
This transformation will extend to a comprehensive revamping of the data ecosystem, with a focus on aligning practices with the zero-copy data philosophy. Advertisers and data management platforms will reassess bidding language and communication protocols to ensure privacy and prevent data leakage.
Identity resolution will become a central focus, with advertisers seeking accurate and comprehensive first-party data to build unified customer profiles. This shift aims to address challenges arising from data deprecation and ensure a more reliable and consistent approach to customer identity.
In adopting these strategies, businesses can anticipate improved conversion rates, increased return on ad spend and reduced timelines, costs and risks associated with data management. Next year ushers in a paradigm shift towards zero-copy data practices, where businesses prioritise streamlined, non-redundant data access to enhance customer experiences and align with evolving regulatory and consumer expectations.
2. The Reality of the Personalisation Dream
In the coming year, we anticipate a growing realisation among brands that the aspiration for a seamless and personalised customer experience must be closely tied to effective data management and identity capabilities. While many brands may continue to showcase their “personality dream” through impressive customer journeys, we predict an increasing awareness that the actualisation of this dream hinges on addressing underlying data challenges.
Organisations will recognise the imperative to break down silos that separate data management, identity verification and customer experience teams. They will actively work towards integrating these components, acknowledging that a cohesive approach is vital for delivering the level of personalisation and efficiency customers expect. As a result, brands will invest more in modernising their data infrastructure, linking systems and training teams to utilise data accurately.
The shift will be from presenting an idealised version of customer journeys to actively resolving the practical challenges in data management and identity verification that often impede the achievement of a truly seamless customer experience. The coming year requires a transformation in mindset, recognising that the success of the “personality dream” is contingent upon addressing the intricacies of data, identity and customer interactions in a more integrated and strategic manner.
3. Embrace the AI Advantage (but don’t completely let go of the steering wheel)
In 2024, marketers must push the boundaries of AI adoption to improve the customer experience – scaling hyper-personalisation by integrating AI across ecosystems. Yet, many marketers continue to face a fundamental problem: How do they deliver a personalised experience to millions of customers? And how do we explain the role of AI to consumers so transparency is maintained, especially in the context of the new European Artificial Intelligence Act (if you follow me on LinkedIn, you’ll know I VERY much support any legislation that improves digital accountability and ethical behaviours)?
AI will play a significant role in enabling hyper-personalisation by leveraging data analysis, predictive algorithms and machine learning to tailor experiences, offers and messaging to individual preferences and behaviours with efficiency and speed.
However, marketers need to know what questions to ask to reap the full benefits of AI. Therefore, “prompt engineering” will become a critical skill. This refers to deliberately crafting prompts or input queries to elicit specific responses or behaviours from AI models. Marketers should understand the capabilities and limitations of the AI model, and then tailor prompts to achieve their desired outcomes.
Of course, this can only be done effectively with accurate data. If the data feeding the AI is dirty or incomplete, marketers run the risk of receiving inaccurate insights that can impact their strategies and outcomes. By using AI’s predictive capabilities fed with accurate data, marketers can improve the customer experience and help brands collect and retain customers.
In this new landscape, marketers must also evolve their roles to become AI governors. This will allow them to become creative about applying AI throughout the marketing process while retaining checks and balances to remain accountable for AI-powered experiences. If done correctly, AI can help add significant speed, ease and improved performance across campaign and audience strategies. I predict we will increasingly lighten human intervention across more of these workflows, but not in the first few years of experimentation.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Matthew Biboud Lubeck, Vice President EMEA, Amperity
Matthew is the vice president of EMEA where he is responsible for the commercial expansion of Amperity, a leading customer data platform trusted by brands like Reckitt, Under Armour and Wyndham Hotels & Resorts. Lubeck joined Amperity in 2017 to help launch the company and has served in a number of key roles building sales, customer success, and marketing functions. Matthew established Amperity’s LGBTQ employee resource group (ERG) and is a trusted advisor and customer-centricity change agent to the C-suite across leading consumer brands.
Prior to Amperity, Lubeck spent 10 years with global beauty conglomerates Estee Lauder Group and L’Oréal as Group Head of Customer Data Strategy and Analytics, leading 30 brands across luxury, mass and salon professional divisions to better use data & unlock incredible beauty experiences, establishing L’Oreal as an industry leader. He resides in London with his husband and four-year-old daughter.
ABOUT AMPERITY
Amperity delivers the data confidence brands need to unlock growth by truly knowing their customers. With Amperity, brands can build a first-party data foundation to fuel customer acquisition and retention, personalise experiences that build loyalty, and manage privacy compliance. Using patented AI and ML methods, Amperity stitches together all customer interactions to build a unified view that seamlessly connects to marketing and technology tools. More than 400 brands worldwide rely on Amperity to turn data into business value, including Alaska Airlines, DICK’S Sporting Goods, Endeavour Drinks, Planet Fitness, Seattle Sounders FC, Under Armour and Wyndham Hotels & Resorts.
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