Why Enterprises Aren't Set Up to Utilize Their Voice Data

Richard Stevenson

Richard Stevenson is the CEO of Red Box.

As data center footprints grow, it is more important than ever that enterprises are fully utilizing the data they collect. One oft-overlooked area in which data is mismanaged is voice. Organizations are collecting vast amounts of voice data, and yet research shows that the majority of that data is inaccessible, with more than half (51 percent) of captured data being locked away and inaccessible.

This matters because voice is a critical data set for data-driven businesses. Enterprises that collect voice data but do not tap into these insights are missing out on information that can provide real organizational intelligence and drive valuable business outcomes.

Furthermore, only 8 percent of CIOs and IT decision makers claim the voice data their organizations capture is easily accessible for use in AI engines and for analytical analysis. This is another unfortunate oversight as transcription is now sophisticated enough to allow voice data to be accessed without having to listen to each captured conversation individually. An organization’s ability to harness analytics is only as insightful and powerful as the data that fuels it. With 9 percent of organizations capturing voice data and doing little to make use of it, data centers are holding valuable information that may never be acted upon. This is a significant missed opportunity, as many businesses work to analyze organizational efficiencies, yet overlook this minefield of voice data that is sitting, untapped, in their data centers.

Why are so many businesses not fully analyzing voice data? Oftentimes, that voice data is inaccessible because it is not collected in one place. It is tangled in a mix of on-premise and in-cloud systems which are often disconnected from the stakeholders that can properly utilize that data. Moreover, most organizations are not making a conscious effort to collect conversations from across the entire business; our research has shown that only half of those surveyed say their organizations are capturing all conversations. Whether it is customer service calls or employee engagement, a huge chunk of voice data is uncollected. Even when it is collected, the research shows that it is unstudied. 

How can enterprises ensure that all of the voice data they house is being properly utilized? First, they should consider investing in vendors with an open API approach that gives enterprises flexibility when accessing their data. That way, enterprises can feed voice data into the tools and applications of their choice without tying them to one provider. This could include a wide range of tools - including CRM, compliance, business intelligence, AI and analytics, or even custom-built applications.

The IT infrastructure of any organization should be looked at critically to ensure it is working as efficiently as possible. For data-driven organizations, it is imperative they take a close look at how they are storing, using, and not using voice data. With 92 percent of surveyed organizations failing to take full advantage of the voice data they capture, this is a task that nearly all enterprises should undertake.

Data is a valuable resource for any forward-thinking organization, as anyone who’s read about big data in the last few years knows. Proper data management should include more than just storing it in a data center, but also accessing and analyzing that data to gain deeper insights that can affect real business change, such as delivering an increase in productivity or customer engagement. As our data shows, this is a race to see who can make the most of their voice data and obtain true competitive advantage.

Opinions expressed in the article above do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Data Center Knowledge and Informa.

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