We’ll cut to the chase with this one: if you rely on Excel to ingest your data, you’re missing a trick.
But don't worry, you're not alone. Too many organizations rely upon manual processes that could be automated. We believe it's a missed opportunity; we like to see businesses focus on adding value, not tirelessly laboring over data.
So, with that in mind, here are a few good reasons why moving away from manual Excel data processing makes sense:
Manual data preparation and ingestion can constitute up to 80 percent of a data analytics project.
But it's not just time-consuming. Manual data ingestion can also create further costs, both in regards to budget and time-to-value. After all, when a task takes three times longer to do without technology, you delay its innovative and financial benefits.
What's more, if you rely on certain individuals with the right skill sets to repeatedly ingest data, you're restricted as to when you can ingest data. This issue only worsens if the person leaves your business or falls ill. Of course, this can be disruptive and annoying for your clients as well as your team.
Automate your data ingest with CloverDXUnsurprisingly, human-led processes aren't always perfect. Manual data extraction, transformation and loading often results in misspellings, duplications, and outliers.
Ultimately, these inaccuracies will affect your data quality and data integration efforts down the line. This hinders your innovation efforts and makes it harder to get the insights you need.
Manual data ingestion is only as fast as the person ingesting the data.
This means it's difficult to repeatedly implement or scale your data ingestion processes. This is because you're too reliant on individual capabilities rather than standardized processes that can process data at scale.
Realistically, your organization won't be able to scale your data ingestion efforts without an automated tool.
When sensitive data is left sitting around in Excel spreadsheets without any standardized data governance process, you risk breaching data regulations and compromising your data security.
If you do happen to meet regulatory requirements, this may once again live solely within an individual's skill set rather than in a company-wide policy. And, if that person is ill or leaves the company, you could open yourself up to further vulnerabilities.
However, when you choose an automated solution, you can build the right data governance rules into your data processes. Then, everything runs like clockwork and you dramatically de-risk your data operations.
While Excel has its merits, it's clearly not a long-term data ingest solution.
When your data ingestion is entirely manual, you risk compromising your data security, innovation and quality. This can be an issue not only for your business processes but also for your clients and their onboarding process too.
In 2020, it's time to finally embrace a more modern approach.
Using an automated tool will speed up your data ingestion processes and allow you to manage even the most complex of data tasks. All the while, you'll save time for your developers and clients. You'll also ensure your data quality is always at a high standard. What's not to love?
If you'd like to learn more about how automated data ingestion could help your organization, watch our webinar on Data Ingest for Faster Data Onboarding: