book

Data Strategy, 3rd Edition

Name: Data Strategy, 3rd Edition
Author: Bernard Marr
ISBN: 9781398619609

by Bernard Marr

September 2025

Intermediate to advanced

296 pages

8h 17m

English

Kogan Page

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Cover
Endorsements
Titlepage
Contents
About the author
Acknowledgements
01 Introduction – Why every business is now a data business
The astonishing growth of data and artificial intelligence – and why it mattersData is driving the post-pandemic digital transformationWe can’t talk about data without talking about artificial intelligenceA whistlestop tour of other world-changing technologiesThe environmental imperative: minimizing the climate impactPrivacy and ethics in the age of AIThe new data-driven workforceWhy every business must become a data businessRecommended readingNotes
02 Use cases for data
The key six use casesCreating value through generative AIUse cases in practiceNotes
03 Using data to improve your decision making
Setting out your key business questionsDecision augmentation vs decision automationUnderstanding and interpreting your data: the smart buffet approachThe democratization of data and what this means for your businessData visualization and storytellingA final word on data literacyNotes
04 Using data to understand your customers
Understanding customer analyticsTypes of customer dataFirst-party data, zero-party data and the privacy-conscious eraThe role of AI in understanding your customersThe importance of real-time customer analyticsIt’s all about building personal connections with customersNotes

05 Using data to create more intelligent services
Tech services have led the waySmart services in banking, finance and insuranceSmart services in healthcareSmart services in fashion and retailSmart education, training and lifelong learningRobots as a serviceAI itself as a serviceEvery company is now a tech companyNotes
06 Using data to create more intelligent products
The overlap between physical products, virtual products and servicesSmartphones are getting brainierSmarter cars and other forms of mobilityIntelligent home productsIntelligent healthcare productsIntelligent sports productsIntelligent business, industry and manufacturing productsNotes
07 Using data to improve your business operations
Generative AI and agentic AI will transform how businesses operateImproving day-to-day processes with digital twinsImproving sales, marketing and customer serviceEnhancing distribution, warehousing and logisticsData and AI in product developmentImproving manufacturing and productionData-driven IT operationsIntelligent human resourcesData-driven financeInspiring examples of data- and AI-enhanced operationsNotes
08 Increasing the value of your organization through data and AI
Why data and AI are now key business assetsMonetizing your data: the rise of data marketplaces and data exchangesModern, ‘data-as-a-product’ approaches to monetizationThe evolving privacy regulatory landscapePricing considerationsThe rise of user-generated data
09 Defining your data use cases
Identifying use cases for your businessHow does the use case link to a strategic goal?What are the objective and key business questions?How will you measure the success of the use case?Who will be the use case owner?Who will be the data customers?What data do we need?What are the ethical considerations and data governance issues?How do we analyse the data and turn it into insights?What are the technology requirements?What skills and capabilities do we need?What issues around implementation and change management do we need to be aware of?Prioritizing your use cases and using them to build a data strategy
10 Sourcing and collecting data
What type of data is best?Collecting data: a quick introductionUnderstanding the different types of dataTaking a look at newer types of dataGathering your internal dataSourcing external dataAssessing the quality of dataWhen the data you want doesn’t exist: data collection methods and technologiesGenerating synthetic dataA final word on data privacyNotes
11 Ethics, data governance, trust and cybersecurity
Broader societal and ethical issues around AIThe environmental impactBias in data and AI modelsTrust and transparencyStaying on the right side of the lawAI safety and risk managementCyber threats: keeping your data and AI models safePulling it all together: how to create an ethical AI and data governance frameworkNotes
12 Turning data into insights
The impact of large language models and natural language analytics on business insightsThe broader role of machine learning in analyticsThe rise of real-time analytics, edge computing and automated decision intelligenceModern analytics platforms and toolsThe future of analytics platforms
13 Creating a technology and data infrastructure
Data, analytics and AI as-a-serviceCollecting dataStoring dataAnalysing and processing dataData communication: turning insights into actionBuilding sustainable data practices
14 Building data competencies in your organization
The data skills shortage and what it means for your businessBuilding internal data skillsTapping into external data and analytics skillsRaising data literacy across the organizationDon’t forget about human skillsNotes
15 Executing and revisiting your data strategy
Putting data strategy into practiceWhy data strategies failCulture is keyRevisiting your data strategyNote
16 Looking ahead
Cutting-edge technology and where it’s headingThe true value of AI: AI for a better tomorrowWhere will it all end?Choose AI for goodConnect with meNotes
Appendix 1 Data Use Case Template
Appendix 2 Data Strategy Template
Index
Copyright

Content preview from Data Strategy, 3rd Edition

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Bernard Marr is a world-renowned futurist, influencer and thought leader in the fields of business and technology, with a passion for using technology for the good of humanity. He is a multi-award-winning and internationally best-selling author of over 20 books, writes a regular column for Forbes and advises and works with many of the world’s best-known organizations. Bernard has a combined subscriber base of 5 million people across his social media channels and newsletters and was ranked by LinkedIn as one of the top five business influencers in the world.

Bernard helps organizations and their management teams prepare for future trends and create the strategies to succeed. He has worked with or advised many of the world’s best-known ...

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Data Strategy, 3rd Edition

by Bernard Marr

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Become an O’Reilly member and get unlimited access to this title plus top books and audiobooks from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers, thousands of courses curated by job role, 150+ live events each month,
and much more.