Gartner Data & Analytics Summit 2024 Sydney: Day 2 Highlights

We are bringing you news and highlights from the Gartner Data & Analytics Summit 2024, taking place this week in Sydney, Australia. Below is a collection of the key announcements and insights coming out of the conference. You can read the highlights from Day 1 here.

On Day 2 from the conference, we are highlighting sessions on the top data and analytics predictions for this year; 10 best practices for scaling generative AI; and how to develop skills for data, analytics and AI.

• Gartner Predicts 30% of Generative AI Projects Will Be Abandoned After Proof of Concept By End of 2025
• Day 1 Conference Highlights

Presented by Rita Sallam, Distinguished VP Analyst, Gartner

Data and analytics (D&A) leaders must step up to make D&A and AI strategic to the business this year. In this session, Rita Sallam, Distinguished VP Analyst at Gartner, revealed Gartner’s top D&A predictions for 2024. She outlined how D&A leaders can plan for the impact of AI on all aspects of D&A, including leadership, governance, talent, market and the need for AI-ready data for value realization.

• “More than 50% of enterprises that have built their own large language models (LLMs) from scratch will abandon their efforts due to costs, complexity and technical debt by 2028.”
• “75% of new analytics content will be contextualized for intelligent applications through GenAI by 2027, enabling a composable connection between insights and actions.”
• “GenAI enhanced cost optimization will automate 40% of data and analytics spending in cloud-based data ecosystems by 2027.”
• “Use of natural language as a primary data management application programming interface (API) will be the dominant interface by 2025, leading to a 100x consumption of data across the ecosystem.”
• “60% of organizations will fail to realize the anticipated value of their AI use cases by 2027 due to incohesive ethical governance frameworks.”

Presented by Arun Chandrasekaran, Distinguished VP Analyst, Gartner

Generative AI (GenAI) promises to be one of the most transformative technology trends of this decade. In this session, Arun Chandrasekaran, Distinguished VP Analyst at Gartner, discussed the current state of Generative AI and emerging best practices for safely deploying it in an enterprise.

• “Through 2025, at least 30% of GenAI projects will be abandoned after proof of concept due to poor data quality, inadequate risk controls, escalating costs or unclear business value.”
• “GenAI initiatives need to scale from a few users to thousands, and eventually be deployed across the enterprise. Scaling GenAI requires a systematic approach to build versus buy decisions for the many potential use cases in the organization.”
• “GenAI creates not only new opportunities, but also risks. Without a clear responsible AI framework, organizations will struggle to balance the benefits and risks of this technology.”
• “Unlike traditional AI, GenAI is poised for active and direct use by a large segment of employees. This broad deployment requires a strong emphasis on AI literacy: the ability to use AI in context with competency to identify relevant use cases”
• “A product-centric delivery model, where timelines are ongoing and designed to continuously enhance customer value until the service or product is phased out, is critical for GenAI applications.”

Presented by Jorg Heizenberg, VP Analyst, Gartner

Being successful with data & analytics (D&A) is not as much about tools and technologies as it is about people. In this session, Jorg Heizenberg, VP Analyst at Gartner, discussed the must-have roles for D&A teams, as well as how to build and develop the right skills and competencies.

• “All D&A roles are a combination of IT skills, data and analytics skills, business or domain expertise; and soft skills such as communication or empathy.”
  
• “It’s key to rethink the definition of ‘qualified’ talent. Reduce or even eliminate arbitrary requirements around education, location or experience, to capture talent that might otherwise be screened out.”
• “Reskill and upskill existing employees not just on IT skills, but also D&A and interpersonal skills. Work with external service providers or platform vendors.”
• “Get D&A talent from outside the organization by applying nonconventional approaches, such as hiring atypical employees. Hire for potential rather than experience or IT skills, and make sure you have the right roles to support the business.”
• “Retain D&A talent by creating more balance in the team via diversity of people, roles and development paths. But most of all, by developing a D&A skills development strategy in a systematic approach together with the HR department.”

Learn more in the Gartner expert Q&A “AI Is Creating New Roles and Skills in Data & Analytics.”