In a speech held in 2012, Neelie Kroes, vice president of the European Commission and responsible for the Digital Agenda, referred to data as ‘the new oil’. Kroes was not the first to coin the phrase: Clive Humby, founder of UK–based customer insights company Dunhumby was, arguably, the first when he mentioned the analogy six years earlier. His interpretation of data as oil focused on the idea that data needs to be ‘drilled down’ and ‘refined’, after which it becomes valuable and can ‘power decision making’. Neelie Kroes was one of the first people to refer to data as ‘the new oil’ from the perspective of an entire economy. Oil changed our world and economy by driving the development of the internal combustion engine, central heating and plastics. Oil, as a technology, fueled an economic force that inexorably changed the way people lived and worked.
Today, data is fueling a very similar change. It impacts not just high-tech, high-profile companies, but also old-school, low-tech industries all around the world. This book will show you how data is changing the traditional business paradigm, becoming the dominant factor in how products generate added value. The clear distinction between data as a byproduct of a production process or as the raw material of a new product is fading. Data is increasingly becoming the core value of a product, up to the point where it is not always clear whether the product is valued for its intrinsic features or for its ability to process or generate data.
The New Oil clearly shows that companies in many industries are shifting towards a data-driven strategy: electronics manufacturers are changing focus from hardware to customer platforms, utilities are shifting from energy production to leveraging data from smart meters, and banks are moving from providing transaction services to analyzing spending patterns. Throughout the book, many examples highlight the potential for Data Driven Strategy.
The New Oil is split into three parts. The first part shows how societal and technological changes have turned businesses and individuals into new data consumers and data into a valuable asset. The second part shows how various business models allow organizations to best leverage the value that data creates in these new markets. The third part explains how successful companies put these business models to practice and combine new data driven ventures with their existing business.
Neelie Kroes’ view on the potential of data is one of opportunity, inspiration and drive. That is exactly what this book is about. It outlines the opportunity of data for your organization; it aims to inspire you to find your specific opportunities and to drive your creativity to innovate and find new markets and customers.
