The Disney Data Analytics Conference is back, and we were excited to participate this month. The world – and data analytics – have changed a lot since the last DDAC back in 2019. What were the big takeaways from this year’s conference? We identified five.

Secure data sharing is a business priority

For more and more organizations, gathering, analyzing, and acting on internal data isn’t enough. For critical insights, sharing data across business units and with other companies has become essential. For example, to create the right content for the right audiences and maximize revenue, media companies need to be able to share data with advertising firms, the various platforms that distribute their content, and more. DAS42’s own Jeff Springer and Chase Springer gave a presentation at DDAC demonstrating the how-to’s of secure data sharing that’s become vital for business success.

Building a data-driven organization is a must

Helping companies become true data-driven organizations has always been at the core of what we do and our FullStack philosophy. Everything we heard at DDAC underscored just how important that’s become – more and more, companies that aren’t data driven aren’t competitive. Building a data-driven company means acting on a holistic view of how you gather and act on data: implementing a modern data platform, creating a single source of data truth, making data accessible in real time to everyone who needs it, and creating a data culture that sparks insights and drives decisions.

Data isn’t just about the numbers – it’s about the story

Data today is much more than a bunch of numbers measuring business performance. Data paints a picture of an organization – how it’s doing, what it’s doing, its opportunities and challenges, where it could and should go. To make sure that picture is as clear and vivid as possible, take advantage of the great business intelligence and data visualization tools and technology out there. Use data to tell your company’s story, to employees, customers, partners and stakeholders, and more.

Data mesh could be the next big thing

The data analytics industry is still wrapping its collective head around the data mesh concept and what it means for the future, but DDAC highlighted an emerging consensus that data mesh isn’t just a passing fad. At its basic core, the idea behind data mesh is to directly connect data owners, producers, and consumers using a distributed architecture for data management. Our colleagues at Snowflake offered an enlightening presentation showing how their data cloud platform can enable data mesh implementation, decentralizing data management to improve agility and remove organizational bottlenecks.

Find joy in your data!

One theme that ran through all of DDAC this year was the idea of virtually limitless possibilities. New technologies, new approaches, and new ways of looking at all things data have empowered organizations and individuals like never before. So explore, learn, create new applications, identify new opportunities, and find joy in data!