Data Analyst and Business Intelligence professional Ganiyat Olajumoke Abe has said that many Nigerian businesses are failing to unlock the value in the vast amounts of data they collect, warning that the problem lies not in data availability but in poor utilisation.

Abe, who has worked across telecoms, consulting and education sectors, said organisations across the country are “sitting on goldmines of data and walking away empty-handed,” as critical insights remain unused long after data has been gathered.

She recalled an encounter with a commercial director at a startup company who lamented a sharp drop in subscribers but could not point to any analysis guiding corrective action. According to her, churn data had been printed and stacked in folders, untouched for weeks.

“We collect everything,” the executive told her, proudly pointing to the spreadsheets.

Abe noted that similar situations play out daily in boardrooms and back offices across Nigeria, from fintech startups in Lagos to manufacturing firms in other parts of the country. While businesses have embraced data collection with enthusiasm, she said many stop short of turning information into actionable strategy.

According to the analyst, a common misconception in Nigerian business culture is the belief that having data automatically confers a competitive advantage. She stressed that unprocessed data only adds to operational costs when it is not analysed or interpreted.

“Raw data, unanalysed and uninterpreted, is not an asset — it is a storage cost. The advantage lies in what you extract from it and how quickly you can act,” she said.

Abe observed that many organisations invest heavily in customer relationship management and enterprise systems that generate large volumes of data, yet struggle to link that data to concrete business decisions. In many cases, reports are produced, presented and archived without influencing strategy.

She further explained that analytics in most Nigerian companies is treated as a reporting function rather than a decision-making tool. Analysts are often tasked with compiling weekly or monthly summaries that rarely result in measurable changes, while key decisions are made based on intuition.

“Data should inform decisions before they are made, not be used to justify them after the fact,” she said.

Abe added that companies which embed analytics into their operations and use live dashboards rather than static reports tend to make faster and more informed decisions, particularly in areas such as customer retention and product planning.

She also drew attention to the shortage of skilled professionals who can translate data into business language, noting that when budgets are cut, data teams are often among the first affected.

“A business intelligence tool without a skilled analyst is like a surgical theatre without a surgeon. The equipment is impressive, but nothing useful happens,” she said.

Despite these challenges, Abe expressed optimism that Nigerian businesses can close the gap, pointing to growing access to affordable analytics tools and an expanding pool of talent. She urged organisations to clearly define the questions they want their data to answer, integrate analytics into commercial and operational planning, and invest in training and retaining skilled analysts.

She concluded that the businesses likely to drive Nigeria’s next phase of economic growth are not necessarily those with the largest datasets, but those willing to question assumptions and act decisively on insights.

“The businesses that will define the next decade are not those with the biggest datasets — they are the ones that know what questions to ask,” Abe said.