Precisely, a global leader in data integrity, has released a new study conducted in collaboration with the Center for Applied AI and Business Analytics at Drexel University’s LeBow College of Business (Drexel LeBow). The findings from the 2025 Outlook: Data Integrity Trends and Insights report shed light on the major challenges that businesses encounter in their pursuit of AI readiness and other data-related initiatives. The report also underscores the importance of prioritising investments in data integrity to overcome these obstacles.
AI Success Hampered by Insufficient Data Readiness
The report reveals that while 60% of organisations regard AI as a significant factor influencing their data programs—a 46% increase from 2023—only 12% believe their data quality and accessibility are adequate for effective AI implementation. This chronic issue of poor-quality data has fostered a pervasive distrust in the analytics and AI datasets used by companies. Notably, while 76% of organisations express that data-driven decision-making is a primary goal for their data programmes, 67% admit they do not fully trust the data informing these decisions, an increase from 55% in 2023.
A lack of data governance stands out as the main challenge hindering AI initiatives, identified by 62% of organisations. This challenge arises from the critical role that data governance plays in managing data usage—encompassing storage locations, data lineage, access controls, and the presence of personally identifiable information (PII).
Skills Shortage Continues to Obstruct AI Adoption
As more organisations prioritise data-driven decision-making, the skills and resources gap in data management, analytics, and AI has widened this year. Forty-two percent (42%) of respondents identified the scarcity of necessary skills and resources as one of the biggest challenges facing their data programs, up from 37% in 2023.
While organisations are eager to harness AI’s potential, a shortage of talent hampers integration efforts, remarked Murugan Anandarajan, PhD, Professor and Academic Director at the Center for Applied AI and Our research shows that 60% of respondents identify a shortage of AI skills and training as a major obstacle to initiating AI initiatives, underscoring the importance for business leaders to focus on upskilling.
Data Quality Emerges as the Top Integrity Challenge
In light of the findings related to AI, it comes as no surprise that data quality remains a primary concern for organisations globally. This year, 64% of respondents identified data quality as their foremost data integrity challenge, rising from 50% in 2023. Moreover, views on data quality have declined, as 77% of respondents now classify their data quality as average or below, an increase from 66% the previous year.
The primary obstacle to attaining high-quality data is the absence of sufficient tools for automating data quality processes, reported by 49% of respondents. Other key concerns include inconsistent data definitions and formats (45%) and data volume challenges (43%).
Increased Adoption of Data Governance Programs
To address the challenges of data trust, quality, and AI success, organisations are increasingly recognising the significance of robust data governance programs. This year, 51% of organisations identified data governance as a top challenge to data integrity, second only to data quality, reflecting a dramatic 89% increase from the previous year (up from 27% in 2023). Concurrently, the adoption of data governance programs has risen, with 71% reporting they have implemented such programs, up from 60% in 2023.
This increased investment is yielding tangible benefits. Organisations that have invested in data governance report improvements in data quality (58%), enhanced quality of data analytics and insights (58%), increased collaboration (57%), greater regulatory compliance (50%), and faster access to relevant data (36%).
Data Enrichment and Location Intelligence Take Centre Stage
The 2023 report predicted the emergence of data enrichment and spatial analytics as essential business technologies, and this year’s report highlights significant progress in their adoption. In 2024, 28% of organisations identified data enrichment as a priority for data integrity, up from 23% in 2023. Businesses are increasingly focused on extracting maximum context from their data to drive innovation, operational efficiencies, and competitive advantages. Similarly, 21% of organisations highlighted spatial analytics as a priority for data integrity initiatives, a significant increase from 13% the previous year.
Josh Rogers, CEO at Precisely, stated, “Our joint research with Drexel LeBow reveals a marked decline in organisations’ confidence in their data readiness despite the growing importance of data-driven decision-making. To fully leverage the benefits of analytics and AI, organisations must invest in data integrity. Establishing a foundation of accurate, consistent, and contextual data will enable informed decision-making and unlock the true value of AI initiatives.”
