Muhi Majzoub, Executive Vice President and Chief Product Officer, OpenText.

As technology leaders, we understand that data is the beating heart of every business, not just a resource. It's the secret sauce that can supercharge the entire operational landscape. When harnessed strategically, data becomes the force that propels a business far beyond its rivals, creating a league of its own.

However, we are guilty of underappreciating the fragility of data. And then artificial intelligence (AI) waltzed in and complicated matters further.

As the exponential growth of AI adoption unfolds, the profound impact of inadequate information management across all facets of the business ecosystem becomes increasingly apparent.

One such concern is the creation of "data silos"-information held in different departments on different systems that either don't-or can't-communicate with each other. This directly impacts AI, with the saying "garbage in, garbage out" particularly relevant here.

The result is duplicated, outdated or inaccurate data-data that cannot be relied upon nor trusted, costing significant time and money to rectify. Gartner suggests poor data quality costs organizations an average of $12.9 million annually.

We know that a robust data strategy is imperative to prepare any business for AI. However, without unlocking data silos, achieving this is virtually impossible, resulting in a missed opportunity for the competitive advantages that accompany AI integration.

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