The research, which included asset owners, asset managers, alternatives managers, wealth managers and insurers, forms the backbone of a new report, “Capturing the data opportunity: Institutional investors in the age of AI^*.” We found that more than 80 percent of respondents expect sizeable opportunities to emerge from enhanced data management and usage, yet only about four in 10 (41 percent) claim to have made substantial headway in their data transformation journeys. An equally low proportion rate their interoperability across the front, middle and back office as “good” or “very strong.”

Of course, investors have long relied on data analysis to inform their decisions, but advancements in AI, and in particular the advent of generative AI, have opened up previously unimagined possibilities. Unprecedented data access and new levels of analysis provide advanced support for investment decisions, detecting risks earlier and customizing sales and marketing initiatives.

As advances in AI open a new frontier, it's time these businesses grasp the advantages that technology has to offer. In this paper, we explore five ways in which back-office teams, spearheaded by the chief operating officer, can lay the groundwork for their business to win the data race.