Four years of data-driven business development – how far have we come?
For three years, Business Finland’s Data Economy Program and VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland have conducted a survey on the data maturity in business development among Finnish companies. In total, the survey has been carried out over four years.
In the data utilization survey, we have examined the data maturity of Finnish companies of different sizes from the perspectives of personnel, strategy, business monitoring, data sharing, and the new business ideas.
Personnel, strategy and business monitoring – positive development
Overall, when comparing the results of the 2026 survey with those from previous years, positive development can be seen across companies of all sizes, particularly in relation to personnel, strategy, and business monitoring.
Today, more than one quarter of companies have personnel, such as a Chief Data Officer (CDO), working directly with data development, whereas in previous years the results have hovered around 20%. Positive development can also be seen in strategy: nearly 60% of respondents have a data strategy in their company. In previous years, the figures were below 40%, so relative growth has been significant.
Companies are widely using data to monitor their business, and almost 70% of respondent companies do so with both tracking and forecasting tools. In addition, around 20% of respondents use at least one of these methods – either tracking or forecasting – as a monitoring approach. This indicator has varied over the years, but the level has consistently remained relatively high. The 2026 survey also sought to understand what kinds of measures related to data utilization companies are planning. Companies are focusing most on using AI technology in data collection, refinement, and validation. Digital twins and business efficiency also emerged as key themes.
60% of respondents have a data strategy in their company.
Although the 2026 responses may not represent development with scientific precision, a positive direction can also be seen in other themes: data sharing, data utilization, benefits derived from data, and the identification of new innovations. The result levels for these themes have grown steadily up to 2025, and there are no radical changes in 2026 either.
Differences in data utilization between company sizes – one company size stands out
When the results for different company sizes are compared between 2026 and previous years, the use of data strategies has increased the most in relative terms across all company size categories compared with other data maturity themes. Based on all the survey themes, the most advanced group of companies is small companies. At a general level, business development among large companies has remained consistently high over the four-year period, which may be explained by their capability to use more budget for development. On the other hand, the particularly strong growth among small companies shows that they can change direction quickly as the operating environment evolves.
As a conclusion, it can be stated that the shift towards data-driven business has developed positively over the years. However, growth in certain themes has been somewhat slower and still requires further development.
When assessing the survey results, it should be noted that the number of respondents has been limited over the years. In addition, the most recent survey received fewer responses than in other years, so the results should be considered indicative.
Business Finland’s support for your company’s growth story
The development steps identified through the survey are also directly reflected in Business Finland’s Data Economy Program. Overall, it seems that Finnish companies have more broadly understood that utilizing the right kind of data benefits business and provides a stronger foundation for future planning and growth. During the program period in 2023–2026, we have, for example, provided more than EUR 100 million in funding for various company and organizational projects and introduced different data economy innovations together with our partners.
Business Finland’s new strategy will next move towards renewing program-based activities. Through the strategy, we have selected different thematic areas where we aim to support growth from customer-oriented and impact-driven perspectives. As a part of these strategic changes, we will conclude the Data Economy Program in June 2026. This also brings this survey series to an end.
We warmly encourage our customers to continue innovating in the field of the data economy! Business Finland will continue to fund interesting new innovations across different themes, including the data economy.