Data Utilisation and Data Sharing: The Potential and the Reality in German Companies

Data sharing enables broad access to digital information so that firms can combine data from various sources and exploit it for different purposes. The recent development of the data economy in Germany can be traced by means of three surveys carried out between 2021 and 2023, each involving more than 1,000 manufacturing companies and providers of manufacturing-related services. These show that only a fairly constant proportion of one in three companies in Germany is able to manage data efficiently. The enterprises surveyed have made considerable progress in terms of storing their data and around half of them process it in a structured manner. However, many of them fail to utilise their data in any way or make only one-dimensional use of it. This leaves a great deal of untapped potential, as in most cases corporate data only constitutes added value when it is widely and diversely exploited. When it comes to data sharing, four out of ten companies receive digital information from other firms and two out of ten provide data themselves, while roughly equal numbers of enterprises share data with high and low intensity. The greatest potential lies in automated data sharing in real time and applying more advanced criteria for data quality. Companies’ motives for sharing data are complex but are focused particularly on data-based optimisation of processes, and especially production processes. While many types of data are stored digitally, only product data is shared to any considerable degree. The fact that data economy readiness and intensive data sharing are positively and mutually rein[1]forcing gives grounds for hope that companies will exploit the potential of the data economy even more in the future.