How important is the Credit Bureau of the Future?
Beyond Data, Towards Insight – The Credit Bureau Acumen
By Mark Heymann, Senior Director: Commercial at TransUnion
Big data has redefined our world. It’s constant and rapid flow originates from a wide variety of sources and has allowed the opportunity for organisations to access greater intelligence. Organisations, however, are constantly overwhelmed by redundant information which hold no relevance to their client base. It is critical for organisations to avoid being inundated with high data mass so that they are able to streamline data and convert this information into insights.
In our ever-changing world, conventional uses of data no longer suffice. Organisations and the clients they do business with need to look to solutions-based options which will allow them to extract information pertinent to them. Establishments that would be pivotal in the creation and facilitation of these kinds of solutions would be information-based organisations, such as credit bureaus. At the forefront of the information age, credit bureaus are uniquely positioned to drive innovative, forward-thinking and risk-proven solutions to benefit their clients.
Credit bureau clients present a greater demand than ever before and they require their service providers to deliver efficiency and intelligence, and to support their ability to enforce better decision-making. They want to be competitive, and credit bureaus supplying traditional credit reporting will not meet this demand. Credit bureaus therefore need to be proactive, and create and develop accessible, value-added solutions that feed relevant and meaningful information to each of their respective clients. Their solutions need to be characterised by intelligence, speed and agility, and the ability to tailor solutions dynamically to the specific needs of each individual client and industry.
In order for these information-based solutions to provide an overall and practical view of clients and their proposed objectives, they not only need to be cognisant of the links between the data sources utilised, but they also have to ensure that the information and intelligence delivered is consistent. The key is in insight: the tools for enabling better decision-making and evaluating present and future risk lies in the provision of robust insight that is constantly fed and updated by the broadening expanse of big data, and that is constantly improving itself through the influence of advanced analytics.
It is important to note that data fills in gaps, and therefore cannot be considered in isolation. Actionable insight flows from the translation of that data into information, and then into knowledge that clients are able to then use in order to take the correct action. Credit bureaus should therefore invest in their futures by providing solutions that furnish the need for innovative, up-to-date content that is delivered quickly, routinely, and is reliable, comprehensive, competitive and that proves its value and delivers return on expenditure with actionable outcomes.
Ultimately, the credit bureau of the future should constantly strive to move its clients forward. By utilising the power of analytics, credit bureaus should be able to arm their clients with the tools to predict coming patterns and trends, and empower them with the ability to exercise good decision-making – both on an individual and automation basis. Big data has changed the information landscape, and it is up to the credit bureau of the future to direct the data flow that moves beyond insight and into foresight.
