Most organisations are accelerating artificial intelligence investment without the data foundations needed to support it, a global benchmark study has found.

The EDM Association’s 2026 Global Data Management Benchmark Report surveyed more than 435 organisations across 50-plus countries. The benchmark, released in May 2026, is the fifth edition of a global study tracking data management as an enterprise discipline since 2015.

The EDM Association is a global non-profit industry association dedicated to elevating data management and analytics as a critical corporate asset. Members include ANZ Bank, the ASX, Macquarie Bank, NAB and Australian Super.

Approximately 31% of organizations surveyed report advanced data strategy capability, leaving most without the foundation required to support AI at scale

According to the report, “AI magnifies both the value of strong data management and the risks of immature practices.”

When data foundations are weak, AI systems “inherit and amplify underlying data issues”, the report states. This results in “biased outputs, operational instability, and heightened regulatory exposure”, according to the report.

Strategic foundations remain the primary gap across all industries. Only 30.8% of respondents reported reaching the Achieved or Enhanced level for Data Strategy, Data Management Strategy and Business Case capabilities.

“AI is becoming a stress test for enterprise data,” said John Bottega, President of EDM Association.

“Many organizations are moving aggressively into AI, but without the consistent, operational data foundations required to support it. Putting technology ahead of trusted data and governance explains why so many initiatives struggle to deliver better results.”

Financial services consistently outperformed other industries across the benchmark. Finance organisations averaged 4.03 on data strategy capability against 3.46 for other sectors.

More than 72% of organisations now report having a Chief Data Officer or equivalent role. However, 37% have experienced CDO turnover, the report found. Only 39% of CDO roles older than five years are still held by the original appointee.

Analytics adoption is widespread but uneven across the participating organisations. While 77% of respondents have established analytics programs, only 19.1% reported achieved or enhanced capability for analytics education and adoption.

The full 2026 Global Data Management Benchmark Report is available here.

The agenda for Gartner Data & Analytics Summit 2026, 16 – 17 June, in Sydney, is live.
This year’s agenda takes a deeper dive into:
- Proving ROI from data, analytics and AI initiatives
- Establishing AI-ready data foundations and best practices
- Navigating the evolving AI agent landscape and deployment models
View Agenda