Helping Welsh SMEs use data to innovate and grow

The evaluation combined a review of programme documentation and performance data with consultations with participating businesses and stakeholders. It examined how the DIA’s delivery model operated, highlighting areas for improvement as well as exploring the impact for participating businesses. These included:
• The introduction of new or improved products, services, or processes within supported firms
• Increased confidence among business leaders, including confidence in achieving future growth
• Greater ambition and strategic development, with businesses reporting changes to plans and priorities
• Improved ability to use data to inform decision making, enhance products, and respond to opportunities

Businesses described how collaboration with data scientists helped them explore and apply data-driven approaches to real operational challenges. In several cases, outputs from projects were incorporated into ongoing product development, marketing activity, or service improvement.

The evaluation also identified wider organisational effects. Many businesses reported strengthened internal capability in working with data and increased awareness of how data could support commercial objectives. Engagement with university-led expertise provided access to new knowledge and approaches, supporting practical learning through hands-on collaboration.

The findings demonstrated how the programme supported knowledge transfer from research into business application, with firms using this insight to shape innovation and operational practice.

Looking ahead, the evaluation informed the development of a pan-Wales Data Nation Accelerator. It provided a structured evidence base on how data-focused business support could be delivered, highlighting how collaborative models, diagnostic tools, and applied experimentation supported SMEs to engage with data and translate insight into business activity.