What do you do if your short-term goals are hindering your long-term strategic thinking in data management?

Your goals must be redefined based on determining the strategy you need to follow in order to set and meet various goals. Each goal should have the objective which is focused on prioritizing all tasks ensuring that progress is being made to your ultimate objective, completing the goals.

You should also be upskilling yourself. I have a personal motto when it comes to upskilling, "Be better today than you were yesterday". So I have a DAILY rule to learn something new everyday. Now it can be big or small (A new function in Excel, a new keyboard shortcut, a new technique in Power Query, Smartsheet, Jira, etc.....). It doesn't matter what it is or the size of what you learned, just so you continue to learn something. For me, I set it as daily, however you could do it weekly. If you do it weekly instead, I recommend you set it as a a new task/time of 30 minutes devoted to a new skill. Obviously if you are learning new software, it will take longer, so 30 minutes per week will get you started strong.

To address short-term goals hindering long-term strategic thinking in data management, prioritize iterative approaches like Scrum or Kanban. Encourage flexibility, continuous improvement, and collaboration across teams. Leverage technology such as automation and analytics to streamline processes. This fosters agility, allowing adjustments while maintaining focus on long-term objectives.

If short-term goals are impeding long-term strategic thinking in data management, it's crucial to reassess priorities. Allocate time to address immediate needs without compromising long-term objectives. Implement measures to streamline short-term tasks while keeping long-term goals in sight. Foster a culture of flexibility and adaptability within the team to navigate evolving priorities. Regularly review and adjust strategies to ensure alignment with overarching objectives. Seek input from stakeholders to balance short-term demands with long-term vision. By managing short-term goals efficiently and remaining focused on strategic objectives, organizations can achieve sustainable growth and innovation in data management.

Consider goals be it short-term or long-term are just directional vectors with milestone measured achievements... One should be cautious about setting long-term strategic goals without a clear logistical agenda. Too much focus on the short-term will only achieve tactical wins.