5 Data Silver Linings in a time of Crisis
Every crisis typically brings newfound positive breakthroughs. As we witness the current pandemic unfold there are a few data “silver linings” coming about that I am hopeful will stay with us for the long term once this is all over. Thought they were worth a share.
Urgency for understanding is bringing the walls down
The desperate need to use data to get a grasp on the situation and inform extremely quick commercial actions has forced a breakdown across traditional organisational silos. Virtual cross functional teaming has swept across enterprises as we scramble with data to put corrective actions into play and proactively prepare for when the situation begins to improve.
A data literacy crash course for society
The world has had to become overnight experts at extracting opinion from graphs and this is creating a mass societal adoption of data. As data adoption increases there is also an initial spike of misinterpretation of insight and consumption of fake news although this will diminish as society becomes increasingly data savvy. As we emerge from the crisis we will find there has been an exponential jump in our societies and our businesses increased reliance on data that will be lasting.
Breaking perfect - Imperfect solutions to fight uncertain situations
It’s a bad time to be a perfectionist. This is a time for ultra-fast iterations, pushing out rough bulky solutions and improving upon these in real time as new trends emerge and new data becomes available for modelling. This is forcing new agile work habits between data practices and their business stakeholders.
Rewriting the rules of innovation - this time laced with generosity
Data more than ever before has become an innovation catalyst. Hackathons are skyrocketing and academia and businesses have never been closer as we forget the old rules of engagement to deliver solutions to survive and understand. This includes a huge wave of newfound generosity with data organisations, software vendors and government organisations making data, tools and training freely available to all. When this is over we need to retain this agility in innovation and generosity in spirit.
Testing our privacy resolve - so far so good!
The panic that followed 9/11 created the motivation for unethical monitoring of personal data in the name of public safety. This time round the guard is up and big tech and regulatory bodies like the ICO are navigating a very careful balance between personal privacy and public safety. As solutions are released to track and control the spread the difference in approach between the West and East is also starkly revealed.