Data Trust: you lost it, how to get it back!

Lets face it, sooner or later there is a data discrepancy (I know its not your fault) but whether or not someone is using their illegal excel sheet or another unapproved report eventual blame will come to you.? Why? Because there is a bunch of things you should be doing that you are not doing.? Here are the proven processes that fix that data trust issue you don’t want to admit to having.?

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1. Improve Data Quality and Transparency

Data Validation: Implement robust data validation processes to ensure accuracy.

Collaboration: validation internally and external users as well.? Involve the user community

Transparency: Clearly communicate data sources, methodologies, and any assumptions made in the analysis.? Schedule a short session to do this, do not waste user time and keep a tight agenda – no more than 30 minutes.

2. Enhance Data Governance

Consistency: Standardize data definitions and metrics across the organization.

Collaboration: While you do not need to go all out right away you need a few stakeholders in your corner, make sure you setup a monthly meeting, wrap it into another meeting that covers say business application updates and changes so meeting proliferation does not happen.

Access Controls: Implement role-based access to ensure data security and integrity.? This means also tracking when users do not need access any longer or have switched roles that you review any access you need to curtail.

3. User Engagement and Training

Feedback Loop: Regularly solicit feedback from users to identify issues and address concerns.? This is likely the most important item on the list.? You can incorporate this into a co-creation feedback loop session (DM for details on that or look up my previous articles).? I am not a fan of more meetings – so preference is to be useful but limit meetings to a minimum.

Training Programs: Educate users on how to interpret and use the dashboards effectively.? Think about getting some budget to use a consulting team here, education is a specialty and operations is not usually your best educator.? People skimp on this and it’s a mistake.? A consultant that is respected is usually listened to (you are paying for advice you are likely to take it) and can get messages through that your lack of trust (sorry) will not.?

So to summarize, don't add a lot of meetings that have no value, piggyback off those that exist. Learn to collaborate (notice it is mentioned in every section above) more, we always end up working in our own silos (silos bad you know this) and it is a bad habit when Intelligence is the output. Feedback loop is the one thing. You want to learn only one thing then do that one.

#data #dataquality ?