Are we heading for a data crisis or a data revolution?

Whilst we discuss, debate, and invest in digital transformation is there perhaps a David and Goliath scenario playing out at the same time?

Our swipes, taps, conversations, sentiments, and habits are all data points tracked through digital technologies. Every day we have the potential to gather more and more data to inform insights that draw knowledge to enhance our products, services, and user experience (if we are ethical about it).

This means whilst we are focussing in on technologies and digital transformation as a Goliath of a business goal – we have data ready to draw its slingshot and hit digital between the eyes!?Either for good or otherwise.

Ok, that might be a bit dramatic, but it gets a message across. The point is this, just as we are heading towards a point of no return in terms of climate, we are precariously close perhaps to a point of no return in terms of managing data. We must let go of our limiting beliefs and ensure data shares equal priority with the digital agenda (if it doesn’t already).

It’s not either or, it is ‘and’. If we talk about digital, we should be talking about data.

Talking about data what comes up for us when we see that word, when we think about it in our professional lives and in the moments of our practice? Does it depend on who we are, where we are positioned in an organisation? Is it scary to you? Is it someone else’s responsibility? Does it feel too technical to grasp?

This is where crisis or revolution comes in.

On the one hand we have research and statistics that say that data provides us with the knowledge and wisdom to create a revolution of change for the better in terms of our products, our services, organisations, and communities. We are all wanting to become data driven organisations – only last week I heard a CIO hail their organisational vision that said they were moving from seeing their competitors as other organisations in their sector to seeing brands like Google and Facebook as their competitors because it is these people who have started to harvest and harness such vast and diverse data sets, they are able to disrupt multiple sectors…health, wellness, hospitality, travel, pharmaceuticals.

At the same time as we are sold the promise of data there are statistics that say we are on the brink of a crisis, where our ability to take control of data is slipping away:

2021?NewVantage Partners Big Data and AI Executive Survey found that despite 99% of organizations making active investments in data science and AI, only 29.2% have experienced any transformational outcome, and 24% of organizations claim they are data-driven. Interestingly, the number of organizations that claim they are data-driven has been in steady decline—decreasing from 37% in 2017, to 31% in 2019, and to 24% today

What can we do?

One important element I believe is to raise consciousness and awareness of data across business as usual and everyday practice. This can sometimes be far more powerful than mandatory skills training (not suggesting we don’t do that, but alone this is not enough).

There are four areas we should look at – the first are being incredibly important, if we are to help people let go their fear around data, let go of limiting beliefs around data and build courage to take back control.

1. Connection and context
2. Health (of data and our behaviour)
3. Flow (through our practice and around us)
4. Accountability

Let’s look at each one in turn

Connection and Context

Humanity has much to thank data for. Our ability to pass stories and wisdom for thousands of years is about data sharing and connection. Data is how we see the world. Only at the dawn of the technological age have we lost our connection to data, our relationship with data. Sharing our personal information with a stranger in the street would be seen as irresponsible, versus mindlessly clicking Accept to cookies on a site you are only visiting once.

Thinking about connection and context here are some questions you might want to reflect on:

• How often do you reflect on your relationship with data and the history of our relationship with data?
• Assess your current beliefs around data?
• How connected are you with the future story of data?
• How am I currently leveraging data to make decisions??
• How often do I interpret simple statistics (i.e. correlations, mean, etc.)??
• How often do I propose new initiatives backed by relevant data?

Health

When I speak of health about data, I mean the health of data we use for our decision making and work as well as our own healthy behaviour towards data in our possession.

Thinking about data health, here are some questions you might want to ask yourself.

• How healthy is your relationship and use of data?
• How healthy is the data you use to make decisions?
• How healthy are your decisions!?
• How often/well can I:

Read data

Work with

Analyse

Argue with

• “One of the greatest ways an individual can start to get better with data and analytics is to become curious – start asking the question, why?”
• Own the data in the dashboard, report that is put in front of you. Figure out why the data appears and where comes from
• Consider the origin story of the data (more sources over more data)
• Experiment with questioning the data to figure out questions that work and do not work.
• Is all data created equal?

Flow

This is an interesting one. When I talk to people about the flow of data through their life, their team, their organisation it often opens a whole new world of consideration for them.

I like to use what I call the Data Daisy Chain: The data I create, receive, access, amend, share, pass on, archive, delete. Becoming more and more aware of the links in this chain can help us to build a picture of where the flow might be stuck, haemorrhaging, not factual, not ethical etc.

Here are some questions for you to consider when thinking about the flow of data through your day:

• Which stage in the data daisy chain is your strongest? Which is your weakest?
• How aware are you of the flow of data through your practice?
• How balanced is your focus on the flow of data through technology and a human?
• How aware are you of the flow of data through your team/organisation to get to where it needs to be when it needs to be there?
• How often do you question the integrity of data: How true is this data from its source or origin?

Accountability

This can be a bit gnarly for some. Taking ownership and responsibility of data. Let’s get real. It’s not someone else’s responsibility to keep your data safe, to ensure your decisions and actions are ethical and not too influenced by bias or self-gain.?Yes, we require techie gurus and data boffins and cyber squirrels to keep things safe and secure and ensure people have access to the right data and not the wrong data.?However, this does not take away the fact that we are all personally accountable. Think again about climate change – yes, we need governments and enterprise organisations to make changes and take responsibility – but does that mean we can all run riot in our homes, on our streets and in our day to day lives when it comes to sustainability and stewardship of our environments? NO!

The next time you browse the internet please "Bother to Click" on those cookies, don’t just press Accept. Take 2 minutes each day to think about a 1% marginal gain you can make in your practice and decision making to take back control. Just like we have started a movement to reduce plastic – we can start a movement to more ethical in our decisions around AI for example.

I’m not saying this stuff is easy – but I am saying you should not wait for a training course to come your way or a mandate from your CEO – there are tiny shifts and changes we can make today – every person counts.

Here are some reflective questions you might want to reflect on:

• How do I hold myself to account around data?
• How often to I question my decisions and the data used to make those decisions?
• Am I clear on my ethical values around data (Personal and Professional)?
• How deeply do I question the ethical implications with data and decision making?
• How competent are you in championing the ethical implications of future decisions around data? (Emerging technology, privacy, manipulation etc.)

These four areas together are what I call DatamindfulnessTM – not just focussing on our literacy skills (important but incomplete), we need to raise our consciousness, create context, reconnect, focus on health, encourage flow, and take ownership.

So, how are you feeling about data right now!?

As always, please share, like or comment on this article and snippet from our humanising transformation framework: The Dilyn WayTM!

If you would like to know more about who you can build your own humanising transformation capability as a certified practitioner or would simply like to explore how some of these strategies could make a difference to transformation you are leading or working on, why not schedule a 121 session with me directly - totally confidential ??

Schedule your session?HERE