Why being a data-driven leader is more dangerous than we think
Getting excited about manufacturers being “data rich” is like going on and on about how much paint Pablo Picasso has in his studio. Our obsession with data is making us forget who and what actually provides value.
Lackluster returns from Industry 4.0 initiatives over the past two decades have come from over-indexing on data and forgetting that the quality of our actions, not our analysis, determines our success or failure.
Of course, no one would say there is no value in analysis – when we combine our natural ingenuity and problem-solving ability with smart technology, not only can we do things 10x faster, we can do them 10x better.
To fully unlock the potential of our data, technology needs to enable us, not the other way around. Technology should allow us to spend more time doing what we do best: helping our teams to take action and solve problems (i.e. Lead).
Excel has become more about the report than the result
Microsoft has been the dominant player in manufacturing analytics software for decades with a little piece of software called Excel. Excel has made the term “data-driven” redundant. We now all think about data all the time.
But how many millions of “leader-hours” have been lost over the past 20 years entering and manipulating data in Excel? Top leaders have recognized this for a while and have moved their data work outside of business hours, but there has to be a better way.
We as leaders are at our best when we are collaborating with our teams, creating engagement and solving problems. We now spend huge amounts of our precious time as leaders manipulating data. We spend more time working with our computers than our people.
Data should be guiding smarter actions, not consuming our time
To break this cycle, we need to start with people and work our way out. Microsoft’s recent move back into manufacturing, as highlighted in Microsoft’s US VP of Manufacturing, Tracy Galloway’s video, is timely. Increased competitiveness and volatility means that relying on talent and instincts alone is a risky proposition.
The key to unlocking our potential is to help us find and fix our most important problems – when there aren’t any problems, stay out of our way, don’t distract us or consume our time and then we will get along just fine!
The potential for digital transformation is unquestioned. Achieving this potential we need to recognize that people are at the core of our success, not data.
Manufacturers are incredibly “talent rich”. Data can help point our talent in the right direction; we (still) need leaders to get to where we want to go.
Empowering people, accelerating innovation | Technical Operations Program Manager in Aerospace | Industry 4.0 Club Founder | Business Leader | Project Director | Engineer | PMP MBA MS MA
4 年Martin this is a fantastic article and you're bringing so many critical points. Your use of the flattened curve and pointing out that it's in line with the release of the iPhone shows us exactly what you're saying: the problem driving the flat curve is not a lack of technology, but one of engagement. I plan to share this article with my network as well.
Entrepreneurship, Market Research, & Product Development
4 年Martin Cloake, as always a good insightful post! Data shows Issues, Analysis shows Symptoms, & Actions remove the Problem/Root cause. Too much of data with no value reminds me of an adage "Analysis Paralysis! Having used it extensively many of Microsoft products (Excel, Access/Visual Basic,..) for last three decades they are generic at the best. Today's leadership/decision makers need 'Dashboard" style of information with all Key Performance Indicators (KPI's) for quick action. With the advent of Microsoft Power BI a few years ago alleviates that issue a bit, helping in the areas of Finance/Sales/Marketing/Small Enterprises.... etc. But still one size in not fit all and one medicine is not cure all! There will always be a need for customized package as each processes/services/machines are 'unique'. But this customized packages brings another issue of data integration/migration with multiple platforms. Though, that decision should be easy focusing with economics of cost/price/market.
Manufacturing Profit Booster and Waste Hunter | Speaker | Continuous Improvement Award Winner | Lean Consulting | Lean Training | Lean Apprenticeships | Knowledge AI Apps
4 年Never just data. Why do you want it? How will it inform decision making? Is it proactive or reactive? Too many just collect data and KPIs with no thought about why!