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BUSINESS ANALYTICS
DATA SHOULD BE AT THE HEART OF
ALL DECISION MAKING.
want to get more involved. These people can
be future champions for driving a data-driven
culture beyond the core team.
Put it into practice
to be confident with what analytics can
achieve for the business and even more
importantly, what it cannot achieve that
the business might be expecting. This will
then need to be communicated in a clear
way – using language that the business
teams will understand will help break down
any preconceptions. This can be daunting
and often, data science teams will find
themselves faced with a huge variety of
interest levels. Many who hear about the
potential of data science will feel it has little
bearing on their work – and discussions
about its potential may go in one ear and
out the other.
However, there will also be people who are
inspired by what data can do for them and
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As business interest in and knowledge of the
potential of data-driven decisions grows, so
does the list of potential initiatives. In this
regard, prioritisation becomes incredibly
important. Business leaders need to focus on
whether each initiative meets the following
four criteria:
• Will it add significant, measurable value?
• Is the organisation ready to implement
this programme? Do we have the right
data and platform to make it work?
• Is there actually a solution possible or is
the technology still not available?
• Is the business ready to adopt the new
practices this initiative will require?
Finally, it’s about finding a way to quantify
the value that the data science community
now brings to the business and ensure that
the success thereof becomes a repeatable
part of the business process. With initiatives
actively being implemented, the business
needs to look to structure and measure
success in a consistent way so that employees
at all levels can see the data-driven
programme at work, rather than isolated
instances of innovation. This is key for moving
away from a series of data science projects to
being a truly data-driven company.
Thriving with data science is key for success in
today’s market, because it presents the ability
to transform quickly and efficiently based on
real insight. By building data science solutions
around real business problems, in conjunction
with the whole business team, organisations
are more likely to see the value thanks to an
ongoing culture of problem solving with data
science. This will result not just in a successful
adoption of data science tactics, but in
wider effectiveness as a smarter, more agile
organisation that delivers better solutions
to customers. n
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