How to create a data-driven culture

Data can offer companies the power to organize, operate, predict and create value, but along with all these positives come questions related to data security, privacy, uncertainty about ethical limits, etc. Hence the importance of building a data-driven culture that helps you make better business decisions.

Data -driven culture is a relatively new concept that is becoming fundamental today as more and more companies develop digital business strategies based on and apply meaning to data.

All of this refers to a consistent work environment where decisions are made through data testing. In other words, it implies that decision-making is based on data evidence, not on instinct.

Key concepts for a data-driven culture

1.- Data-driven culture is a decision-making tool

Data analysis aims to collect, process and obtain data to make better decisions, decisions based on objectives and with the focus of obtaining the best results.

The information, ideas and innovation generated by the team must be used to improve the company’s capacity, productivity and service in general.

2.- The democratization of data guarantees the acceptance of people.

To create competitive advantage, the demand for data must go from the bottom up to get people excited.

Open access to data helps people believe in data and find solutions that don’t require a data scientist. When people trust data, they begin to change their behavior.

3.- Risk management is another side of the data-driven culture

Risk management is one of the most important components of a data-driven culture. This is based on introducing analytics in key processes in a responsible manner to find solutions and avoid problems.

Data-driven solutions help companies get a clear picture of what’s really going on. However, there is always a risk that the analyzes are incorrect and companies need to be aware of this.

4.- People are important

Even in a data-driven company , careful human resource management is important. It is the responsibility of the CEO and managers to create a culture based on data, they are undoubtedly the first to apply this and lead the change.

On the other hand, you need to balance hiring new talent on the data science side and, of course, trusting existing employees.

Companies need to take a better look at the parts that require data management and put the right people in the right places.

Steps to launch a data-driven culture

Based on the concepts mentioned above, here are some recommendations to build a data-driven culture in a company and effectively achieve effective management:

1.- Track the use of data and identify biases.

To trust data, employees must be able to see the big picture. Tracking or mapping the data can give you evidence of how the data is used and how it fits into the organization’s scheme.

Tracking the data can also show you where biases exist and how to fix them with alternative data that exists elsewhere. It can also give you insight into quality issues and help you compensate for them by letting people know about deficiencies.

2. Search for alternatives for the use of data.

The hallmark of data-driven culture is understanding that data is flexible and multifunctional. Organizations need to educate their employees on how the data they use affects other parts of the organization.

Instead of forgetting about data once it is used for a certain task, organizations can look for new applications of it by encouraging employees to identify other teams that can benefit from it.

3.- Make sure you have transparency in your data

The only way to cultivate trust in data is to guarantee the accuracy, security and reliability of its origin. Organizations must ensure that data is accurate, timely and accessible to all who have the right to use it.

Similarly, data requires openness, even if it is protected and/or kept private for regulatory reasons.

Companies can promote trust in data by tracking its quality, as well as providing multiple use cases, including negative examples where data should not be used.

Here are 6 tips to create a culture of transparency in your company.

4. Promote communication and feedback

A successful data-driven culture involves a deep understanding of how teams and departments function and collaborate, even where there is friction and contradiction.

Organizations need to create an environment where everyone can share information without being perceived as negative.

In addition, open discussions about innovation strategies and goals give employees a clear view of the role of data in the company’s overall mission and reinforce their connection to the organization as a whole.

How to build the team that drives data-driven culture

Building on people and an understanding of the key principles of data culture, you can start building a data-driven team by promoting the following:

1. Encourage the use of data : The team must clearly see the value of the use of data in a clear way and have no barriers to accessing it.
2. Encourage experimentation : Management needs to help employees incorporate data into their day-to-day decision making, whether it comes from internal and/or external sources.
3. Education in the use of data : The team must receive training on how to use the tools available to access the data and interpret the results.
4. Foster Critical Thinking : The organization needs to create an environment that encourages questioning, mistrusts intuition, and displays a healthy degree of skepticism, but of course celebrates critical thinking, curiosity, and the deepest desire to question things.

Remember that data can be both a problem and a solution. When an organization’s data philosophy becomes divorced from its core business strategy, data analytics is likely to fail.

Similarly, when you find the right people to accept the data, these people become a source of energy and momentum.

The transition to building a data-driven culture can be a challenge that requires dramatic changes in the organization, but in the long run, trust me, everyone will turn to it.

The use of new technologies adds value to the business, so you can start using dashboard software, a tool that allows you to have a better visualization of data in real time , with updated information, concentrated in one place.