WHITEPAPER

BUILDING A TRULY DATA

DRIVEN ORGANIZATION
THE CRITICAL ROLE OF THE DATA & ANALYTICS VISIONARY
INTRODUCTION
The world runs on data. What was once the domain of a few technically minded Data Scientists, Data Analysts, and IT
departments is now a critical part of nearly all aspects of life.

Consider the amount of data produced, collected, analyzed, and used during a morning commute. GPS apps display real-
time traffic and automatically take drivers down the fastest route. Insurance companies use predictive models and telematic
devices to assess risk and calculate prices for each individual driver. Traffic signals adjust their timing depending on the
number of vehicles on the road. Even the restaurant where drivers stop to get their coffee uses historical data and predictive
models to estimate demand and allocate staff and resources most effectively.

Across industries, data and analytics is playing an important role. For C-level and senior executives, long-term success
requires a shift in thinking away from technology and tactics and toward viewing data as the strategic, valuable asset that it
has always had the potential to be.

The organizations that successfully build data driven cultures and think strategically about data and analytics will be able
to predict and adapt to changing trends, identify new revenue opportunities, avoid costly mistakes, and deliver a superior
experience to customers. By embedding data into all aspects of their business, organizations have the potential to gain a
significant competitive advantage over those who lag behind.

This whitepaper will discuss the importance of finding and appointing a Data & Analytics Visionary who is responsible for
thinking strategically about data and applying it within the organization. It will then introduce and explain the five steps
senior executives must take to shift away from tactics and build a truly data driven organization that understands and values
data at all levels of decision making. Throughout, examples will be presented to help illustrate how this type of strategic
thinking has been applied elsewhere so that executives can learn from the experiences of those who have already started the
journey.

Data Insight Group Inc. | Whitepaper | Building a Truly Data Driven Organization – The Critical Role of the Data & Analytics Visionary 2
THE RISE OF THE CHIEF DATA
& ANALYTICS OFFICE AND THE ROLE
OF THE DATA & ANALYTICS VISIONARY
Data and analytics have traditionally been viewed through the lens of technology. Senior technology executives, often
focused on efficiencies, technology advances, and optimal database structures, would lose sight of data as a strategic asset.
Executives looked at data from a tactical perspective and often lacked the larger strategic vision required to successfully
drive a new initiative.1

As a result, many organizations did not see the results they expected. Despite promises of greatness and significant
investments in time, money, and resources, projects would stall or falter altogether. In fact, Gartner analysts estimate that
between 60 percent and 85 percent of data projects fail.2

GARTNER ANALYSTS ESTIMATE THAT BETWEEN 60 PERCENT AND 85 PERCENT

OF DATA PROJECTS FAIL.

Over time, organizations began to recognize that data was a discipline in itself. Many started to shift the responsibility of
data away from IT departments toward a Chief Data & Analytics Officer (CDAO). In 2012, only 12 percent of large companies
had a CDAO in place.3 By 2019, that number had increased to 68 percent, reflecting the growing importance of data and
analytics within organizations.4

Unfortunately, many CDAOs have faced difficulty making a meaningful business impact.5 A recent McKinsey report showed
that among companies who had not met their objectives, constructing a data strategy was the number one challenge.6

As their roles evolve, CDAOs are being asked to do more, know more, and control more. Today, overseeing data and
analytics means aligning the data & analytics strategy with the overall business strategy.

WHAT’S NEEDED IS A DATA

& ANALYTICS VISIONARY. A Data & Analytics
Visionary should work
Regardless of whether it’s the CDAO or another senior leader, the Data & beyond traditional
Analytics Visionary must be dedicated to taking a big picture approach to data functional areas to
and analytics and thinking strategically about how it should be used. They collaborate with all
should be an agent of change, able to see what’s possible and set in motion the aspects of the business.
processes needed to achieve it. They should work beyond traditional functional
areas and break down silos to collaborate with all aspects of the business, and
they must act as a champion for new data initiatives and projects, both amongst
other executives and employees.

In short, the Data & Analytics Visionary must understand the opportunities data
provides and guide the organization toward a new way of doing business.

Data Insight Group Inc. | Whitepaper | Building a Truly Data Driven Organization – The Critical Role of the Data & Analytics Visionary 3
FIVE STEPS TO BECOMING DATA
& ANALYTICALLY DRIVEN
STEP 1
Many organizations talk about being data driven, but very few have matured Improve Data Literacy and
to the point where data and analytics is the backbone and differentiator in Increase Awareness of the
their business. A 2019 report showed that only 31 percent of companies have Transformative Potential of Data

successfully created a data driven organization.7

For companies who get it right, the potential gains are significant. Forrester
estimates that truly data driven businesses are growing at an average of more
than 30 percent annually,8 while one analyst report suggests that a 10 percent
increase in data accessibility will result in more than $65 million in additional net
income for the typical Fortune 1000 company.9 STEP 2
Ask the Right Questions When
Developing Your Data Strategy

FORRESTER ESTIMATES THAT TRULY DATA DRIVEN

BUSINESSES ARE GROWING AT AN AVERAGE OF
MORE THAN 30 PERCENT ANNUALLY

The framework presented in this paper is intended to shift thinking away from STEP 3
tactics and technologies and toward a more wholistic, comprehensive, and Identify Where Data Can
strategic view of how data impacts the entire organization, as well as how data Transform Your Business and
can drive the evolution of both the organization and its products. It serves as a Create Competitive Advantages

guide to implementing an effective and purposeful data strategy, and provides

a foundation for deeper conversations around tactics, technology solutions,
models, metrics, and types of data.

STEP 4
Lead Organizational
Change

STEP 5
Engage, Foster,
and Reward Feedback
and Evolution

Data Insight Group Inc. | Whitepaper | Building a Truly Data Driven Organization – The Critical Role of the Data & Analytics Visionary 4
STEP 1 – IMPROVE DATA LITERACY
AND INCREASE AWARENESS
OF THE TRANSFORMATIVE
POTENTIAL OF DATA
Data literacy is the ability to read, work with, analyze, and argue with data. A
recent survey found that only 32 percent of C-level executives could be classified
as data literate,10 while a separate survey of employees at all levels said a mere
25 percent feel prepared to make use of data, 37 percent think their decisions
STEP 1
are made better with data, and 74 percent feel overwhelmed when working with
data at all.11

Unsurprisingly, then, Gartner has identified poor data literacy as the second biggest roadblock to success.12

74 PERCENT OF EMPLOYEES FEEL OVERWHELMED WHEN WORKING WITH DATA.

Employees lack the time needed to conduct their own learning and have not been trained or educated on how to use and
understand the data that’s presented to them. At best, they’ve been provided access to a portal or dashboard but have
limited knowledge of how to gain meaningful insights that will help them do their jobs and achieve better results.

Fortunately, the same Gartner survey found that 78 percent of decision makers were willing to invest more time and energy
into improving their data literacy skills.

The role of the Data & Analytics Visionary is to facilitate this learning and to open other senior executives to the opportunities
data provides. While it’s not necessary to reach the level of a dedicated Data Scientist, everyone in the organization benefits
from improved data literacy so that they are confident working with data and using the tools and platforms that are available
to them when making decisions.

Data Insight Group Inc. | Whitepaper | Building a Truly Data Driven Organization – The Critical Role of the Data & Analytics Visionary 5
STEP 2 – ASK THE RIGHT
QUESTIONS WHEN DEVELOPING
YOUR DATA STRATEGY
A real estate development company would never buy all the materials needed
to build a house before it was designed. So why do so many companies start
building models and implementing technology solutions without a clear

STEP 2
understanding of the problems that need to be solved?

Effectively collecting, analyzing, and using data starts by asking the right
questions. This means asking strategic questions about the key challenges the
organization is facing and the desired business outcomes that the project is
intended to achieve.

For example, the question, “Should we move to a private or public cloud?” is tactical and focused on technology. It’s
meaningless without knowing the organization’s strategic objectives, as the best approach will depend on the goals of the
project and the types of data and analysis being conducted.

Instead, Data Visionaries should ask open ended questions that are aligned with
the challenges the business is facing. Examples of this are questions like, “How
can we increase customer retention rates while reducing the costs of marketing?”
or “Which of our customer segments is most valuable and how can we attract
new customers who fit this profile?” Questions can go beyond marketing as
Data Visionaries should ask
well, such as, “How can we fix capacity issues in our factory?” or “How can we
open ended questions that
leverage our learning to improve employee retention?”
make it possible to explore
These types of questions make it possible to explore new approaches and think new approaches and
strategically about the problem before diving into the more tactical elements. think strategically about a
They serve as a foundation to all the future conversations that will be had around problem before diving into
the data that will be required, how it will be collected, what tools to use, and how the more tactical elements.
to display the data to decision makers.

In order to ask more strategic questions, the data science team and business
strategy team need to become more closely aligned. Both need to have a solid understanding of what the other does. Data
Scientists should have a strong understanding of the business strategy to put their analysis into context, while the strategy
team should have a strong grasp of the data and how it is used to provide meaningful insights.

One good example of this is Macy’s. The department store chain had built models designed to increase store sales by
placing items in specific locations. However, the lack of alignment between the data science team and the business strategy
team meant that they failed to see much in the way of increased revenue.

After this initiative, the data science team moved from working under the IT department to working directly under the
business strategy group. With a deeper understanding of the business and the context of their analysis, they were able to ask
new questions and determine that online sales represented a bigger opportunity than in-store sales. As a result, the company
realigned their focus to e-commerce and shifted away from opening more physical stores.13

Data Insight Group Inc. | Whitepaper | Building a Truly Data Driven Organization – The Critical Role of the Data & Analytics Visionary 6
STEP 3 – IDENTIFY WHERE DATA
CAN TRANSFORM YOUR BUSINESS
AND CREATE COMPETITIVE
ADVANTAGES
Data and analytics aren’t just tools to make stronger decisions. Data & Analytics
Visionaries understand that they need to constantly find ways to innovate
and create a competitive advantage. With the right data, tools, and mindset,
organizations can deliver transformative products or services, evolve business
STEP 3
models, and create stronger customer experiences.

For this to be possible, Data & Analytics Visionaries need to be present at the
creation of data. Not only do they need to look at the data they currently have access to, they also must think strategically
and consider how new initiatives could be designed and developed around additional data. Depending on the use case,
organizations may need to find new approaches to combine data from multiple sources, bring together structured and
unstructured data, or change the way services are provided to customers.

WITH THE RIGHT DATA, TOOLS, AND MINDSET, ORGANIZATIONS CAN DELIVER
TRANSFORMATIVE PRODUCTS OR SERVICES, EVOLVE BUSINESS MODELS, AND
CREATE STRONGER CUSTOMER EXPERIENCES.

Recently, Burger King executed a unique and innovative campaign that

demonstrates the value of combining data from multiple sources in real-time.
Burger King created an
Leveraging location data from a driver’s GPS and real-time traffic information from
innovative campaign
apps like Waze, Burger King delivered orders to people while they were sitting in
that leveraged data
traffic in Mexico City. Drivers could place an order on the Burger King mobile app
from multiple sources to
using voice commands which would be sent to a restaurant less than 3 kilometers
drive app downloads and
away. By using geofencing and location data, Burger King promoted the offer
deliver a new customer
only to areas with high congestion, and even used digital billboards to show
experience.
personalized messages to drivers waiting on their order.

While this was in many ways a marketing stunt designed to boost awareness
and downloads of the Burger King mobile app, it demonstrates the power of
combining data from multiple sources to innovate and push the boundaries of
what’s expected from a fast-food restaurant. Most importantly, the campaign
achieved a strategic objective, increasing mobile orders by 63 percent,
growing daily app downloads 44-fold, and creating a more intimate channel to
communicate directly with the customer. Because of the campaign, the Burger
King app became the number one fast food app in Mexico.14

Data Insight Group Inc. | Whitepaper | Building a Truly Data Driven Organization – The Critical Role of the Data & Analytics Visionary 7
STEP 4 – LEAD
ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE
The best models mean nothing if they aren’t implemented at all levels of
the organization. Too often, senior leaders fail to fully understand the impact
of decisions and the level of organizational change required to successfully
implement data and analytics initiatives.

STEP 4
According to a recent report, the lead concern among senior executives is that
their managers don’t understand or trust data-based models, and as a result,
they don’t use them.15 This lack of confidence and understanding often leads to
resentment, with people actively rejecting data, dashboards, models, and other
tools that they view as too complex, too abstract, or otherwise not valuable to
them.

One of the key functions of the Data & Analytics Visionary is to serve as a champion for new data projects and effectively
communicate the benefits of the data to and to collaborate with front-line staff, managers, and decision makers across the
organization. Because these are the people who are directly implementing the new approach, the success of the project
depends not only on their acceptance but their full adoption.

THE LEAD CONCERN AMONG SENIOR EXECUTIVES IS THAT THEIR MANAGERS

DON’T UNDERSTAND OR TRUST DATA-BASED MODELS, AND AS A RESULT, THEY
DON’T USE THEM.

As with any organizational change initiative, it’s not enough to focus on the
technology itself. Data must become embedded into the way things are done,
One company developed
and managers must be incentivized to change their behaviour to work within new
a model to predict
systems.
customer service needs
For example, one company developed an excellent model that could predict and inform call-center reps
which additional services a customer would purchase as part of an initiative to through on-screen alerts.
increase customer value. Call-centre reps would see these recommendations pop
up on their screen based on what the customer said in real-time.

However, because they were paid and evaluated based on how many calls
they made, not how many sales they converted, the reps closed and ignored
the recommendations. Taking the time to upsell meant making fewer calls,
which would hurt their performance evaluations. Even with a fantastic model,
the program did not see the results that were promised because of this lack of
foresight into how employees would respond.16

Data Insight Group Inc. | Whitepaper | Building a Truly Data Driven Organization – The Critical Role of the Data & Analytics Visionary 8
STEP 5 – ENGAGE, FOSTER,
AND REWARD FEEDBACK AND
EVOLUTION
Investing in the culture, structure, human capital, and skills needed to truly
embed data into the way an organization makes decisions is a complex,
challenging, and significant undertaking. Achieving this step does not happen

STEP 5
overnight, and it requires a substantial effort by executives and business leaders
in all areas of the company.17

However, building a data driven culture is where organizations set themselves

apart. Only 28 percent of companies say that they have forged this culture,
despite executives being aware that people and processes are a bigger concern
than technology.18 Unfortunately, most of the spending goes into technology rather than initiatives devoted to changing
human attitudes and behaviours around data.

ONLY 28 PERCENT OF COMPANIES SAY THAT THEY HAVE FORGED A DATA

DRIVEN CULTURE

When creating this culture, Data & Analytics Visionaries should look to provide more people with the access and skills
needed to work with data.19 This democratization of data allows more people to experiment, challenge assumptions, and
identify new and better ways of doing things. Metrics should be created that measure the impact of decisions, and feedback
loops should be developed that allow leaders to quickly evaluate where they are, where they came from, and where they
need to go.

With this in place, organizations can begin to take a test and learn approach and use new information to strengthen
decisions or make course corrections before it is too late. In this way, analytics is constantly evolving, incorporating new data,
and building from previous results to improve future performance.

One of the best examples of a data driven culture is Amazon. From the very beginning, Amazon emphasized data in
everything that they did. Decisions were made based on the information they had available to them, and more than once
they changed directions because the data indicated it was the right thing to do.

In one case, they were able to determine the impact of page load times on sales. This led to a large-scale initiative that
realigned hundreds of employees toward speeding up the website and measuring the results of the increased performance.
In another case, despite initial resistance, the idea to sell ad space on the home page was tested and the results were
evaluated. This willingness to experiment, despite the doubts raised from senior executives, eventually became a $1 billion
business for the company.20

Data Insight Group Inc. | Whitepaper | Building a Truly Data Driven Organization – The Critical Role of the Data & Analytics Visionary 9
THINKING STRATEGICALLY ABOUT DATA AND
ANALYTICS
At this point, enough data and analytics initiatives have failed to live up to their promised results that it can confidently be
said that a new approach is needed. For too long, senior executives have placed too much emphasis on technology and
tactics and not enough on thinking about the strategic role of data and analytics.

In order to become truly data driven and achieve better results, organizations need someone who can serve the role of Data
& Analytics Visionary and look to new opportunities and possibilities when it comes to using data. From there, they must
ensure that they educate senior leadership and employees at all levels to improve data literacy, increase their confidence
using data and create data-driven value propositions. They need to ask strategic questions and have a clear understanding
of the desired business outcomes of any new data initiative, while recognizing the impact these new approaches will have on
managers and employees across the organization.

Data Visionaries will help guide organizations down the path of implementing a data driven culture and undergoing the
changes necessary to incorporate data and analytics into strategic decision making and strategic innovation.

With so much on the line, the organizations who succeed in taking steps toward improving their ability to collect, analyze,
interpret, and use data will see transformative results. Those who continue to do the same thing will continue to see large
investments in technologies and platforms fail to live up to expectations. While data and analytics is the future, now is the
time leaders need to be thinking strategically about data assets and unleashing their potential to fundamentally shift their
business.

About Data Insight Group Inc. DiG

Data Insight Group Inc., (DiG), celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2020, is a customer data analytics company
helping mid-to-large organizations make sense of their data to drive customer strategy and support corporate
goals. Through their proprietary Roadmap Enablement process they are able to help North American companies
in insurance, loyalty, technology, banking, fundraising and others get more out of their data to enhance the
customer experience. Learn more at DataInsightGroup.ca.

Data Insight Group Inc. | Whitepaper | Building a Truly Data Driven Organization – The Critical Role of the Data & Analytics Visionary 10
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the-enterprise-en.pdf

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sponsor/#4d39b1292233

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sponsor/#4d39b1292233

20 https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/237326

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Data Insight Group Inc. | Whitepaper | Building a Truly Data Driven Organization – The Critical Role of the Data & Analytics Visionary 11