[5 min read] Many companies wax poetic about data democracy over beer, secretly crave a data czar to make decisions, and essentially operate as an oligarchic, all-you-can-eat buffet.
Don’t Start with Democracy
One aspect of culture is the system of government a society employs. And a big mistake of Data Leaders is to assume that folks actually want a Democracy. I led a strategy session early in December that overlapped with the company holiday party. As I made my way past trays of meatballs, mini-quiche and crudités, a slightly tipsy member of the Finance team welcomed me warmly with a cheerful “So you’re our new data Savior!”
The CDO(AO) should not have a messianic complex. However, they should recognize that folks want and need a strong authority to cut through years of legacy indecision. And there is nothing wrong with a dash of benevolent authoritarianism at first.
Know Your Oligarchs
Many companies wax poetic about data democracy over beer and sliders, secretly crave a data czar to make decisions, and essentially operate as an oligarchic, all-you-can-eat buffet (by business function).
In an Oligarchy, answering simple questions becomes extraordinarily difficult. The individual needs of each business function create completely difference uses for, or versions of, the same conceptual data point. The definition of “Churn” may have an entirely different meaning depending on whether you ask the Director of Product, Finance, or Marketing.
The answer is not to pour a round of eggnog and immediately put the Churn question to a popular vote in the spirit of data democracy.
Write the Way to Revolution
I’ve learned that the opportunity for a CDO(AO) is to open new conversations about why each Oligarch has chosen their data (definitions). In what way do these choices reflect the unique jobs-to-be-done of the business function? And what’s missing?
By understanding the different jobs-to-be-done, the CDO(AO) can begin to write authoritatively and collaboratively about the data journey the organization will need to travel. By helping business leaders find their most valuable voice, the CDO(AO) builds trust and becomes the more egalitarian leader of the tribe.
