So, if people are the drag or limiting factor on what can be achieved, then our work around data and technology must have people front and centre. A few thoughts:
Culture eats strategy for breakfast
You will have seen this phrase before. Apparently it wasn’t Peter Drucker who said this. Whoever it was, it’s absolutely true.
Success with data requires a culture that achieves a balance between confidence and respect for data and has a willingness to change how it thinks and operates in the face of new technology possibilities.
Your fantastic digital strategy will fail if the organisational culture is not aligned to the vision and the change neccessary to achieve that vision.
It’s a long journey from statistics to insights
The analysis that underpins this model is based on the language used for data analysis – so it’s not surprising that I draw a key message in this area.
Dashboards give us statistics, not insights.
There might be a lot of complex processing and clever software behind dashboards but what they deliver are statistics. When we are looking for insights then we need people who:
- Understand what the data does – and does not – tell us about the real world;
- Understand the context around these statistics and the ways in which the context influences the data;
- Understand the needs of the people seeking these insights from this data;
- Have the ability to communicate these insights to that audience.
These are profoundly human skills.
Digital transformation is all about people
I don’t understand why organisations continue to frame change as digital transformation programmes. In my experience the digital label encourages the rest of the organisation to collectively shrug its shoulders and say ‘it’s an IT thing’.
I also have some issues with the words transformation and programme – that’s covered elsewhere.
Your expectations must be realistic
The technology industry will sell you a vision; a possibility of a perfect world. Your reality will be weighed down by complexity, legacy issues and perhaps the occasional dose of irrationality. The increasing power of technology will never be met by the people who implement and operate the technology. We must strive for progress but sometimes we have to meditate on acceptance.