In a world ruled by data, company leaders are unable to drive their businesses forward. Why and how are businesses unable to become data-driven? Although it seems to go against the grain of what many are reporting in terms of firms succeeding in the goal of losing personal bias and implement data-driven marketing strategies, companies are failing.
Lack of an Analytical Team
If you are a small or mid-sized company, than you probably have an IT team or person that handles everything to do with technology. Data and analytics included. For big companies, there are probably two teams involved in data handling, IT, and data science. Regardless of the size of the teams involved, you need someone solely dedicated to analytics or a team of people responsible for analytics.
You can expect them to do more than provide critical takeaways from data sets. The reason for an analytics person or team, however, is that you need someone who can marry the purposes of IT and data science.
Solution
When structuring your teams, allow at least one person enough time to perform the regular duties of structuring data together (typically an IT job), while working with the data platform and aggregating it (usually a data science job), and connect with key decision makers within the company. These tasks coming together can make your current analytics useful and effective.
Inability to Find the Problem
The problem isn’t the problem. A phrase that should resonate with most technology-based professionals. When working with analytics, the issues that surface from aggregated data are often symptoms of underlying issues that may be more difficult to identify and treat. It’s like practicing medicine if you only treat the symptoms; the actual problem will never go away.
The problem isn’t the problem. A phrase that should resonate with most technology-based professionals. When working with analytics, the issues that surface from aggregated data are often symptoms of underlying issues that may be more difficult to identify and treat. It’s like practicing medicine if you only treat the symptoms; the actual problem will never go away.
Solution
The solution for identifying root problems and developing solutions comes down to hiring decisions. Those in the tech field are frequently known for digging deep into data to identify the underlying issues. However, when in a corporate environment, that objective is often lost for any number of reasons.
Hire someone who can respectfully educate leadership teams on problems, root problems, and long-term damage caused by inaction. You’ll want someone with advanced interpersonal communication skills which may be challenging to find.
Using Incorrect or Adjacent Metrics
Metrics are everything! Your organization’s performance relies on particular factors. You may use specific parameters to predict performance, or for decision making when reacting to market changes.
However, many companies will try to force the same metrics to work for multiple situations and decisions. Ultimately it leads to analytics failure because the reports or summaries don’t support decision-making and can’t provide leaders with valuable insight.
In the end, it’s the staff that suffers as they shift from one method to another trying to make something work with the incorrect information.
Solution
Create a culture that translates questions that focus on “How.” The question is often, “How can we improve sales?” or “How can we reduce the number of abandoned carts on the site?” These questions are important for high-level management. Leaders are often quick to point out the problem and seek a solution.
The solution is to find the right metrics and using “how” questions will not achieve that end. Analytics teams should be able to reduce umbrella questions into one or two concise metrics. Then work with the company’s data to aggregate and analyze that information.
Failing to Have a Data System or the Right Data System
Infrastructure can drastically change the efficiency and effectiveness of your data and analytics. Data must be usable and accessible; however, if your IT team or analytics team can’t pull data together, your analytics will always fail.
There is also the struggle of managing workflows. Analysis workflows need management, but often this personnel or teams are left to their own devices with little structure.
Solution
You may need to turn to a vendor for infrastructure management if you cannot create a successful system internally. Consider adopting this approach even if it is possible to create an internal system for the sake of saving time and expenses.
Additionally, you will want to work with leaders within the IT or data science teams to establish clear procedures. Carefully choose your data system.
Employee Culture is Failing Your Data Design
Culture impacts everything, and if your staff aren’t supportive of data-driven initiatives or business structures, then you’re doomed. Changing your company culture is possible.
Misalignments or a disjointed response between analytics, leadership, and staff can lead to a massive variety of problems. Not only are you liable to have failing analytics, but also inaccurate data entry from staff, data mishandling from management, and so forth.
Solution
Two solutions can benefit businesses of any size who are struggling with failing analytics and a culture of data rejection.
First, use tools. Bringing in practical, easy-to-use, and accurate reporting and gathering tools can help ease culture tension. This effect comes from the proof that you’re willing to invest in analytics and that you’re not backing down because of data mishandling. Additionally, it can make it easier for staff to interact with data.
Second, focus on data literacy. Analytics often comes with complicated reports that few people within the company can understand. Reporting like this can make employees feel out-of-the-loop or purposefully excluded from information. Instead create a handbook, glossary, or have analytics professionals teach your staff about their findings.
Creating Success
If your company hasn’t seen a tangible impact from analytics, it’s likely that your systems are failing, you. Take a step back. Why are your analytics failing, and what can you do? It may seem that your analytics are doing well, except that the culture around data-driven decision-making has become toxic.
Work with the people who are closest to data handling and your management staff. These two critical points within your organization can determine the impact on your company from data and data analytics.
Victor Strategy works with companies to help improve the use of data and to impact effective decision making. Speak to us about our process, which guides many businesses to data-driven success.
