If processes are the value creation engine of the organisation, then data is the fuel. Data is the critical resource for almost any organisation and should be managed as such. Organizations embarking on the data management journey often complain about yet another management framework to take into account, expecting more work, more overhead, more investment, and less agility. They couldn’t be further from the truth. In this talk, Bas will show that there is a vast body of practical guidance (theory, cases) that can be leveraged for building a data management capability. He will also show that people are the key to the balancing act between strategy and execution, business and IT, and between a top-down and bottom-up approach to data management.

1. ba-beyond.eu — #BABeyond20
13 October 2020
Data management:
from the trenches
Bas van Gils

2. Data management:
From the trenches
Bas van Gils
Bas.vanGils@strategy-alliance.com
Data management: from the trenches 1

3. Data management: from the trenches 2

4. Setting the stage
Data management: from the trenches 3

5. Have you noticed that the conference organizers
have adopted a data-driven strategy to cancel
the physical BA & Beyond event
(and robbed us from a trip to one of the most
interesting cities in Europe) ?
Data management: from the trenches 4

6. Physical, online,
or hybrid?
Infection
numbers
Change rate
of infections
Laws and
policies
Speaker
preferencesLatest
scientific
findings
Moral
judgement
…
Data management: from the trenches 5

7. As a speaker/ visitor, I am happy with the careful
thought & planning that went into the decision.
As a data management professional, I cannot
help but wonder: how good is the data that was
used to make these decisions?
Data management: from the trenches 6

8. Data management
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9. L. Dallemule & T. H. Davenport (2017). What’s your data strategy? The key is to
balance offense and defense. Harvard Business Review, 5, p. 112-121
Defense=gripondata
Offense = value creation with data
Too much DM
Balance: just right
Not enough DM
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10. Data management is not something new!
Most organizations already do it. It may need
more attention to do it in a professional and
effective manner.
Data management: from the trenches 9

11. Data management: from the trenches 10

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13. Data management: from the trenches 12
We want to improve
decision making through
data (analytics, reports)
We need to make sure
that data is available at
the right place at the right
time…
… and with the right
quality.
Which requires us to
define/ understand our
data and data structures
1
2
3
4

14. A business case for data management
Data management: from the trenches 13

15. Inspired by the S. Soares (2011) Selling information governance to the business. MC Press
Data management: from the trenches 14

16. It is extremely hard to build a quantitative business
case for data management.
Why do we ask for it if ‘handling data’ is such an
important part of our day to day work?
Data management: from the trenches 15

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18. A “qualitative” business case – especially when
building it with a group of stakeholders – is much
more valuable. It does justice to the inherent
complexities of getting data management “just
right” in the organization.
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19. Real-world example
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20. Following example is a mix of two assignments of the last 3 years. The purpose
is to show how the ‘qualitative business case thinking’ helps in structuring your
program.
Data management: from the trenches 19

21. Setting: financial organization, hoping to improve the data management
capability as a result of increased regulatory pressure
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22. Data management: from the trenches 21
Motivation to
work on ‘grip on
data’
Ambition: more
data driven
Data (science)
experiments
Perceived value of
datamanagement
Perceived “extra
work”
DOES
NOT
EXIST
DOMINANT
FACTOR
More ‘need for
grip’

23. Data management: from the trenches 22
Regulatory
pressure
Modeling
interplay proces
x data x systems
Develop
business
glossary
Motivation to
work on ‘grip on
data’
Data quality
Ambition: more
data driven
Data (science)
experiments
Perceived value of
datamanagement
Perceived “extra
work”
DOMINANT
FACTOR
More ‘need for
grip’

24. Consequence of our analysis:
(1) Small initiatives/ don’t boil the ocean, (2)
people-first approach, (3) focus on learning/
training
Data management: from the trenches 23

25. Later we also learned that:
(a) Avoid modeling! Many business stakeholders
don’t like it, (b) Invest heavily in modeling, it gives
insights when presented well!
Data management: from the trenches 24

26. Lessons learned:
The up-front analysis for a ‘qualitative business
case’ works to make a plan. It also helps to adjust
plans when things do not work. It works best when
co-created with a small group of stakeholders who
know the organization well.
Data management: from the trenches 25

27. Conclusions
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28. Call to action:
The best way forward is to learn from each other. Let’s keep sharing our stories
through conferences, whitepapers, DMBOK, …
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29. Thank you for your attention.
Questions?
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