Ways to Embrace the Platinum Rule for Data
We all know the golden rule: Treat others the way you want to be treated. The lesser known “platinum rule” tells us to treat others the way theywant to be treated. It’s an important distinction that I’ve embraced in my personal life, and one that enterprises can learn from when it comes to data.
In today’s ever-changing business climate, business leaders are looking for all types of data, and the pressure to turn that data into insights for faster, better decision making continues to escalate. As a result, CIOs and IT leaders are evaluating their data infrastructure and systems, as well as the processes for business users to access it.
And, if we think about using the platinum rule when it comes to data — empowering users with data the way theywant it — it becomes the guiding principle for digital transformations. From accommodating remote or hybrid workforces to changes in global supply chains, CIOs are looking to transform — not upgrade — their digital ecosystems, and that requires a different approach.
At our company, the goal was greater agility to meet the demands of the business — and the key was data. Finance and human resources were priorities, as with most companies, so we focused on a single system from Workday so our users have only one source for data. In North America we had already brought in a manufacturing system Plex for our plant floor activities, allowing us to go from 262 applications down to seven. We then acquired another business in Europe and Asia utilizing a different ERP solution, so a single system became even more imperative. This allows us to give our business users a single place to go for critical data, even creating workflows for some workers that must still be inside a transactional system.
This has served us well, with much of the transition completed prior to the pandemic. For example, as a global supplier of automotive parts, we saw freight charges escalate at rates we’d never seen following the March 2021 Suez Canal incident where a container ship got stuck for six days causing a backup of 350+ ships. Compound that with China ramping their supply, and shipping containers that used to cost US $4,500 went to US $20,000 per container.
This unforeseen development highlighted our need to operate with greater agility: how we inform, track, and invoice customers, while managing our supply chain amid daily change. We needed real-time data in the hands of business users to move quickly and make decisions about invoicing terms, customer communications, and alternate suppliers and shipping options.
