How CDOs Can Walk the High Wire of Data-Driven Business
A successful chief data officer (CDO) requires the skills of a seasoned high-wire performer — the ability to remain consistently stable and agile. Like high-wire artists, high-performing data andanalyticsleaders must keep balanced, all the while serving multiple stakeholders, adapting to constant business “winds of change” and staying current on innovation.
“In the rapidly emerging arena of data and analytics, the role of theCDOcan be one of the most challenging positions within an organization,” saysValerie Logan, research director at Gartner. “These leaders are as diverse as the data they analyze, originating from backgrounds as varied as 25-year veterans of data and analytics organizations to newly emerging graduates from university data science programs.”
Gartner has developed six key “survive and thrive” strategies that should help CDOs balance the growing demands of data and analytics.
1. Clarify and communicate your data and analytics charter A clear charter includes a simplified vision of what a data-driven organization looks like in practice, a mission statement of what the organization does, and a narrative that makes data and analytics real for those who don’t necessarily have a data management or quantitative background. Often part of a data and analytics business case, the charter should outline practical business outcomes that clarify intent, scope and focus. Lead by example, and with examples.
2. Adopt and communicate a bimodal approach Designed to address this classic balancing act, Gartner defines abimodalapproach as “the practice of managing two separate, coherent modes of IT delivery, one focused on stability and the other on agility.” Deliberate management of resources and capacity to serve classic and emerging requirements are vital to a state of balance within a bimodal environment. Team structure should be regularly revisited to support growth and maintenance agendas.
3. Establish your data and analytics strategy, roadmap and critical path For organizations maturing from abusiness intelligence(BI) to ananalyticsfocus, modernizing the current BI strategy and roadmap will support the advancement of analytics and data science capabilities.
