Data-Driven solutions can help companies deliver superior experiences by equipping them with accurate, relevant, and insightful information related to the tastes and preferences of their target audiences. Amidst increasing pressures to surpass customers’ sky-rocketing expectations, data today has assumed the importance of strategic prominence. Data-driven organizations can proactively identify opportunities and by capitalizing on the early windows of opportunity, these firms can make decent profits and stay ahead of the competition. Further, data-driven solutions are proving instrumental in achieving ground-breaking innovation and helping firms to stay ahead on the learning curve.

Cultivating a data-driven culture in a company is not a one-shot process. Rather, it’s a long journey that requires constant support and encouragement from the top leadership of a firm. In addition, the financial implication of incorporating data-driven culture also needs to be taken into account by the top management. While there are other considerations too, here’re the five tips that you should follow for achieving desired results on Data-Driven Solutions:

Establish Vision: Embarking on a journey to adopt a Data philosophy requires organizations to set a clear vision of Data-Driven Solutions and communicate it throughout the company across functional departments. While communicating, the emphasis of the leadership must be on the rationale and utility of the Data-Driven approach for the entire organization. This focus on benefits for all stakeholders of the ecosystem will set the stage for the smooth implementation of Data-Driven decision-making in the company and dispel any misconception regarding the planning and execution of the Data-Driven strategy. 

Decentralize Access: Working with data silos can considerably drag down the productivity of organizations and hence, to become an efficient data-driven company, the complete decentralization of data access is absolutely required.  Further, it’s the primary responsibility of the management to ensure that the provenance of the data is established, its accuracy is well-verified, and its utilization is optimized for achieving desired performance on critical parameters. Further, the data department should work to evolve a layered approach where employees get access in a manner that doesn’t compromise the safety, security, and confidentiality of the database. 

Continuous Updation: In today’s fast-changing business environment, it is imperative to continuously update the database so that relevant information can be extracted for making accurate decisions. A clear and comprehensive framework for collecting, storing, analyzing, and updating the data should be framed so that relevant stakeholders can make the most of the available data. In addition, special emphasis must be given to proper sorting, segmenting, and organizing of the data to make it handy for quick decision-making.

Go Multidisciplinary: At the end of the day, the effectiveness of data-driven solutions is dependent upon the people who collect, process, analyze, and control these solutions. Clearly, it’s a good idea to invest in upskilling and reskilling employees as it will help in effective decision-making and growth of the company. Adopting multi-disciplinary teams is a conducive way to strengthen the data culture and analytical skills of employees. Top management should ensure that each team has at least one person who is skilled in data analytics as it can help mould the mindset of other members towards data-driven solutions. It would also be beneficial if top leadership trains employees in Big Data Analytics as this investment can go a long way in ensuring that firms reap the benefits of data-driven culture to the hilt.

Reward Performance: Rewarding prominent performers who excel in conceptualizing, implementing, and delivering data-driven solutions should be high on the priority list of the organization. By sharing the success of such employees, others in the organization will feel motivated, inspired, and put in their best efforts to emulate the success of their counterparts. While devising the reward mechanisms, top management should ensure that these frameworks are aligned with the Data-Vision of the company so that these can be run and sustained for the long term.

Data-Driven Solutions are the need of the hour. For companies to remain competitive and deliver superior customer experiences, the integration of Data Strategy should figure among the topmost priorities of firms. The integration of Data Culture into the organization is a long process and requires a shift in both the culture and mindset of employees. To successfully make this shift, the top leadership team must proceed with desired rigour and persistence besides committing itself to the investment required to facilitate the adoption of Data-Driven solutions. Remember, the desired results on the integration of data in decision-making will manifest only when all relevant stakeholders understand the importance and benefits of implementing a data-driven approach and follow the standards and techniques of Data-Analytics in the letter and spirit.

The article has been written by Santhosh Sagar Reddy, CEO and Co-Founder, CoffeeBeans