Hub & Spoken.

What's in this podcast?

In this podcast, Jason speaks to Jennifer Agnes, Managing Director of the Cynozure Group in the US, about creating a data management strategy that is best suited for your business.

Listen to this episode on Spotify, iTunes, and Stitcher. You can also catch up on the previous episodes of the Hub & Spoken podcast when you subscribe.

What are your thoughts on data management? We’d love to hear from you; join the #HubandSpoken discussion and let us know on Twitter and LinkedIn.

For more on this topic, read Jennifer’s  recent blog: Is Data Management the Superpower to Unlocking Business Value?

One Big Message

Data is an asset that every organisation needs, but there’s no cookie-cutter approach to creating a good data strategy and implementing it.

[01:33] How Jennifer got involved in data, and her incredible journey into data management

[03:40] Examining the terms data management and data governance – and if there is really a difference

[06:40] The way in which data governance and management is perceived by different stakeholders; how it has changed over the years

[10:50] How to choose the right tools for data management

[13:11] How to plan out an effective data management strategy for your business

[17:55] What processes mean within a data strategy

[22:55] The importance of good data design so that you receive meaningful output from your data strategy

The evolution of data management

Technology has come a long way in the past few decades. In the early days of computing, data was managed with pen and paper. Then, through the use of databases and spreadsheets, information could be tracked and analyzed electronically. But as data volumes have exploded, so too has the need for more sophisticated data management tools. Today’s big data platforms are able to handle petabytes of information using cutting-edge technologies such as Hadoop and Spark.

This allows businesses to gain valuable insights into their customers and operations that would otherwise be impossible. As data management evolves, organisations must keep pace to stay ahead of the competition.

Choosing the right approach to data management

All companies have data. But not all companies treat their data the same way. There are various approaches to data management, and each has its own benefits and drawbacks. However, many businesses don’t take the time to properly research and select the right data management approach for their needs.

Some considerations that may help you decide on the right approach for your needs:

• Data volume – How much data needs to be managed?
• Data variety – What kind of data am I dealing with? Is it structured (e.g. customer records) or unstructured (e.g. email)? Is my communication mostly text-based (email)
• Data budget – How much are you willing (and able!) to invest in your data strategy?

In fact, there are many things to consider in data management. And things can get extremely complicated without the correct plan, strategy and management in place.

Work backwards

Creating a data management strategy is not something many people think about until they are faced with it. It can feel a bit of an overwhelming task to take on at the beginning of your company’s life cycle. There are so many different options out there for how you can go about creating your data strategy, and what type of data to collect, that it can be difficult to know where to start.

The best way to start creating your data strategy is to work backwards. If you understand what your end goals are then it is easier to formulate a strategy and management plan, rather than trying to make one up as you go along.

A good place to start is by asking yourself questions such as: What do I want my business model to look like? What kind of information am I trying to gather? Who am I collecting this information from? Is my goal just customer profiling or do I also need to take into account other stakeholders?

Create a data ecosystem

Data is the foundation of any modern business. It’s not just how much data you have, but what type of data and, more importantly, where it resides. With so many data sources scattered among diverse devices, applications, systems and networks it can be difficult to know which approach to use when managing your information.

Data management helps businesses to consolidate these different pieces of information, and streamline the process, to create meaningful data that can be used to improve a business through increasing income, decreasing cost or managing risk.

To summarise

If you have any form of data in your business, it is important to know how it is being acquired and turned into the information necessary to move the needle forward. Data management facilitates this process by simplifying the pathway.