Roles and Responsibilities in the Data Culture

Summary

In this video, Matthew discusses the intricate relationship between business and IT stakeholders within a successful data culture, emphasizing the importance of a managed self-service BI approach. He outlines three strategies for adopting business intelligence: business-led self-service, corporate BI, and the balanced managed approach. The latter promotes collaboration between IT and business units, ensuring data is both controlled and flexible to meet evolving business needs. Matthew highlights Microsoft’s journey toward creating a disciplined yet agile environment, advocating for a data culture that encourages data-driven decisions across the organization.

Takeaways

• 😀 A data culture is defined by the actions it promotes and discourages, encouraging data-driven decisions across the organization.
• 😀 Executive sponsorship is crucial for the success of a data culture and self-service BI adoption.
• 😀 Three primary approaches to business intelligence exist: business-led self-service, corporate BI, and managed self-service BI.
• 😀 Business-led self-service BI allows stakeholders to use their own data with minimal IT involvement, fostering independence but risking inconsistency.
• 😀 Corporate BI places ownership of tools and data within IT, which can limit the agility of business users.
• 😀 Managed self-service BI combines the strengths of both business and IT, fostering collaboration and ownership of BI solutions.
• 😀 The managed approach allows IT to provide reliable, curated data sources while empowering business users to make agile decisions.
• 😀 Organizations should adapt their BI approaches over time, responding to changing needs and striking a balance between control and flexibility.
• 😀 Microsoft's finance team exemplifies the journey from unmanaged self-service to a disciplined yet flexible BI framework.
• 😀 The concept of 'discipline at the core and flexibility at the edge' is vital for balancing compliance and business agility in data management.

Q & A

What is the definition of a data culture as discussed in the video?

A data culture is defined by the actions it promotes or discourages, emphasizing the importance of data-driven decisions by stakeholders throughout the organization.

What are the three standard delivery approaches for adopting business intelligence?

The three approaches are business-led self-service, corporate BI, and managed self-service BI.

What characterizes the business-led self-service approach?

In the business-led self-service approach, business stakeholders independently manage their data and make decisions with minimal IT involvement.

What are the potential drawbacks of a corporate BI approach?

The corporate BI approach can limit business agility, as IT controls all aspects of the data and BI tools, leading to potential delays in decision-making.

Why is the managed self-service BI approach considered the 'north star' for organizations?

It combines the strengths of both IT and business, allowing collaboration while ensuring data integrity and flexibility for business users.

How does Microsoft exemplify the concept of 'discipline at the core and flexibility at the edge'?

Microsoft emphasizes managing key data consistently for compliance while enabling business users the flexibility to respond to changing needs without strict controls.

What is the role of IT in the managed self-service BI approach?

IT is responsible for managing the tools, platforms, and ensuring that the data sources are reliable and properly curated.

What can trigger changes in the roles and responsibilities of IT and business stakeholders over time?

Organizational needs, such as observing that business users are straying outside agreed boundaries or realizing they need more control over certain data, can trigger these changes.

What were some challenges faced by Microsoft’s finance organization in their early BI efforts?

Early efforts led to inconsistency, duplicate work, and siloed applications due to an unmanaged self-service approach.

What will the next video in the series focus on?

The next video will explore the relationship between business intelligence, IT, and the balance between flexibility and discipline.