Research07
Securing Executive Support and Navigating Organization Culture
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Consider The Environment
Senior leaders may not understand the value of business intelligence
Organizational factors have the most impact on BI success or failure
Executive level support is cited as a critical factor for success, and blamed when BI projects fail
BI sponsorship is crucial for evolving from simple reporting to proactive analytics
With all this positive reinforcement for the need for executive sponsorship, such sponsorship is not always present
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Source: Howson
Cultural and Organizational Aspects for Successful BI
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Source: Howson
A BI Executive Sponsor Provides Positive Impact
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Source: Howson
The CIO Most Often Sponsors BI Initiatives
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Source: Howson
Is the CIO the Best BI Executive Sponsor?
Probably not because:
They often lack organizational influence
Their technical orientation leaves them vulnerable to criticism for a lack of business alignment (per a Gartner survey of 220 CEOs)
CIOs are still rarely members of company Boards of Directors, so they’re not often members of the “core team”
CIO sponsorship risks perceptions of not being aligned with business strategy
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Source: Howson
The Evolving Role of the CIO
Technology is becoming central to business
The CIO is a central figure where technology is a competitive advantage
The CIO is on the periphery where technology is just an operational necessity
If your CIO is on the periphery he/she is not a suitable executive sponsor
Hindrances to Progress
CIOs’ comfort zones may lead them to emphasize technology
CEOs may not be technically savvy and don’t want the CIO to expose this
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Source: Howson
The CEO, COO or Multiple Sponsors Are More Effective Than the CIO
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Source: Howson
How About a Chief Analytics Officer?
Introducing a new C-level executive, “The Chief Analytics Officer”
How does the CAO role differ from the CIO role?
The CIO is accountable for:
Effective data capture and storage
System availability
The CAO is accountable for:
Exploiting the value of data and analytics
Establishing an analytics culture
CAO runs an analytics group whose requirements the CIO and their team support
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Source: Howson
The Profile of An Effective Executive Sponsor
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Source: Howson
The Role of an Executive Sponsor
Executive Sponsors
Articulate commitment to BI and its organizational impact
Help craft the BI vision and state it in the context of company strategy
Procure funding and approve the budget
Remove political barriers
Act as a key escalation point for resolving issues the BI team and steering committee cannot resolve
Set an example: use BI tools, ask analytical questions, support those who challenge the status quo and encourage different perspectives
Executive Sponsors are not involved in daily tasks and details
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Source: Howson
Getting and Keeping Executive Buy In
Crucial to success
The term “data warehouse” isn’t sexy (That’s why “data lakes” are in vogue!)
Many perceive BI with costly, never ending projects with no business value
Support must be earned:
Demonstrate small successes and communicate business benefits
Manage expectations: under promise and over deliver
Exploit frustration and answer where BI can address the “pain chain”
Evolve the BI organization and capabilities and constantly engage executives
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Source: Howson
Demonstrate Small Successes
Say what you will do and do what you say!!
Success engenders trust, support and champions
Start BI with or without executive sponsorship on a small scale. Demonstrate success, then procure buy in, then ramp up
Small successes are important for all types BI projects
Overarching initiatives
Changes in strategy
New initiatives
Small successes are important for:
Learning
Risk Management
Proving business value
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Source: Howson
Success Inspires Conversations, Conversations Inspire Executive Support
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Source: Howson
Managing Expectations
Consumes a large portion of time
Position your efforts:
If it’s a pilot or point solution/”dot” release, clearly state that
Confirm you won’t “scale up” without an executive champion
Aggressive vendor management is important. Watch them closely!
They’ll want to meet with other leaders without you. If you let them they will set their own agenda
Your Prof’s experienced this with SAP at a major health insurer
At an offsite, SAP met all day with our business partners. Afterward, our business partners expressed disappointment with our scope
They were unhappy Deloitte won the bulk of the business so they continued to meet with uninvolved leaders and escalated to executive management until the Prof had to realign expectations back to our original agreements
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Source: Howson
Exploit Frustration
Employs the concept of the “pain chain.” Ask
“If there was one thing you could fix, what would it be?”
“How much time do you spend arguing about the numbers?”
“How much of a delay to you put up with in getting your numbers?”
“Can you tell me how accurate your numbers are?”
Executives don’t want to hear about the mess your data and systems are in or how “locked down” it is
Instead, focus on the degree of frustration and how, applied effectively, BI can alleviate that frustration and provide business value:
From Howson (2014), “The {insert frustration here} is killing us, and business intelligence can provide {insert benefit here}.”
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Evolve and Engage
You cannot stand still!
Nurture executive support after the honeymoon is over
Constantly communicate ongoing benefits
Drive an evolution from reporting to analytics
Keep providing valuable products
Focus on business value add
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Source: Howson
Prof’s Observations
| Good Sponsors (Like Good Leaders) | Bad Sponsors (Like Bad Leaders) |
| Champion the vision (A Major IT Services Company) Support and defend the team (The U.S. Division of A Major Reinsurer) Exhibit emotional intelligence (A Major IT Services Company) Respect boundaries (A Major P&C Insurer) Tout successes and share accolades | Are not present (A Major Reinsurer) Throw team members “under the bus” (The Global Division of a Major Reinsurer) Are unreasonable (A Leading Pharmaceuticals Company) Expect you to be available to them 24/7 (A Leading Health Insurer) Say “what have you done for me lately” and take credit |
The best was when Prof was at a wake and his sponsor wanted a meeting!
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Best Practices
Executive support must be earned and re-earned:
Procure a credible executive sponsor
Be ready to adapt if your executive sponsor changes
Some executives think BI is a “money pit” so continually prove its value
Encourage your executive sponsor(s) to lead by example
If you’ve done everything right but still cannot procure executive support, your company may never fully appreciate the value of BI
Your Prof Adds, “…and don’t proceed if you can avoid doing so…”
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Source: Howson
Reference List
Howson, C. (2014). Successful business intelligence: Unlock the value
of BI and big data. New York. McGraw Hill Education.
ISBN: 9780071809184
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