AI requires a cultural shift: 'Data management is now a strategic imperative'

Many organizations are struggling with a culture shift that stems from the realization that AI only works with good data. "Data management has shifted from a compliance obligation to a strategic necessity," states Marco Heij, managing partner at Premium Business Consultants and an exhibitor at the Data Expo. "Five years ago, the question was, 'We have to do something with data, but what?' Now that question has changed to, 'How do we tackle this?' That requires a different, people-oriented approach."

"Organizations did data management a few years ago mainly because they had to because of laws and regulations, such as the AVG. They didn't do it from their own motivation. Now you see that more and more organizations want to start doing data management themselves because they recognize that it is crucial to their functioning. Almost every organization now has something in its strategy about AI and its application. Often the motivation is to simplify things and make them more efficient. Also as a solution to a shortage of people with certain knowledge."

I see as a development that the quality and availability of data now suddenly become hyper-important if you want AI to add value."

"In addition, AI, like ChatGPT, makes data much more widely accessible and applicable in organizations. This technology actually removes the barrier that always existed for people who want to work with data themselves. This is causing a big shift in usage as well as in expectations about what people can do with data. You no longer have to ask someone to create a nice report for you. You can do it yourself with AI tools."

"With the availability of AI and data tools, people have to start working and thinking differently. Before, if someone wanted to work on a problem, they had to figure out where to find information about it and how to bring it together. Now determining what you want to know has become much more important than how you find out. I think that this change is just far too easily overlooked. Maybe you have people in the organization with the right level of knowledge, but they have to learn to work in a new way. And that's forgotten adamantly."

How can organizations best approach that culture change?
"It is very important to get the role of data ownership right. That's why you first have to look within an organization at how processes have gone so far and what is missing to arrive at the filling of the new roles. How that process goes depends very much on the maturity of the organization. The important thing is that the organizations themselves come up with the solutions. This can be achieved by always asking the right questions. It is very tempting to suggest a tool that is already available, such as standard management tooling. But that's often not what suits the organization. So you actually have to go along with the development that is going on in the organization. You have to take five times the time you originally had in mind for that."

You have to hold your own line but be open to what the organization needs. If you impose a new way of working without looking at what is really happening in an organization, eventually some employee will conclude that it does not work in practice."

So can an organization move forward with such a culture change for the time being?
"Five years ago you saw organizations making the first steps in this direction. Now you suddenly see that what didn't catch on at all then, for example data governance, becomes a requirement. That's certainly the case with regulated organizations like banks and other companies that do exciting things with data. So looking ahead to what will be required in the future remains difficult. We adopted the DAMA DMBoK2 [Data Management Body of Knowledge, developed by the Data Management Association, ed.] framework five years ago. but it is difficult to look a year or two years ahead with everything that is happening. I think everyone needs to learn and grow intrinsically, thinking and doing from within themselves."

What is your goal to offer visitors to the Data Expo?
"We don't go there to score as many assignments as possible. We are there because we are very eager to learn what is happening in the field of data right now. You meet all the people there who are working on that. With them I want to have a conversation. I have been in contact with people for a long time without a direct assignment coming out of it. Sometimes in such a conversation you do arrive at a topic to which we think we can contribute something."

Visit Premium at booth #143. Premium is a group of experts that helps companies get a grip on data. With pragmatic solutions to complex data and compliance issues, focusing on innovation, legislation and better use of data. Order your free tickets here.