Telling Complex Stories With Data To C-level Leaders
How do data scientists make an impact on the business? Data and models manage complexity and reduce uncertainty. For senior leaders, this is a very uncertain time. They need actionable information but don't always have access to it.
What is your CEO most concerned about? This chart tells the story.
How do we translate this into a set of priorities for the data team? With every line item on this visual, there are a set of questions that senior leaders are asking. They have answers but often not much confidence or evidence to support them.
We can establish ourselves as senior leadership's top resource because we understand data sourcing and analysis. Most do not realize what their data teams are capable of. When I began supporting C-level executives, their lack of access to high-quality data and cadre of shady advisors was stunning.
Data professionals often forget that most people don't have our mindset and ability to surface insights from data. In this article, I will open the process I use to build a C-level and Board briefing. They have some of the toughest questions and most interesting challenges.
What's Next For The Economy And What Does That Mean For The Business?
This is top of mind for C-level executives. Mixed signals are floating around. Consensus is moving toward a mild recession for between 18 and 24 months. Most believe we are already 3-6 months into the recession. The people who said it'll be a catastrophe are moderating, and those who said we'd skate through without any problems are tightening their stances.
The best way to begin supporting the C-suite is how I start conversations. "What are your biggest concerns and questions about the economy and its potential impacts? What specific scenarios keep you up at night or are you hopeful about?"
Every company shares the same top-level concerns, but diving into details is how we can deliver the most relevant, granular insights. Delivering at the C-level is all about providing that 1 data point that changes everything or a 360 view of the situation with balanced coverage.
One of the big questions I get is, "How healthy are US consumers?" If challenges like that don't get you up in the mornings, I don't know what will. It is tough just to get a descriptive read of consumer health, let alone forward-looking.
Senior leaders aren't worried about every consumer. They focus on the business's consumers, so I need to narrow my analysis and pull key segments. What data points are most informative? For this type of analysis, I go with demographic metrics. For behaviors, these are trash. For macroeconomic factors, they are treasure.