This month, we’re reviewing the book “Unlinked: The Biggest Gap Your Business Never Knew About and the Unspoken Architecture That Will Fix It” by Meenu Howland. Howland leverages her personal history and experience in data governance to assist the reader in implementing or repairing an existing data governance program.
The first thing that Howland does is give tips to the reader on how to approach the concepts in the book based on their role. Howland refers to this as “reading the book through your lens.” This really gives a lot of guidance for how to consume the knowledge in the book. As “Unlinked” introduces the concepts of “organizational relational governance” (ORG) and an “organizational relationship architecture” (ORA), the prologue helps the reader understand their role and purpose. The book then launches from here, describing how, if strategy existed before but was never executed, the concepts to enable it are, truthfully, “unlinked.”
Throughout the book, Howland references real-life stories that show the concepts she’s writing about in action. While the content written here is valuable and the lessons are good, more citations would be helpful for the reader to be able to check other sources. That said, these real-life examples really help ground the reader in the lessons that Howland is teaching throughout the book, both from a positive and negative perspective. Showing the reader how well things can work when they work well, but when things are unlinked, the complications and risks associated with attempting to achieve the strategic goals of good governance.
Howland stresses later in the book the importance of measures and metrics as well as change management. These sections are critical to data governance programs, and Howland’s approach to communicating them is excellent, but the current version of the book has some structural moments that make following along confusing at times. Of note, when discussing change management, Howland stresses the importance of the activity above the dedicated approach to change management. Referencing both ADKAR and Kotter, Howland gives the reader the penultimate point of change management, especially as it relates to the concepts of ORA and ORG discussed throughout the book. Ultimately, the lesson is good and the content is beneficial. Future printings of this book should have some of those printing issues addressed.
In conclusion, the book really connects the concepts required for implementing good governance, and adds that connection to specific roles in an organization. “Unlinked” is excellent for folks who are struggling with launching or finding that their existing data governance or data strategy initiatives are lacking.
More About the Author
Meenu Howland is the founder of Neuronova Consulting, with over 15 years of experience in data strategy, governance, and AI alignment. She is known for helping organizations connect the dots between data, process, and meaningful business outcomes, especially where traditional silos fall short. Her work spans industries including energy, finance, insurance, customer experience, and agriculture. She holds certifications in data management, business intelligence, and agile delivery. Meenu is deeply committed to driving value through structure, inclusive thinking, and building systems that work in practice across departments, roles, and the ever-changing landscape of modern business.
