Book of the Month: The Data Catalyst³ (Cubed)

Overview

This month we’re taking a look at a new entry into the data governance space by Bob Seiner. This new book is called “The Data Catalyst³ (Cubed)” and combines Seiner’s teachings on data governance, change management, and data fluency (nee: data literacy) and makes the point that these efforts have exponential value to an organization with respects to data management.

The book makes an emphatic point that data governance is greatly enhanced and enabled by continuous activity in change management and data fluency. If the reader is familiar with Seiner’s other books (“Non-Invasive Data Governance,” “Non-Invasive Data Governance Strikes Again,” and “Non-Invasive Data Governance Unleashed”), this entry enhances his contribution to the data management community. For readers looking for help implementing or sustaining an existing non-invasive data governance initiative, this book is an excellent tool.

Seiner structures the book giving a reader tools at the end of each chapter. These are titled “Immediate Actionable Steps” that the reader can take and act on, as titled, immediately. While this has been a trend in books featured in this column lately, it’s still very refreshing and valuable. It’s easy for books to tend toward an academic diatribe of what should be the perfect utopia of data governance, but Seiner has decades worth of experience and knows the trenches that practitioners battle in to make ground in data management initiatives.  The reader, through this guidance, benefits from Seiner’s years of accumulated wisdom.

The addition of change management is wonderful in this space. While previous Book of the Month entries (like Data Governance Change Management and Unlinked) made this point, Seiner really ties it together with the non-invasive framework and gives the reader additional valuable insights. Seiner emphasizes the importance of championship and storytelling to make these types of initiatives stick.

Lastly, Seiner tackles data fluency. In this entry of the book, we’re given ideas for fostering a culture of data within an organization. Seiner gives us some insight into his use of the term “fluency” over “literacy” with this definition: “the ability of people across an organization to confidently understand, communicate, and apply data in context to make informed decisions and drive measurable outcomes.” In the fluency entry in the book, Seiner really hammers this hope with the statement that “most organizations think they’re addressing data literacy when they roll out a set of training courses. A few sessions, some slides, maybe a certification badge, and they call it progress.” Seiner’s point really echoes a reality seen in the trenches. Organizations go through a lot of effort to do something for literacy, but breaking through to the culture of the organization is often lacking. Seiner provides the reader with some excellent insight and action in this area as well.

To conclude, this book brings together data governance, change management, and data fluency to spark a functioning data management initiative for the reader. Incidentally, “spark” is the exact term Seiner uses throughout the book, as these activities together ignite an organization’s desire and ability to use data for significant advantage, be that at an operational, tactical, or strategic level. “The Data Catalyst³ (Cubed)” is a must-use book for anyone implementing or reviving data management at their organization. We say “must-use,” as this book offers the reader so much actionable content that it isn’t just something that one reads and puts on the shelf – it’s a tome that many will reference consistently throughout the custodianship of a data management program.

About Robert S. Seiner

Robert S. (Bob) Seiner is the president and principal of KIK Consulting & Educational Services. He is the creator and champion of the Non-Invasive Data Governance® approach and The Data Catalyst³™ (Cubed) model. Bob is faculty at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) in their Heinz College Exec Ed Chief Data & AI Officer (CDAIO) program and has authored several books on the governance approach and model.

You can follow him on LinkedIn.