1. GIG Presentation: Igniting insight
20 August 2014
Wendy Hamilton
Information is the lifeblood of an organisation – but many have poor circulation. Executives need to be at the heart of pumping information
This presentation is a case study in enthusing executive management in supporting business intelligence and information management

2. The Challenge A decade of underinvestment
Who’s interested in IM anyway? Not my job/problem.
Numerous reviews, but the problem doesn’t go away
What is the problem?
It’s too hard

3. Breaking the Impasse
Challenges and risks of executive involvement – but you can’t do it without them
Everyone has a different idea of what is important
Apathy – ‘not my problem’
It’s got something to do with technology, hasn’t it? Not understanding IM or BI
Realise that there are 2 conversations in 2 languages – executive & practitioner
Speak executives’ language – the language of the business, not the language of information
Begin with what they know –show how information can enable the business strategy - ‘information as an enabler; data by design’ to deliver the goals. This becomes your info strategy (how, why, when).
Make “information as an asset” tangible and real
Opportunities – the projects – start here. What is the information value proposition for the project?
Executive intervention – may take patience & perseverance. They care about 2 things:
Business transformation
Performance measurement: health of org; bottlenecks, pre-emptive action.

4. Now that you have their attention….
The bad news…
The good news…
The bad news…
Low maturity in IM, BI & data analytics for insight. There are probably pockets of good practice but less so at enterprise level.
No silver bullet
The foundations are even more important than the products; don’t understand the link between foundations and products. Poor foundations can undermine the products.
The good news… (you can have your cake and eat it)
BI and IM can be the engine room powering transformation and the health of your organisation
You can build products and foundations in parallel

5. The future is now
We are already being asked for the information we need to drive tomorrow
We know some of what we want to know (requirements)
We know what some of the problems are (we are not getting what we want; gaps)
We have mountains of data that can give us insight
We already spend a lot (hidden cost). There is money in the system; we have to manage and allocate it better.

6. The moment of truth We are the answer and we have the answers
We need a plan – not just a collection of good things we should do; but coherent, connected actions.
Specifics will be different for each organisation but we all:
We need to invest in people and skills
We need to change the way we behave - culture
Yes, we need new systems – but not straight away
So where do we begin?

7. The way ahead
Provide context and make it meaningful – build a roadmap or storyboard everyone can relate to
Governance is the critical cornerstone
Quality, Quality, Quality
Value for money
The tricky triangle: Change/Cost/Deliverables-Time – only 2 sides are achievable at the cost of the third. Executives have to decide this trade-off.

8. The storyboard
I said earlier I would tell you how I made “information as an asset” meaningful – this is it.
Create a storyboard everyone can relate to. My example: BIIM Maturity Journey
Make it concrete and meaningful
Intuitive – easily understandable and contain key themes that you will later draw on and reference
Credible – builds trust and confidence

9. The results
BIIM in the top 3 key strategic priorities – discussed at every board meeting
The whole executive team buys in
commitment & urgency
common goal
Action is happening quickly…
Governance framework implemented (Tier 2 & 3)
Demand pipeline being assessed (to prioritise demand)
Resourcing options and structures considered (to better manage supply)
Counting the cost; how can we realise better value for money from our investment?

10. The lessons
Be prepared (for executive intervention). When it comes, you need to act quickly.
You do need an executive champion
Realise that there are 2 conversations in 2 languages – executive & practitioner
Use the language of the business – don’t talk about ‘information management’ (insight, outcomes, products)
Make it real; concrete rather than conceptual
Identify the projects with the most executive visibility and support
Use every opportunity – you don’t know which ones will yield the best results
Work top down and bottom up
Extend your network – you’re going to need it (internal and external)
Be patient