Aligning with Organizational Goals

While the focus on data literacy so far has been on understanding how to use data to find insights that lead to decisions and actions, this chapter takes a step back to highlight that it is important not only how you go about finding insights but also to ensure that those insights are actionable and provide value to the organization. For this reason, data literacy is closely connected with an organization’s strategy and goals.

Before starting any transformation, organizations need to first establish an overall strategy and vision for the organization. From there, they need to establish specific objectives that start at the top of an organization and cascade down. These objectives focus on employee activities to attain that vision. Then, organizations need to align their strategy and objectives with the employees’ culture. Organizational alignment only occurs when strategic business goals and cultural values and behaviors are mutually...