How a data strategy will future proof your workforce

Home > How a data strategy will future proof your workforce

By now you will be well aware of the importance of a data strategy. It helps keep your business ahead of the competition, ensures personalised communication with customers and it optimises workflows. But there is another reason for keeping up with the data revolution, one that we don’t hear about as often…

In a movement that has been called ‘The Great Resignation’, or ‘Big Quit’, UK businesses were hit by rising levels of attrition in 2021. As a result, any future-facing businesses should be looking for ways they can attract and retain their workforce. As it turns out, establishing a solid data strategy can do just that.

Attracting and retaining digital natives

A data strategy is an effective way of growing your workforce. The main reason for this is that our employee landscape is becoming increasingly made up of digital natives. According to research conducted by Oliver Wyman, the generation aged between 20 and 35 years old – the older portion of Gen Z, coupled with Generation Y or the ‘Millennials’ – show certain wants and needs when it comes to employment.

They are keen to be empowered by the company they work for and are consistently seeking new challenges. They enjoy collaborative work and being an active member of a community. Establishing a data strategy can help underpin these values in your own company, and we’re here to tell you how.

Empowering your team with evidence-based decision making

The feeling of making a meaningful difference to the company can go a long way when it comes to retaining staff. This can be achieved by helping your team feel empowered to make decisions that impact the business. Giving teams access to quality data and accurate reporting allows them to make informed, evidence-based decisions.

If an employee wants to bring a suggestion to your board, they are far more likely to feel empowered to do so if they have the data to back it up. Your board is also far more likely to listen if the idea has data behind it. Seeing your own ideas valued and implemented is extremely rewarding, and contributes to job satisfaction. Facilitating employee contribution is also a great way of diversifying ideas and encouraging forward-thinking. This is especially true when using software that enables predictive analytics.

Utilising skills and creating new challenges

Having a data infrastructure that provides access to technology in teams across the business – not just IT – will allow your staff to utilise the skills they have, as well as build new ones. The majority of workers use advanced technology in their everyday lives, some even as far as coding and data analysis.

Giving a wider set of teams access to data tools makes good business sense as you’re utilising their inherent digital knowledge. But it also helps them to build on their own skills. Offering fresh new challenges that enable your team to evolve their skills is another common expectation from millennial workers. This could play a huge part in encouraging your team to keep working for you.

Creating the optimised environment for collaborative working

Creating a single source of truth should be central to any data strategy. One of the key benefits is opening the door to a more seamless way of collaborative working. If your teams are working from different data sources, this can cause conflicting opinions and rifts between teams. Operating through a single source of truth opens a dialogue across teams as it gives them the ability to easily share information and collaborate.

Another aspect of collaboration is implementing software that encourages agile working. This means teams that may not always be office based can access the data they need from wherever they are working and therefore aren’t excluded from teamwork or decision making. Opening lines of communication and encouraging cross-team collaboration creates a sense of community within your business, critical for retaining staff.

We’re here to help

Whether you are looking to implement an effective data strategy or build on one you already have, our team can help. We use a range of technologies and methodologies to help you get the most out of your data. One of the technologies we use is Microsoft Azure which has many of the foundations needed for a strategy that retains staff. Azure includes tools such as:

The Azure Modern Data Warehouse to help you create your single source of truth.
The Azure Machine Learning Studio supports with predictive analytics.
Azure Data Bricks enables live streaming data.
And Power BI generates agile reporting.

Azure’s ‘role-based access’ tool allows you to control who can access certain information. This means you can grant access to information across your teams, at the same time as staying on top of governance and ensuring confidential information doesn’t get into the wrong hands.

Why not get in touch with one of our data experts today?