The old saying “information is power” has never been more true for data leaders. They’re charged with bringing information and insights to their organization to drive better outcomes and better decisions. But the most successful of these leaders aren’t just bringing information to the business. They’re the eyes and ears for the company, focused on capturing information about the business’s needs, its pains, and its opportunities - and then determining how data can help solve these challenges. Mridul Mathur is the Chief Data Officer at Dyson, and while the company is well known for its exceptional household appliances such as vacuum cleaners, it’s also on the cutting edge of some of the most groundbreaking products on the market. On this episode of the Data Chief, Mridul dives into how Dyson is using data to sustain its competitive advantage within the marketplace, the importance of data literacy, and why the CDO remains in the best position to understand the overall health of any organization.

Main Takeaways

• Data fundamentals drive discoveries and innovation: The key to being a data-driven organization is getting the fundamentals right so discoveries and innovations can happen. If you want to improve your enterprise's understanding of data, start with the basics and continually ask yourself, ‘What are my company's desires and how can data help get us to the end game?’ 
• It takes a team: Data cannot be transformed or ideated on by itself. Data and data processes are wrapped around systems and constraints. In order to draw value from data, you first need to make sure that the people who are processing and working with that data are data literate. Or as Mridul puts it, “Bring them along on the journey.”
• CDO belongs in business: The role of the CDO should not be in IT and Mathur reports into a board memberThe CDO serves as a collaborator for the organization. As the individual with the best knowledge and understanding of what your data is telling you, there is no better person to understand the pain points and the business opportunities where data can be applied.

About Mridul

Mridul Mathur is a skilled CDO with more than 15 years of experience working in businesses from Deutschebak to Dyson. With has a proven track record of successfully delivering large and complex cross-functional programs, and building high performing teams from scratch. In the last five years, his main focus of work has been in the area of Data Management to address the issues and challenges organizations have faced in the wake of various new regulations.

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The Data Chief is presented by our friends at ThoughtSpot. Searching through your company’s data for insights doesn’t have to be complicated. With ThoughtSpot, anyone in your organization can easily answer their own data questions, find the facts, and make better, faster decisions. Learn more at thoughtspot.com.