The CDO checklist
A CDO role is a large and complex role which means lots of different things to lots of different people. It is because of this that you need to move quickly to set expectations, identify the right strategy and take the right steps to execute on that strategy, all whilst demonstrating ROI and getting recognition from your peers.
This blog post looks to support CDOs and Senior Data Leaders new to role in delivering impact and making a success of the role.
The backdrop..
After accepting your new Chief Data Officer job, you begin to imagine Day One in role. You quickly realise you are entering a relatively unchartered landscape. You have lots to figure out.. so where do you start: Data? Tech? People ? And, how do you chose and develop your strategy? How do you align to the business? What would success look like for you? and how would this be recognised by your C-suite peers? How do you define and mould your mandate to ensure that you can have an impact?
This is the backdrop for many CDOs, who also have in the back of their minds that the average tenure for the role is only 18 months.
The below checklist aims to provide a framework to tee you up for success in your new role.
The CDO Checklist (Part 1)
There are many things to consider on your CDO checklist and, whilst many of the items on the list occur once you are in role, some need to be looked at before you even accept a role. This checklist therefore covers from the moment you start searching for your CDO role (or are approached for a role) right up until the 100th day in post.
Searching for and accepting the right role: This is a crucial first step and has a huge impact on your ability to be successful. The allure of the Chief Data Officer job title is strong, but taking the wrong role will cause stress in the short term and slow your career down in the long term. Therefore, the first decision to get right is deciding whether or not to accept the role. The below are 3 critical considerations when searching for and deciding whether or not to accept a role.
Mandate: What is the mandate of the CDO role? And what mandate are you looking for?
Position: Where does the CDO report to and at which ‘table’ does it have a ‘seat’? And what’s important to you?
Company data maturity: What do you need to determine about the company before you accept a role?
Day zero: Preparing for role: You’ve just accepted a role that you can be successful in - congrats! Now its time to prepare yourself. This is an important juncture and, depending on what role you are moving on from, it may require a bigger mindset shift than you think. Its worth considering the below between accepting role and day one.
Industry and company: Considering the industry and the companies current position
Planning for day one: Getting your plan in place before you start
Shifting your mindset: Prepare yourself for a transition of roles (from leader to C-suite, from function leader to domain leader)
First 100 days as CDO: Now the real fun starts! Its day one and you’re in role.. its time to get to work. The below is a framework for a 100 day plan
Understand your new company
How is your new business structured? and how does it ‘work’? Build a picture across all levels of the business
Company goals and measures of success? What matters to the company?
Build rapport and relationships! Be easy to work with and identify your early supporters
Assess: Data and Tech capabilities
Asses the technology estate; both the operational tech estate and data and analytics estate
Assess the data estate; what data do we collect? How siloed is it? Where and how is it used? What are the biggest issues?
Assess people capabilities; where is there data talent across the firm? and what does the data literacy of the firm look like?
Assess: Data culture and operations
Understand where and how decisions are made. What data is used to make decisions? And, is it to used to influence or justify?
Build a picture of supporters, detractors and those on the fence. Where do you face battles vs where have you got allies?
Who takes responsibilities for data? What data roles exists across the company that ensure data quality is maintained, access is secure and usage is complaint and ethical?
Plan
Defining your vision and strategic priorities
Aligning your vision and strategy to a 12 month roadmap
Defining the CDOs measures of success
Getting support and agreement from your C-suite peers
Execute
Executing on your plan
Setting up the right delivery vehicles and mechanisms for success
Measuring your impact
Developing a comms strategy to engage, excite and gain recognition and support
The above is a very high level view of the steps and items to consider as part of your CDO checklist.
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