Creativity and data team levels.

Fellow daily email list member Dan Gustafsson wrote in with a great observation about two of my recent emails: Creativity and levels of a data team.

Dan said this (shared with permission; edited lightly):

I think ’efficiency’ is key for enablers, but ’creative’ is key for partners.

Enablers = processes, and they can be ”efficient” in some sense.

Advisors= closed-ended exploration (goal-oriented analysis) can be made more efficient – consider management consultant ’frameworks’ to aid that.

Partners = open-ended explorations = never be ’efficient’ by definition.

Efficiency and creativity do move on a continuum across the functions a data team. While the detailed activities of each type of team will, I think Dan is right.

There will be functions of your team where you strive for efficiency to remove waste. And other functions of your team where you create excess capacity to explore ideas and innovation.

If you are mainly an "Enabler" then you will focus on the former. As you move into activities around Advisor and Partner you will take aim at the latter.

Thanks for the insights, Dan.

I'm here,

Sawyer

from The Data Shop