Run Your Data Team Like A Product Team

Data teams aim to help stakeholders make better decisions, but many don't do this well. This gap is due to teams not set up for success, undermining trust in the data. To transform organizations and reach potential, data teams should run as if building a Data Product, with colleagues as customers. Focus on users, define success, and talk to everyone. Use Product tactics like user stories to understand stakeholders' needs and match with the right solutions. Any scale can use this model with proper adjustments. Talk to a product manager, ask questions, and take inventory to start.

Data teams have long been relegated to the IT department, tasked with extracting data and presenting it to stakeholders. However, product-led organizations are leading the way with customer-centric products, and data teams need to follow suit. This blog post will discuss how to transition from a service-oriented data team to a product-led one, and how to focus on the needs of the users.

There is a better way to build and run a data organization: run it as if you were building a data product, and treat all of your colleagues as customers.

This approach has the potential to transform your organization and help teams reach their full potential.

Define the Data Product

The Data Team needs to define the Data Product they're building, understanding customer needs and the business impact of meeting them. The Data Product includes all data and tools used to generate, access, and analyze it, such as application databases, HRIS, CRM, chat tools, issue trackers, and products the company manages and sells. Every internal tool or app that gives people the ability to generate, access, and analyze data is also a part of the Data Product. Integrating the data and features together can create superlinear value and the Data Team's role expands to include building and guiding the strategy and features of the Data Product. Their job is to make sense of data flow and enable the organization to extract useful insights.

Focus on the Users

This user-focused approach means that product management involves a lot of coordination and communication between many different stakeholders. Outbound communication involves conveying the product's vision and priorities, while inbound communication comes from users. When users are your colleagues, this inbound communication can be loud and plentiful, but product management strategies and tactics can help.

Talk to Everyone

In order to bring stakeholders along on the journey, data teams should talk to everyone and continually communicate their decisions. This includes explaining what the team is working on, what they are not working on, and why they have made those decisions.

Leaders of data teams must have strong two-way communication and empathy. This means communicating the team's vision and goals, as well as integrating feedback from users. By involving users in the process and making sure their needs are heard, the team will be more successful.