Don’t Dismantle Data Silos, Build Bridges
In which I take a fresh look at how we should make it easier for our information to flow around the enterprise.
I used to be a strident proponent of breaking down system silos. Over the years, I took the stage at conferences and preached that tearing down walls between various pieces of technology across the organization would help deliver a better customer experience. But not any longer. I’ve come to realize that this was an impossible dream.
Let’s face it: no one is going to throw out their incumbent systems just because we say they should. Especially not if those systems still do the job they were purchased to do. We have all worked with systems that are good enough to fulfill a specific set of tasks. Removing and replacing existing systems isn’t quick or cheap, but the biggest hurdle isn’t budget or technology (although that’s what’s often cited) — it’s human.
Navigating the shifting customer experience waters
People often build their careers around particular systems. They develop specific areas of knowledge related to their system and their data. The idea of letting others into their area of expertise can be seen as threatening. It’s a world of what ifs. What if they (the other departments) mess up my data? What if their findings contradict my own?
Then there’s the cultural aspect. Systems become ingrained to the point that policies and procedures develop around them, and they become an essential part of the way the company operates. It may not be the best way, and often it isn’t, but if it works why change it?
Change is hard, and dramatic change is the hardest of all. But change is inevitable.
The way customers interact with companies is evolving and so are their expectations. It has always taken a combination of divisions and departments to deliver goods, services, and the desired brand experience to customers. Similarly, customers have always interacted with organizations via multiple touchpoints spread across multiple departments. Those differences in customer experience were once an accepted part of doing business, but they no longer are.
Today’s customers demand a seamless, consistent experience at every interaction with the company, both before and after purchase. Delivering a series of disparate transactions will no longer cut it. Organizations must develop ongoing relationships, and to do that, they need to take a holistic view of the customer’s data — data that resides in those silo-ed systems.
Build bridges between systems of record
Watching two characters from Game of Thrones negotiate across a castle drawbridge instead of just battling things out to take control of a castle, got me thinking about information flow. That metaphor holds true when it comes to using data to deliver improved customer experiences.
Instead of tearing down the castle (or system) walls, look at how you can build bridges between them. That way those who have built a body of expertise can share it while still having authority over their own keep (data set). Bridges allow data to be collected once and then flow freely between systems, allowing individual system owners to use it in the way that suits their needs.
Each customer-interfacing system can still stand alone and address the needs of a particular line of business or be an enterprise-wide single source of truth. But by allowing data to pass between individual systems, including internal enterprise-wide systems, you can create a fully connected, continuous customer experience.
Over a period of time you will find out which systems you really need and which data is central to delivering the customer experience. Some silos will gradually fall into disuse and fade away to be replaced by true systems of record. This was brought home to me recently when a VP at a large company told the story of their digital transformation project. Midway through the project, they realized that of the 30-plus systems they had in use, only nine were vital to the process of delivering customer service. Taking a customer-centric view of their data and the way it flowed around the organization helped them understand which were the real systems of value.
Building bridges between systems allows you to develop data journeys that reflect your customers’ journeys.
(This week’s article is also cross posted on The Content Pool website )
Alan
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