Empowered by Data

Chapter FiveWhy Are Communities Important?

Earlier I claimed that there are a number of benefits to building an analytics community in your organization. Why are these communities important now, and how is the nature of work changing to give rise to these communities and initiatives?

Because analytics, and data as an industry, is a relatively new field, there are bound to be developments, changes, and innovations. People and organizations are still finding their places and struggling to make sense of the flood of information. With globally operating organizations, knowledge work has become more mobile, detached from a specific location. Skilled workers themselves can move more easily to other cities, states, and countries.

As individuals, we carry our knowledge, experience, and skills with us, wherever we go, and this can give us confidence and reassurance when everything else changes around us. Arriving in a new place—whether in a new role, a new organization, or a new country—comes with many challenges, including the question: Where do I fit in?

Sophia Dembling writes in Psychology Today that “community helps fulfill our very human need for connection without actually requiring a lot from us.”¹

In our professional lives, we often strive for success in a rather solitary pursuit. Yes, we work in teams and see our colleagues every day, but often the responsibility for and ownership of a successful outcome of a task is with the individual. Add to that the high demand for data ...