10 things people do next after taking a Data Maturity Assessment
We built our free Data Maturity Assessment tool because we are passionate about helping organisations use data for better decisions and greater impact. But taking an assessment is only one step in a journey to improving data maturity. Wherever you are on that journey, here are some ideas for ways you can use your assessment report to take another step forward.
1. Reflect on where you are now
Whether you’ve taken an assessment on your own, in a group, or as an organisation, you now have a snapshot of where you are. Take time to reflect on what this means for your organisation. Read the detail of your report and understand where you sit on the data maturity journey (from ‘unaware’ through to ‘mastering’) across each of our seven key themes: Uses, Data, Analysis, Leadership, Culture, Tools and Skills. Your report will also show you how this compares with other organisations in the not-for-profit sector who have taken our tool. How do you compare with this benchmark? Is it what you were expecting?
2. Talk about it
One of the easiest, yet most impactful things you can do with the results of your Data Maturity Assessment is to talk about it with colleagues. Particularly if you’ve been finding it difficult to engage colleagues in a conversation about data, your assessment results can provide the talking point to begin those discussions.
When we surveyed users of the tool, 63% reported that they had discussed with colleagues where change and improvement was needed, and 61% shared their results with other people in the organisation. We think this is a great start – by beginning these conversations, you are already on your way to improved data maturity.
3. Compare results with colleagues
If colleagues have already completed an assessment too, then a great step is to take your results and compare them. Are there differences between how different people or departments within the organisation think you’re doing with data? If colleagues haven’t already done this, then you could use the link in your report to invite them to do it, and then arrange a time to get together and discuss your results and what they mean.
4. Consider an organisational assessment
Since data means different things to different people and is used in so many ways in an organisation, getting multiple people to take the assessment is a key aspect of building engagement, learning and collective thinking about data. The organisational version of our tool makes this easy to do. You can invite all staff in your organisation to take an assessment and be provided with a collated report and central dashboard to review your combined results (plus everyone gets their own individual report showing how they personally assess the organisation).
5. Learn about how other organisations have used their assessment data
As a not-for-profit community, we are stronger when we learn from each other. We’ve written about how Citizens Advice Manchester are using data to engage and empower staff, as well as making measurable improvements to their service, following their first Data Maturity Assessment. We’re working on a bank of case studies like this to help inspire you into action.
You can also join our Slack group to discuss your challenges and hear about how other non-profits are tackling areas highlighted in their Data Maturity Assessment.
6. Use the results to make your case
You don’t know what you don’t know… Your leadership team may think the organisation is doing better than it is with data. Your Data Maturity Assessment might show otherwise. Use your Data Maturity Assessment to start a conversation with senior leaders about how your organisation could improve its use of data. Importantly, use the sector benchmarking to show how you are doing compared to others in your sector. With an objective measurement of how you actually fare vs others in your sector, your leadership team should be encouraged to take data more seriously.
7. Start small
Pick one area/theme from your Data Maturity Assessment report and think of a few distinct, manageable projects you could do first to address this. Consider where there are pain points in the organisation and try to think of ways some of them might tie in with your data improvement plans. Once you’ve had a few ‘quick wins’, you should find that enthusiasm and confidence builds within the organisation, as people start to see the power of data to make their lives easier, and improve your service(s).
8. Think big
55% of users we surveyed who completed a Data Maturity Assessment in 2020, said that they used the results to guide plans for developing a data strategy or improving their data maturity. That might sound like a bit of a daunting task, but the results of your Assessment give real, measurable metrics that can provide the starting point for a plan for improvement.
Don’t be afraid to seek advice. Did you know we offer a free 30-minute call to all users of our Data Maturity Assessment tool to discuss your report and how you could use the results to take action and improve your organisation’s data maturity? This isn’t a sales call (although there may be ways we can help you) – it’s genuinely because we want to help. That’s why we built the tool in the first place. Request a call.
We also provide a list of support organisations who can help not-for-profits to build their knowledge of data maturity, provide support and training for staff, and develop data strategies to help you improve the impact you have.
9. Invest to reap rewards
When we surveyed users, 27% said they had gone on to seek funding or resources after completing a Data Maturity Assessment. What is really interesting though, is that 100% of them were successful!
The results of your assessment can give you the evidence base you need if you’re seeking approval to allocate resources from internal budgets, or looking to external sources.
This also doesn’t necessarily have to mean committing cash to a new role, increasing head count, or buying in new technology. Sometimes it can mean shifting roles and responsibilities between existing staff, or committing time to improvement projects. One of the things we hear from small-to-medium sized organisations is that, with no budget to create a ‘data’ role or team, there is little recognition of the importance of data within the organisation. Sometimes just by adjusting an existing person’s job title or role, this can be an important step towards letting everyone in the organisation know you are serious about data.
10. Repeat the assessment
The Data Maturity Assessment is designed to give you a clear picture of where you are now, in a way that can provide an objective measure of progress as you (hopefully) improve the organisation’s data maturity. This is why we encourage you to repeat the assessment at regular intervals to track how well you are doing on your data maturity journey, and to identify which areas need the most effort and attention. Get in touch if you’d like to discuss the best way to do this.