It is time to put data in a less technical and more current and urgent context. The threats to your business’ reputation and sustainability posed by cyber threats (e.g. exposing sensitive customer information, disrupting critical business processes, and stealing intellectual capital) are too great to continue the current silo’d approach to managing the enterprise’s technical and information assets. Over the years several C-suite functions have been created for a variety of reasons: everyone is doing it; seemed like a good idea at the time; or, a regulator or reputational issue required it. Even when the new position seemed important and helpful, most surveys indicate that CEOs don’t think they have delivered any real value to the enterprise and that they have not been accepted by their “peers” in the C-suite. Unfortunately, based on the recent performance of Chief Data Officers (CDO) it doesn’t look like this potentially strategic new function is going to fare any differently – at least not as it is currently being implemented. The current job description for a CDO reads more like a CEO and is encompasses far more than many other related “chiefs” (e.g. Chief Information Officer/Chief Infrastructure Officer, Chief Technology Officer, Chief Analytics Officer, Chief Digital Officer, Chief Compliance Officer, Chief Information Security Officer,…). All these positions were created to deal with various data related demands – e.g. the need to collect, store, analyze, report, protect, recover, govern, or monetize it. However, as a result of the traditional organizational dynamics that make change difficult to implement, particularly if lines of succession or influence are set, few new C-suite entrants have ever really been positioned to succeed or make a meaningful impact. If the organization wants a unified vision for its technology and information assets then the CEO needs to create that vision, and then hold one person accountable for defining and overseeing the resources necessary to achieve it. The need to respond to the very real dangers posed by the rising frequency and complexity of cyber threats provides the “crisis” opportunity to make the necessary organizational changes and finally get control of the enterprise’s data.

View the presentation, What the CEO needs to know about Data: If you think you need a CDO, then do it right!