The Data Fluent Culture - Data Fluency: Empowering Your Organization with Effective Data Communication - page 150

purpose of the discussion. Without a clear sense of what the report should
achieve, the client discussion becomes meandering, overbroad, and inevitably
a download of disconnected facts and figures. The audience is left to wonder
whether the report is simply intended to confuse them, distract from an issue,
or deliver a reference document.
Similarly, you may have seen the ever-popular corporate dashboard that
graces a large screen TV in the lobby of company headquarters. Numbers flash
colorfully across the screen and a glossy pie chart shows revenue breakdown
in the last quarter. Who is the intended audience of this dashboard and how
are they supposed to be moved to action? It is unlikely the lobby dashboard
has a purpose. And if it does, there is an even smaller chance the viewers will
know the purpose.
It is difficult to get everyone in an organization on the same page about data.
Data sources are complex, as are the analyses and data products that result.
Nevertheless, leadership in a data fluent culture requires diligence to define
a shared understanding about the meaning of data. Trusted data sources,
transparent data analyses, and purposeful data products can lead to an orga-
nization that uses data together as a productive tool.
guidestaR.oRg and nonpRofit tRanspaRency
Guidestar.org is an example of an organization that has online data products
with a clear purpose and motivation. This organization's purpose is to shed
light on nearly all nonprofit organizations registered in the United States.
Whether interested in a foundation like the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
or an organization like Habitat for Humanity, one can review different
organizational metrics that are publically available. Raw data is also available
in an organization's posted IRS 990 form. Want to know all the organizations
that a foundation supported last year and the amount they gave to each,
review the foundation's 990. Want to know how much money the executives
made at a nonprofit, review its 990. Want to know the assets of a nonprofit,
review its 990. Such raw data is important when writing grants, evaluating
the health of your favorite charity, or deciding how much to negotiate for
when applying for a job at a not-for-profit. Guidestar.org gives users the
possibility of quick summarized data or deep raw data.