My #1 Best Practice…

My #1 Best Practice...

A client recently asked me: "If you had to pick a single best practice for data management, what would it be?"

Without thinking, I blurted out: "Don't be stupid."

What I meant by that is too often we are our own worst enemies when it comes to data management. We make business rules that are far too complex. We spend all our time managing to the exception. And we spend too much time trying to work out fancy automation or programming when doing it manually makes the most sense.

These are all self-imposed problems, or as they say in soccer, "own goals." We do it to ourselves.

So think about all the rules and processes you've developed over the years and ask yourself: "Are we being stupid?"

Wes's Wednesday Wisdom Archives

The “S” stands for “Standard”

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Is that meaningless data?

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Be aware of unintended consequences

September 18, 2019

Be aware of unintended consequences I’ve written before that every decision involves a trade-off. When […]

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September 11, 2019

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MVP: Minimum Viable Product

September 4, 2019

MVP: Minimum Viable Product In product development there is a concept known as MVP, or […]

You always need a reason for collecting data

August 28, 2019

You always need a reason for collecting data When you ask for data from someone […]

If you’re unhappy, speak up!

August 21, 2019

If you’re unhappy, speak up! My clients will often ask me something along the lines […]

Does it advance the mission?

August 14, 2019

Does it advance the mission? Because associations are mission-driven, everything you do should be seen […]

How should you start a new data project?

August 7, 2019

How should you start a new data project? When you’ve got a new data project […]

A Data Integrity Report…for Reports!

July 29, 2019

I’ve written elsewhere about the value of data integrity reports. But one of the most […]

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