Analytics as Influence: How to Shift from Data Provider to Trusted Partner

Working Smarter at the Edge of Change (E1)

Most analytics teams are very talented and hardworking, but they often get excluded from key decision making process. It’s not because the data is wrong, but because analytic findings and results can sometimes show up too late, tell no meaningful story, and do not enable any business decisions. Optimal dashboards and reports don’t automatically drive action, timing, framing, and trust do. If the analytics work doesn’t help the business make a smarter decision, it will get overlooked.

This article is about how analytics teams can shift from reactive data providers to trusted business partners by leading with influence when it matters most.

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Why Most Analytics Teams Get Overlooked

I’ve worked with many analytics teams throughout my career. Some I’ve partnered with. Others I’ve managed directly. Most of them are full of technically skilled people who know their tools and can build solid pipelines, models, and dashboards.

But here’s the part many teams avoid saying out loud: analytics is still seen as a service function. Most teams are treated like data providers, not true decision partners.

From what I’ve seen, 60%-70% of their time goes into making data usable, such as cleaning fields, reconciling mismatches, and fixing broken pipelines. Another 10% to 20% is spent building dashboards, reports, and doing descriptive or predictive analytics. Maybe only 5% to 10% directly influences a major business decision. That last part is where the value of analytics should be. But too often, it disappears from the analytics day-to-day work.