You’re here because the biggest asset you have is the people in your community. The better you understand them, the more purposeful progress you can make towards your mission. If you’re skeptical about being a data driven leader, then read our plea then come back. The rest of you can dive right in.
4 Steps to Become a Data Driven Leader
Capture | 1) It’s Time to Capture Data
This is vital and you really don’t need a lot of it. The best data you can generate has to do with your core functions. Most likely this is around giving/donations, attendance, volunteering, and/or communications. Since you are already tracking most of this, you’re well on your way.
Share | 2) Open up Data to your Leaders
You trust them with vital and meaningful interpersonal responsibilities. Yet many organizations don’t trust these same people with access to the data. We need to get over our fear that they’ll abuse it. The relationships they form are far more ripe for abuse than knowing what emails someone did or did not open. Your software should allow you to hide sensitive data like financial contributions as well.
Review | 3) Take a Minute Before you Meet Up
Look at their profile for a minute before you meet or call them. Understand how they engage with your organization and community. Don’t hesitate to ask about the ways they are or want to be involved, their thoughts, and to probe about how things are going. Remember that they expect you to know. If you learn something take a minute to repeat step 1 – and catpure it.
Cite | 4) Use this Data in your Decisions
This is the key, the dream, the piece de resistance. Your top leaders must set the tone for using this data in the life of your organization. Look at profiles when talking about your leaders. View whole families involvement when deciding on who to give scholarships to. Use this data to augment your decision to ask someone to increase their volunteer commitment. If you aren’t setting an expectation of being data driven leaders, then it all falls apart. If you’re making a decision and wish you has more information it’s great to share your frustration with your team.
#1 Reason People aren’t Data Driven Leaders
Tools used to build the Minnesota State Capitol building
The number one reason why organizations aren’t data driven? They use too many different tools. If all your contributions are on Jamie’s computer and your attendance is across countless others you cannot get past step one. You need a tool that brings all this data together for you to use, or you need a tool that covers the key areas for the organization.
There are tools, like Fresh Vine, that cover most of these functions to give you a complete picture of how involved and engaged someone is. If your data is everywhere and you want the people in your community to be known, start by signing up for a member management tool.
Photo Credit: woodleywonderworks, Thomas Leuthard, Minnesota Historical Society
