You’re in an elevator with your CEO. They turn to you and ask, “What’s your team working on right now?” You’ve got 60 seconds to answer.
What would you say?
For many data and AI professionals, this scenario feels more like a nightmare than an opportunity. The problem isn’t that your team isn’t delivering value. It’s that articulating the value in a way that resonates with business leaders can be surprisingly hard.
But this isn’t just a communications issue; it’s a fundamental challenge for many data teams for a number of reasons.
Why is this and how can you overcome it?
Why is it so hard to articulate value?
At its core, it requires translating complex technical work into simple, relatable business terms that resonate with non-technical stakeholders. This is easier said than done for a few reasons:
- Data work is inherently complex: Models, pipelines, and dashboards can involve technically intricate processes that don’t always have immediate or obvious business outcomes.
- Communication gaps: Data teams and stakeholders often speak different “languages”. While data teams might focus on technologies, business stakeholders are interested in the impact and value.
- Unclear metrics for success: Without defined success criteria, it’s difficult to measure or demonstrate impact, let alone explain it.
For a business leader, phrases like “optimized ETL processes” or “improved model accuracy by 10%” don’t mean much. While the technical intricacies are interesting to you and your data team, these details don’t usually resonate with your business stakeholders. What they actually want to hear about is:
- Revenue growth: How does this help us sell more?
- Cost savings: Can we reduce waste or inefficiency?
- Risk mitigation: Will this help us avoid costly mistakes?
If your explanation doesn’t connect to one of these outcomes, it’s unlikely to mean much to them.
The problem and consequences of not being able to articulate value
I’ve worked with many data teams who have faced this challenge. It’s not about oversimplifying or undermining the complexity of data initiatives. It’s about making sure those initiatives are understood in the context of the organization’s goals so that they resonate with the business stakeholders.
Why is this such a big deal?
If the value isn’t clear enough, unfortunately, there are consequences:
- Loss of trust: Stakeholders may become skeptical of the data team’s ability to deliver meaningful results, eroding credibility and budget allocation.
- Service entity: The data team is seen more as a reactive cost center, rather than a strategic enabler creating business impact. (This is explained further in our Maximizing Business Impact through Opportunity Management white paper).
- Demotivation: When data teams see their work go unused or underappreciated, it leads to frustration and lower morale.
- Missed opportunities: Without clear communication and alignment, the business may overlook valuable insights or innovations, leaving potential impact untapped.
- Unused deliverables: Misaligned needs and missing understanding of the business counterpart often result in dashboards, models, or tools that are never adopted because stakeholders’ problems are not addressed accordingly, and the technical achievements fail to deliver business results.
Read: Less is More: Avoiding the Data Product Death Trap
Transform your narrative with the help of Delight
Imagine being able to say: “We’re building a customer churn prediction model that helps the sales team identify at-risk customers before they leave. By addressing these risks proactively, we aim to reduce churn by 15%, which translates to an additional $2 million in annual revenue.”
Clear. Concise. Impactful.
Achieving this level of clarity requires more than just communication skills. It requires alignment and starting with the why.
At Mindfuel, we’ve built our Delight software as a workspace designed to help data teams align with stakeholders and deliver measurable value.
- Facilitate stakeholder collaboration and alignment.
- Prioritize projects based on their alignment with organizational goals.
- Visualize and communicate the business impact of data initiatives.
Your team can move from guesswork to structured collaboration, ensuring that every initiative is purposeful, impactful, and aligned with what the business truly needs.
Find out how Delight can help you articulate your data team’s value
The ripple effect
When your team can clearly articulate its value in this way, it brings with it further benefits:
- Stronger stakeholder alignment: Leaders understand your impact, leading to better support and collaboration.
- Empowered teams: Data professionals feel confident and motivated when their contributions are recognized and understood.
- Proactive leadership: Your team moves from a reactive, service-driven role to a strategic, value-driving function within the organization.
Value that means something to everyone
So, ask yourself: Are you defining value clearly? Are you collaborating effectively? And are you prioritizing the right work?
It isn’t just about defending your team’s existence but about showcasing your role as a driver of business impact. This means consistently connecting your team’s work to organizational goals and making sure those connections are understood across the company.
Next time someone asks, “What’s your team working on?” you won’t just have an answer – you’ll have a story that connects your work to the success of the entire organization.
Watch the full discussion in our AI Impact Live recording below and make sure you sign up to receive updates on our upcoming sessions!
