The Discipline of Data: What Non-Technical Executives Don’t Know about Data and Why It’s Urgent They Find Out

Pulling aside the curtain of ’Big Data’ buzz, this book introduces C-suite and other non-technical senior leaders to the essentials of obtaining and maintaining accurate, reliable data, especially for decision-making purposes. Bad data begets bad decisions, and an understanding of data fundamentals -- how data is generated, organized, stored, evaluated, and maintained -- has never been more important when solving problems such as the pandemic-related supply chain crisis. This book addresses the data-related challenges that businesses face, answering questions such as:

• What are the characteristics of high-quality data?
• How do you get from bad data to good data?
• What procedures and practices ensure high-quality data?
• How do you know whether your data supports the decisions you need to make?

This clear and valuable resource will appeal to C-suite executives and top-line managers across industries, as well as business analysts at all career stages and data analytics students.

Jerald ’Jerry’ Savin FIMC, CPA is President/CEO of Cambridge Technology Consulting Group, Inc., a consulting firm based in Santa Monica, California. A professional information systems consultant with decades of experience, Jerry’s practice combines information systems with public accounting and business expertise to support his client companies in such areas as data architecture, business intelligence, enterprise resource planning, project management, and IT auditing and compliance. He has been elected an Academic Fellow of the International Council of Management Consulting Institutes and a Fellow of the Institute of Management Consultants (FIMC). He brings his years of experience in industries from aerospace to healthcare to telecommunications to his work as a lecturer at California State University Northridge, University of California Riverside, and UCLA.