Factors that Influence an Analytics Culture

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to explore the factors influencing informed group decision-making. A survey of 26 questions collected information on group decision-making in regards to organizational characteristics, technology use, social interaction, management involvement, and decision quality. Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) found three latent factors: Technology, Middle Management, and Top Management. The first latent factor, Technology, came from the five technical questions. The second latent factor, Middle Management, came from nine questions on social interactions, and third latent factor, Top Management, came from questions concerning leadership and information access. Findings include recommendations for practitioners. When investing in an analytical platform, such as a data warehouse or a data lake, investment in the culture should also be considered. This investment in culture should focus on ensuring that employees understand top management’s reasons for decisions and direction, that employees feel encouraged to ask questions, and that employees are speaking a common language. This study found that middle managers, implementing Master Data Management and a business glossary aids in ensuring that top management’s reasoning of organizational strategy is understood by all employees, which increases sensemaking through the organization and lead to a data driven, analytical culture.