It’s Now or Never: Time for Insight Leaders to Shape the Future of Insight
By Insight Management Academy
- article
- Insight Transformation
- AI
- Artificial Intelligence
Summarise with AI
Part of the Corporate Insight Leaders Series of articles by James Wycherley, author of The Insight Leader’s Playbook, host of the Transforming Insight podcast and CEO of the Insight Management Academy.
This is always a time for reflection for me. The new calendar year is no longer new; our new business and tax year has begun, and the Quirk’s Media events are in full flow. For me, that meant the second week of April, signing books, giving presentations, and speaking on panels in Chicago, and I’ve got lots more of the same to look forward to this week in London. Please come and say hello if you’re there!
I always like to start a conference presentation with a sense of where we are now: how are our corporate insight leaders, professionals, and suppliers feeling about our sector and its prospects for the rest of this year?
When we asked that question to 87 corporate insight leaders at the IMA’s Insight forum in January, 10% said “very optimistic”, 5% were “very pessimistic”, a few were “quite worried”, but the vast majority were either “tentatively hopeful” or said they had “mixed feelings”. I think that spread reflects every conversation I’ve had with insight leaders over the last few months.
Pressure and Possibility Are Rising at the Same Time
There is more change happening in the world of corporate insight than at any time in the 25 years I’ve worked in it. More headcount freezes, more budget restrictions, more changes to reporting lines, more senior people leaving our sector. However, for some, there are great opportunities. At all the Quirk’s events this year, vendors will be showcasing new tools, brands will share fascinating case studies, and leaders like Thomas Walker at eBay and Eddie O’Brien at Sage (both of whom I’ve interviewed recently on the Transforming Insight podcast) will point to their new technology that is driving greater impact.
A Tale of Two Insight Functions
So let’s delve a little bit deeper and think about the range of situations that insight teams find themselves in. On the one hand, some teams feel that they’re visible and valued in their organisations. They have a recorded and recognised high return on investment; they get to focus on strategic issues, unimpeded by “can you just data requests,” and research briefs that land without any explanation or focus on the most strategic issues. They’re engaged early, and their opinions, their advice, and their knowledge are respected. Their organisation has confidence in them, and they have confidence in the future.
On the other hand, many insight teams feel under pressure. Their insight isn’t routinely valued; there’s a sense of being on a corporate hamster wheel, subject to other people’s decisions about what work should be done. When they get the chance to work on strategic projects, there’s every chance their ideas and opinions won’t really be heard because their data supports decisions that have already been made. They can feel an overwhelming sense that change is happening to them and their roles may be threatened.
The Leadership Challenge: Control vs Constraint
Insight leaders feel the same range of emotions, but their feelings can be more acute because of the responsibility that they feel for their colleagues. Some leaders feel that they’ve had a chance to develop and document an ambitious vision for insight in their organisation. They’re able to manage their own time and energy to work on their insight team, not in it, and they have the right resources to develop their team.
By contrast, many leaders feel that they’re not really in control. They haven’t had a chance to define a clear vision for what insight could look like in the future, and they’re so busy working in their team that they haven’t had time to work on it. They haven’t got the resources they need to develop a plan, or their people, and they’re worried about their own careers.
Three Priorities Shaping the Future of Insight
So, how do we respond to this? I think we need to decide whether it’s up to us to do something about our present situation or just allow ourselves to be victims of circumstance. If we’re going to step forward and shape the change, I’m going to suggest three areas of focus, all of which I’ll explore in more depth in future articles.
First, we should recognise that whatever AI and new technology bring, the organisations we work for today will only achieve sustainable commercial success tomorrow if they become customer-centric, evidence-based, insight-driven organisations. Shaping the definition, development, and decisions of an insight-driven organisation is therefore the priority for everyone who works in corporate insight. Our companies need us to do it if they’re going to survive and thrive over the next few years.
Second, if you currently define your role as a market researcher or data analyst, I recommend shifting your centre of gravity from an insight producer to an insight activist. That will mean adopting new hats like the growth consultant, the knowledge steward, the foresight pioneer, and the insight influencer.
And third, if you have the privilege to lead an insight team, or consider yourself an aspiring insight leader, now is the time to step forward and shape the future of insight in your organisation. That means getting off that corporate hamster wheel, reflecting on how you can play a critical role in defining and developing an insight-driven organisation, and documenting those ideas in your very own insight leader’s playbook.
A Critical Moment for Insight Leaders
Going back to that poll of insight leaders, I’m one of the optimists. I believe insight-driven organisations will have a bright future, and many corporate insight leaders and professionals will see great opportunities. But it’s now or never if we want to shape that future for our organisation and our insight team.
