Mar 10 2020
Critical Data Elements and Data Quality | Rupa Mahanti | QualityDigest
“Not everything that can be counted counts. We are currently living in the digital age and are drowning in an ocean of data. Organizations have a large number of data entities and data elements, and a large volume of data corresponding to the same, and they continue to amass more and more data with each passing day. With a large amount of data coming in, it’s important to know what is ‘quality’ data, and what isn’t.”
Source: QualityDigest
Michel Baudin‘s comments: It is refreshing to see an article in QualityDigest on current topics, as opposed to pre-World War II methods. I tried to address this topic myself early on in this blog, in A Management Perspective on Data Quality.
March 11, 2020 @ 5:04 pm
When considering the value of data and its management, we need Albert’s full quote.
“Some things that can be counted don’t count. And some things that count can’t be counted.” Albert Einstein.
We must always remember that data is the echo from facts, actions and events. We must ensure we are listening to the original voice and not just the echo.
The space shuttle disaster was a good example of the problems that can occur when facts/voices have to become data/echoes before they are heard.
The Rogers commission on the shuttle disaster was very specific in this regard; “For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for nature/reality cannot be fooled”.
The reality was that the fitters had been reporting the ‘fact’ that the ‘O’ rings were nearly burnt through on the boosters each time they replaced them. But no one listened. Facts come before the data; but too often we measure the data rather than monitor the facts.
Too often people chose the data (or in VW’s case fabricate it} that supports what they want the facts to be.
Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored.” Aldous Huxley.
The thing that really counts, is to engage all the people who operate at the facts and actions level