About Jim Harris

My name is Jim Harris, I am the Blogger-in-Chief here at Obsessive-Compulsive Data Quality (OCDQ), which is an independent blog offering a vendor-neutral perspective on data quality and its related disciplines.

I am a recognized thought leader with 20 years of enterprise data management industry experience.  I am an independent consultant, professional speaker, and freelance writer for hire, as well as a regular contributor to Information-Management.com and DataRoundtable.com.

 

The Circle of Quality

I believe that the key to an organization’s success is The Circle of Quality.

An organization’s success is measured by the quality of the results it produces.  Those results are dependent on the quality of its business decisions.  Those decisions rely on the quality of its information.  That information is based on the quality of its data.  Therefore, data must be viewed as a corporate asset because high quality data serves as a solid foundation for business success.

The Circle of Quality illustrates the business context continuum formed by data, information, decisions, and results.  Additionally, it demonstrates why a sustained enterprise-wide data quality program as well as a data governance framework are both necessary for an organization’s continuing success.

Therefore, it’s easy to imagine the highly questionable results that will be produced when data quality is not considered vital to an organization’s success—and how failing to manage data as a corporate asset is nothing less than extremely risky business.

 

Data Transcendentalism

I believe that the success of all enterprise information initiatives depends on the strategic, tactical, and operational alignment of people throughout the organization in relation to data access, data sharing, data quality, and effective data usage, all of which is necessary for the united and shared purpose of enabling better business decisions and delivering optimal corporate performance.

However, as a data professional, my strongest belief is what I refer to as Data Transcendentalism.  People, business process, data, and of course, technology, are all important to an organization’s success.  However, by far the most important of all is—People.

The faster an organization can avail itself of the business understanding already present within its unique corporate culture, but not yet shared across the enterprise, the sooner it will realize its great potential.  A corresponding reliance on the human side of business will transcend data, business process, and technology—and it will be the organization’s people who will lead the way.

I have helped people make the promise of data-driven solutions for business problems a reality for Global 500 companies in finance, brokerage, banking, insurance, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, manufacturing, retail, telecommunications, and utilities.

 

Additional Information about Jim Harris

I have strong skills in engagement, communication, technical translation, negotiation, collaboration, change management, presentation, training, mentoring, writing, and using social media for business purposes.

I was a 2009-2012 IBM Information Champion and I was selected as the IBM Champion 2011 Blogger of the Year for having the most influential blog in the IBM information management space as determined by an independent third party.

I am a regular contributor to Information-Management.com and DataRoundtable.com.

I am on the Expert Panel and a former Contributing Editor to Data Quality Pro, the leading data quality online magazine and community resource dedicated to data quality professionals.

Best of OCDQ Blog Posts by Jim Harris

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