The Hidden Power of Good Data in Business

When we think about what makes a business strong, we usually think of money, people, or products. But according to The Executive Outlook’s recent conversation with data expert Danette McGilvray, there’s another factor that quietly decides the future of every organization: data.

At first glance, data may look boring. It’s just numbers, rows in a system, or long reports, right? But Danette reminds us that data is much more than that. In fact, it is the building block of every decision. Without trusted data, no business can run smoothly. Data is not just a by-product of work, it is an asset, just like your finances, people, or brand.

A Journey That Started With a Problem

Danette’s career in data began in an unexpected way. While working at a large technology company, she saw managers across the world struggling with customer information. Names were duplicated, addresses were missing, and important details were often wrong. This caused delays, errors, and unhappy customers.

To fix this, a council was created, and Danette was invited to help. That opportunity changed the direction of her life. She learned from some of the first pioneers in data quality, including Larry English, Tom Redman, and Rich Wang. With their guidance, she began to understand that good data is not a small detail—it is the heart of business success.

Later, she became the enterprise customer information quality manager, and when her company split into two, she carried the program to the new one. Her work soon expanded beyond customer data into every type of information the business used. This gave her a front-row seat to how much organizations depend on data, and how costly it becomes when the information is wrong.

Why Data Quality Matters

Danette explains that leaders are comfortable asking about money, products, or people. But very few ask about data, even though it fuels every other area. Poor-quality data doesn’t just create confusion—it creates real financial losses.

Research shows that businesses lose between 15 and 35 percent of their income because of bad data. Imagine running a business that earns $1 million in revenue. Now imagine losing $150,000 to $350,000 of it—just because of incorrect, missing, or outdated information. That is the hidden cost many companies don’t see.

This is why Danette believes executives must make data a top priority, right alongside finance and human resources.

Start Early, Even If You’re Small

One of the biggest myths Danette hears is from small businesses that say, “We don’t have much data yet.” Her answer is always the same: start early.

Even a small company collects data from customers, vendors, or employees. Waiting until the business grows can make problems harder to fix later. Instead, building good habits early creates a strong foundation.

She advises leaders to hire at least one person who understands data, or to begin educating themselves about it. Just like saving money in the early stages of a company, investing in data today will prevent big losses tomorrow.

Data Governance and Data Quality

Danette also clears up a common confusion between data governance and data quality.

• Data governance is about responsibility. It defines who owns the data, who makes decisions, and how those decisions are shared across the company.

• Data quality is about accuracy and trust. It means having the right information, in the right place, at the right time.

One without the other doesn’t work. Governance provides the structure, while quality ensures trust. Together, they allow leaders to act with confidence.

A Real Example: The Data Quality Triangle

To make this clearer, Danette McGilvray often shares a story from the financial industry. A company wanted to improve its data quality, and she introduced what she calls the data quality triangle.

• The base of the triangle is the data quality program.

• One side is projects that solve immediate problems.

• The other side is daily processes that keep improvements alive.

Their first project was to create a dashboard showing the cost of poor data. For the first time, leaders could see in real numbers how much money was being lost. Because the dashboard was tied directly to the budget, executives understood the impact clearly.

The best part? This was not just a short-term fix. The company built those practices into their daily operations. That system lasted more than ten years and proved its value repeatedly.

Building Sustainable Practices

For Danette, success is not about how long she works with a client. It’s about what remains after she leaves. Her goal is always to prepare internal teams so they can continue managing data on their own. This is what she calls sustainability.

To help organizations get started, she created her well-known Ten Steps to Quality Data and Trusted Information. This framework serves as a roadmap for anyone who wants to build strong data practices, whether in a small startup or a global corporation.

A Simple Reminder for Leaders

Danette’s story is a reminder that data is not just a background detail hidden in systems. It is trust. It is clarity. It is the backbone of growth.

No matter the size of your organization, the message is the same:
👉 Strong data builds strong businesses.

So the next time you plan your business strategy, ask yourself:

• Are we giving our data the attention it deserves?

• Do we understand the cost of poor-quality information?

• Are we treating data as carefully as we treat money and people?

Because in the end, the strength of your tomorrow depends on the quality of your data today.

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