The Executive Who Quietly Changed How the World Sees Data

 Ever been in a meeting where every report says something different?

Marketing swears by one number, finance has another, and IT insists the dashboard is fine.

By the end of it, everyone’s frustrated and no one knows what’s true anymore.

That’s the world Danette McGilvray has spent more than two decades fixing.
She doesn’t just work with data, she helps people trust it again.

The Moment That Changed Everything

Danette’s story began in the early days of tech, long before “data quality” became a leadership buzzword.
Back then, data problems were considered boring IT issues until one company’s messy customer records nearly derailed a critical project.

While others treated it as a system glitch, Danette saw something deeper, a business risk hiding in plain sight.
That was her wake-up call.

She realized poor data wasn’t a technical flaw, it was a trust issue.
And trust, once broken, could take down even the best strategy.

That moment sparked her life’s work: helping organizations see that data isn’t just numbers, it’s the foundation of truth.

From Data Puzzles to Global Impact

Working with pioneers like Larry English, Tom Redmond, and Rich Wang, Danette became one of the earliest champions of treating data as a strategic asset, just like money or people.

When she later founded Granite Falls Consulting, her mission was simple:
Help companies build reliable, human-centered systems where data could be trusted, not feared.

Two decades later, her methods have influenced organizations around the world, from startups to global enterprises.

And when she recently joined The Executive Outlook podcast, her message struck a nerve with leaders everywhere.
Because it wasn’t about technology, it was about trust.

The Question Every Executive Should Ask

During her talk, Danette asked something that left the room quiet:

“When you’re in a board meeting, you always ask about the state of your money.
But do you ever ask about the state of your data?”

That single question says everything.

Most leaders track finances daily but rarely track the quality of their data, even though 15% to 35% of company income is lost due to bad information.

It’s a silent leak.
And in today’s digital world, it’s one no business can afford to ignore.

🎥 You can watch her full interview on The Executive Outlook here.