This is a profile from the 2022 version of the DataIQ 100.
The latest list is available here.
Rob McKendrick, former head of data and insights, The Co-operative Group
At the time of compiling the list, Rob McKendrick was head of data and insights, The Co-operative Group
What has been your path to power?
I have a background in computer engineering and advanced research. Back in 1996, I presented a data engineering paper on preparing data for analytics with a “very large dataset” of 60Gb. Tiny by today’s standards!
I’ve worked in a variety of roles in “the real world”, consultancy and technology. The mainstream data work started at Centrica just around 20 years ago. We had just completed a build of a customer data warehouse and I joined in order to lead the development of it. That role moved into leading on data topics like governance, architecture and quality.
While the technology changes at a fantastic pace, the challenges have remained the same. Delivering sustainable value from data relies on knowing where and how your data is created, measuring and improving the quality of the data and getting that information to the analysts and data scientists. Currently, I’m working as head of data and insight at the Co-op, leading the team responsible everything from data governance to analytics and insights.
What impact has the pandemic had on the role of data in your company/organisation?
As part of working through the pandemic, we have adopted a much flatter organisational structure. Our data teams actually find it easier to engage with the business as organisational constructs are less important.
Does data now have a seat at the table during strategic discussions? If not, what will it take to get it there?
Data is becoming part of the strategic conversation in a number of parts of the business now. We are using these use cases this year to demonstrate the end-to-end benefit that we can bring. In 2023, we plan to promote data literacy more widely to build on those use cases.
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