Data Quality is People!
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Harry Harrison (Business Director):
“Thank you for coming on such short notice. We hope that you will be able to help us with our DATA problems.”
Robert Thorn (Technical Architect):
“You're welcome.”
Sol Roth (Business Analyst):
“I am sure that we can help. Can you provide us with an overview of the situation?”
Harry Harrison (Business Director):
“We hired quality expert William Simonson from Soylent Consulting to fix our DATA problems.”
Robert Thorn (Technical Architect):
“Soylent Consulting? Never heard of them.”
Sol Roth (Business Analyst):
“They are the professional services division of Green, Incorporated.”
Harry Harrison (Business Director):
“Yes, that's right - the High-Energy, Environmentally-Minded Corporation”
Tab Fielding (IT Director):
“More like the High-Rate, Weak-Minded Corporation, if you ask me.”
Harry Harrison (Business Director):
“Well anyway, Mr. Simonson first met with me to receive the business requirements.”
Sol Roth (Business Analyst):
“Receive? You mean he was handed the completed business requirements document?”
Harry Harrison (Business Director):
“Yes, of course.”
Sol Roth (Business Analyst):
“So...he didn't meet directly with anyone on the business team?”
Harry Harrison (Business Director):
“No, I write the business requirements document so that meeting with the business team is unnecessary.”
Sol Roth (Business Analyst):
“O...K...then what happened?”
Tab Fielding (IT Director):
“Mr. Simonson met with me to receive the functional specifications.”
Robert Thorn (Technical Architect):
“Receive? So...did you write the functional specifications?”
Tab Fielding (IT Director):
“Yes, I write the functional specifications after reading Mr. Harrison's business requirements document.”
Robert Thorn (Technical Architect):
“Reading? So...you didn't even meet directly with Mr. Harrison?”
Tab Fielding (IT Director):
“No, before today's meeting, I haven't even seen him or anyone from the business team in months.”
Robert Thorn (Technical Architect):
“O...K...then what happened?”
Tab Fielding (IT Director):
“Mr. Simonson spent a few months coding, implemented our solution, then told us he was ‘going home.’”
Harry Harrison (Business Director):
“And now our DATA is worse than ever!”
Sol Roth (Business Analyst):
“And both of you are wondering how it came to this?”
Harry Harrison (Business Director) and Tab Fielding (IT Director):
“Yes!”
Robert Thorn (Technical Architect):
“I'll tell you how. Because you both forgot the most important aspect of DATA.”
Tab Fielding (IT Director):
“What are you talking about?”
Robert Thorn (Technical Architect):
“It's people. Data's Quality is made by People. You've gotta tell them. You've gotta tell them!”
Harry Harrison (Business Director):
“I promise, Thorn. I promise. We will tell executive management.”
Robert Thorn (Technical Architect):
“You tell everybody. Listen to me, both of you! You've gotta tell everybody that Data Quality is People!”
