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Members external to the data department identified in purple

Data specialist Anna Filippova from dbt advocates for the hiring of more "purple" individuals - versatile generalists proficient in navigating business contexts and the modern data stack. Notable hires in the company have been these "purple" individuals, eagerness to transition into data roles...

People of significance, identified by their purple hue, positioned beyond the Data Team
People of significance, identified by their purple hue, positioned beyond the Data Team

Members external to the data department identified in purple

In a move to strengthen data teams, Anna Filippova from dbt advocates for hiring "purple people" - generalists who can navigate both business context and modern data stack. These versatile individuals have proven to be valuable assets, with the best hires coming from within the company, often from customer support or account management.

To effectively integrate and manage these generalists for optimal outcomes and career growth, a balanced approach is crucial. Here are key strategies:

Embed Generalists within a Hybrid Team Structure

A hybrid team structure, balancing centralized governance with decentralized, domain-specific embedding, allows generalists to gain domain knowledge while contributing their versatile skills across projects. This enhances collaboration and innovation.

Clearly Define Roles and Responsibilities

Generalists are most useful when aligned to tasks that require cross-domain coordination, data storytelling, or bridging gaps between specialized data roles and business units.

Provide Continuous Learning and Mentorship Opportunities

Upskilling generalists in domain-specific knowledge and advanced data skills supports their career growth and deeper integration into the team’s core capabilities.

Promote Cross-Functional Involvement and Ownership

Assigning generalists as internal champions or liaisons between data specialists, IT, and business stakeholders maximizes their broad skillsets in communication, problem framing, and translating business needs into data solutions.

Leverage their Generalist Versatility

Deploy generalists on projects that require adaptability and integration rather than narrow specialization to ensure they add value without being siloed or underutilized.

This holistic approach not only optimizes team outcomes by filling skill gaps and improving coordination but also fosters career development for generalists by offering growth paths that combine broad expertise with increasing domain depth.

Addressing Challenges

However, integrating people from outside the data team isn't without its pitfalls. Difficulty letting go of old roles, struggling to change mindset, and lack of support and onboarding are common issues. High overlap between data-like teams and the data team can result in a mess that needs to be addressed. Senior stakeholders sometimes bypass the data team to move faster, creating long-term data debt.

To overcome these challenges, it's important to have a system for when teams and individuals should be in the core data team and when they should remain independent. Mapping out who does data-like work, inviting them to data team rituals, and considering a formal data rotation program can help create success with people outside the data team.

Moreover, offering office hours and monthly training on Looker best practices can be beneficial for teams with little overlap with the data team. It's also essential to ensure data-driven decisions are reliable by enforcing expected standards across all teams.

In essence, integrating "purple people" effectively means using a hybrid team model, clarifying roles, enabling mentorship/learning, and facilitating cross-functional collaboration to harness their strengths while bridging specialized data work and business needs.

  1. To successfully incorporate 'purple people' into a home-and-garden of data professionals, it's crucial to establish a hybrid team structure, where these versatile individuals are embedded within domain-specific teams while maintaining a connection to centralized governance, thus enabling them to gain domain knowledge and contribute their diverse skills across various projects.
  2. In order to ensure the success of 'sustainable-living' within the modern data stack, continuing education and mentorship opportunities should be provided to 'purple people', as this will support their career growth, deepen their knowledge in data-related domains, and unlock their full potential in bridging the gap between specialized data roles and business units.

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