#123 Why We Need More Data Empathy

When working with data, it’s easy for us to think about it as a mechanistic process, where data comes in and products come out. But as we’ve explored throughout the show, succeeding in data, whether you’re a data leader looking to build a data culture, a data scientist ascending the ranks, or even a policy maker looking to have an impact with data, the human side is crucial. At the heart of the “human side” is empathy— whether it’s for your stakeholders if you’re a data scientist developing a dashboard for them, empathy for your workforce if you’re a data or learning leader, or empathy for the planet and your citizens if you’re a policy maker.  So how can we all practice better empathy? Specifically, can we all practice better data empathy? Luckily, empathy is a muscle that can be built. It’s not a “you have it, or you don’t” type of skill. So how can individuals and organizations utilize data empathy to improve how they work with data and the success rate of their projects?   Enter Phil Harvey, an Industrial Metaverse Architect in the Industrial Metaverse Core group at Microsoft. He is an expert in Data & AI Technical and Business Strategy & Philosophy. Harvey is also co-author of the book Data: A Guide to Humans, which explores the concept of Data Empathy, and how it can power better use of data through better communication and understanding of stakeholders in the value chain of data.