The War Of The Officers
October 22, 2013
It is time for a another geek vs. geek or nerd vs. nerd, battle depending on your preference, says Guided Wire in the article: “Chief Data Officer (CDO) vs. Chief Science Officer (CSO).” Christina Colby, the author, noticed that in last October’s Harvard Business Review that data scientists are considered to be one of the “sexiest jobs” of the twenty-first century. She was delighted to hear that her love for data was finally being recognized and how people were realizing information’s power. She also pointed out that two key jobs are gaining prominence: chief data officer (CDO) and chief science officer (CSO).
AIG is a major company that has recognized these two roles and is actively working on how to grow them. These two data related jobs were once merged, but they have grown distinct, as data has become more complex. How do they differ?
Let us take a look:
“Chief Data Officer (CDO) – Think of this role as the structure and the rigor. It may not be very stimulating, but you can’t do the big stuff without first getting the fundamentals right. Responsibilities for the role can include:
- Oversees Data Management Office (DMO) and related shared services
- Accountable for Data Governance
- Defines data standards and policies
- Manages standard business taxonomy and data dictionary
- Provides common tools and platforms
- Responsible for data quality monitoring and management
- Drives prioritization, provides budget, and oversees execution for related business and technology initiatives
- Oversees data audits and largely supports regulatory compliance requirements
Big stuff, though rather basic to many in management who can misunderstand its importance. What about the science officer?
Chief Science Officer (CSO) – Now things start to get a bit more exciting… The CSO role is focused on what you can find in the data, not what you may think you’re looking for. But, it’s important for the organization to set expectations about what should be and what can be achievable in terms of outcomes. The CSO:
- Manages an emerging capability of data exploration, often utilizing techniques atypical in the Insurance industry (i.e., beyond actuarial sciences)
- Seeks patterns and trends in structured and unstructured data through big data initiatives
Responsible for R&D activities and data-driven proofs-of-concept (POCs), including topics like social media analytics, usage-based insurance (UBI), and speech analytics (e.g., Verint / Nice)”
Similar to the data officer, but it works more on the analytical and metadata. As I mentioned above, there is a big lag in companies understanding the importance of information and how to properly use it. These roles play an essential role companies, but few comprehend it. We hope they do soon.
Whitney Grace, October 22, 2013
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
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