It is not about a better dashboard - You need a single source of truth, and that starts with a single dictionary
- Maria Alice Maia
- Sep 16, 2024
- 2 min read
Updated: Jul 14
I just came out of a strategy meeting, and I have to say this out loud.
We are so obsessed with advanced analytics, AI, and machine learning that we’re ignoring the simple rot that makes it all worthless: we can’t even agree on what our words mean.
Here’s the scene. I’ve witnessed it a hundred times in my career. A meeting to discuss user growth.
Marketing presents a dashboard showing 100,000 "Active Users." (Their definition: anyone who opened an email in the last 30 days).
Sales presents its report showing 20,000 "Active Users." (Their definition: any account a rep has contacted this quarter).
Product shows its metrics with only 5,000 "Active Users." (Their definition: anyone who logged in and used a key feature in the last 7 days).
The next hour is a complete waste of time. The meeting isn't about strategy. It's about leaders from different departments arguing over whose number is "right." Trust in the data evaporates. Frustration skyrockets. No decision is made.
This isn't a data science problem. It's a leadership failure.
This is the most dangerous form of "Doing Data Wrong." It’s not a fancy modeling mistake; it’s a foundational crack. Your multi-million dollar data platform is a high-tech garbage generator if your teams have different definitions for your most critical KPIs.
Let's fix this. This isn't about a better dashboard. This is about creating a single source of truth, and that starts with a single dictionary.
The Right Way: Before you build a single chart, leaders from across the business—Sales, Marketing, Product, Finance—must sit down in a room and agree on ONE, and only one, definition for your core concepts.
What is an "Active User"?
What is a "Churned Customer"?
What is a "Qualified Lead"?
Write it down. Sign off on it. Then, and only then, give that definition to your data team and task them with implementing it universally.
Their job is to build the system that reflects the single, agreed-upon business logic. Their job is not to mediate a turf war between VPs who can't agree on definitions.
As a leader, this is your responsibility. Data governance isn’t a boring technical task to be delegated. It is an active, critical exercise in strategic alignment. It’s the hard, unglamorous work that makes everything else possible.
My passion is to help businesses get these foundations right. To stop the infighting and start creating real value. This knowledge, won through years of seeing this same mistake play out, is not mine to keep.
If you’re tired of the data chaos and want to join a movement focused on the disciplined, foundational work that drives real results, subscribe to my email list.
And if you’re living this nightmare right now and need a path out, book a 20-minute, no-nonsense consultation with me. Let’s talk about how to build your data dictionary.
