What’s standing between you and your data today?
In any given week I speak with a lot of folks who are searching for a solution to the biggest challenges they face today with managing data.
Everybody wants to be “data driven.” And why wouldn’t they? According to LNS Research, there is a lot of evidence that real-time closed loop quality data systems help manufacturers perform at higher levels.
But when I talk to them, they’re struggling. They’re struggling because they have too much or too little data, or it takes way to much effort to get to their data, or they only get to the data too late to make any difference , or…
In these conversations, some common themes keep showing up again and again. So I compiled a short list and came up with my list of the six top problems people have with data. At the very least you’ll know you’re not alone.
Which of these problems are you having with managing data?
| Too many data silos | I have lots of data, but it is locked up in data silos where I can’t make good use of it. Some of these silos contain a huge amount of data. Cutting through the clutter can be difficult and time consuming.
I need to break down the walls between all these data silos, regardless of their size, so I can use the data to make better decisions. |
| Visibility | I can’t see what is happening in my plant. A lot of information never gets properly recorded. Some of it gets written down on paper while a lot more of it is stored in databases. Regardless of where it’s stored, it largely disappears, rarely to be seen again.
I need to be able to define and see the critical quality and performance metrics (like first pass yield, capability trend over time, throughput, and uptime) in my plant. I can’t run all over the plant collecting data. The data behind those metrics needs to be clean, timely, accessible, and easy to see and understand. Each person who sees these metrics (line staff, middle management, and senior management) needs to see the metrics that matter most to them, presented in the most understandable way. |
| Change | My people want to do a good job, but we lack the nuts and bolts tools that help them perform.
I need to create a place of change where people care about quality and have the tools and resources to ensure and improve quality. We need to have better conversations about the real issues we face. To do that, we need the common language of data to talk about what needs changing, how we’re going to change it, and whether the changes are working. This will increase accountability. |
| No time | We have some metrics in place today, but the time and effort required to make good use of those metrics makes them unsustainable. We’re too lean to hire more staff to do the work, and we’re growing, so it potentially might get worse.
We need to create systems that are easy to use and sustainable. |
| Real-time | Currently we don’t find out about problems until hours, days, or sometimes even weeks after they occur. That means we’re usually driving from the rearview mirror.
I need to know immediately when we have a problem. Because I don’t have time to hunt them down, I need notice of problems to come directly to me. Then I could take action before problems get out of hand. |
| Focus | There must be dozens of things we could do to improve this operation, but we don’t have a way to prioritize and focus our improvement efforts.
I need know where to put my best people’s time and energy so we get the biggest bang for our buck. I want to be able to use real data to set these priorities. I want people with ordinary computer skills to be able to understand the data without having to write programs, queries, or be Excel wizards. |
… then watch the solution
If one or more of the top 6 problems strike a chord with you, take 5 minutes to watch this video to see how GainSeeker Suite software can help you with these problems and more.
In this video one of our account managers, Adrienne DePew, shows you our software in action.
If you’re ready to break down the barriers between you and your data, schedule a personalized demo of GainSeeker Suite. If we can help in any way, please let us know.
