The Data Hero Playbook - by Malcolm Hawker (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

For thirty years, "best practices" in data have delivered bigger platforms, thicker slide decks, and disappointing outcomes. The problem isn't technology. It's mindset.

The Data Hero Playbook reveals how limiting beliefs--learned helplessness, all-or-nothing thinking, externalized blame--have kept data from becoming truly transformational. The cure is a growth mindset, put into action through practical steps any data professional can take.

You'll discover how to:

• Put customers at the center of every decision.
• Apply product management principles to data work.
• Quantify value in revenue, cost savings, and risk reduction.
• Run data as if it were a P&L.
• Deliver fast wins with a Data Strategy MVP in weeks, not months.

Unflinching about what hasn't worked yet unapologetically hopeful about what's next, this book is a call to arms for data leaders ready to escape the status quo.

If you want to stop explaining why data should matter and start proving it with measurable results, The Data Hero Playbook is your guide. Become the data hero your company actually needs.

From the Back Cover

Praise for THE DATA HERO PLAYBOOK

"In The Data Hero Playbook, Malcolm Hawker offers a timely and insightful guide for data leaders navigating the complexities of AI, transformation, and culture change. His message aligns closely with what I've long championed -- treating data as an economic asset, fostering a growth mindset, and putting the customer at the center."
--BILL SCHMARZO, The Dean of Big Data and Author of Big Data: Understanding How Data Powers Big Business

"Malcolm Hawker's The Data Hero Playbook unveils the essential truths behind achieving impactful results with data. Drawing from insights gathered through thousands of discussions with leaders in the data and AI realm, Hawker's work is distinguished by its practical approach rooted in real-world observations."
--PIETHEIN STRENGHOLT, Former CDO of Microsoft Netherlands and Author of Data Management at Scale and Building Medallion Architectures

"Malcolm Hawker's The Data Hero Playbook is the book I wish every data leader would read, especially those stuck in reactive cycles and legacy mindsets. This book is what happens when a battle-tested data leader gets fed up and decides to hand you the honest no-bs harsh truth of why so many CDOs and data professionals struggle. Not because of lack of tools or frameworks, but because of limiting beliefs, disconnection from customers, and a failure to frame data work around business value."
--DR. JUAN SEQUEDA, Principal Scientist and Head of AI Lab at Data.World and Co-Author of Designing and Building Enterprise Knowledge Graphs

"Malcolm Hawker delivers a message every data leader needs to hear: if you want better outcomes, you don't need more dashboards -- you need a better mindset. If you're ready to move from confusion to confidence, from noise to narrative, this is your playbook."
--SCOTT TAYLOR, The Data Whisperer, Principal Consultant at MetaMeta Consulting, and Author of Telling Your Data Story: Data Storytelling for Data Management

"Few people have spent more time with more CDO's across more types of organizations than Malcolm Hawker. Drawing on this experience, witnessing the systemic struggles to deliver value ... he has been able to synthesize root cause and the remedy. A cookbook even. The Data Hero Playbook presents all the ingredients CDOs need to be successful."
--JEFF JONAS, CEO and Founder of Senzing

"Malcolm's honest and proactive approach defies conventional wisdom that hinders true data leadership, presenting a compelling argument for innovation, agility, and a customer-centric way of thinking. The book's logical progression, going from the origin story of data heroes, to defying anti-hero mindsets, to encouraging agility and value-driven practices, provides an inspiring roadmap to unlocking the Data Hero within."
--DR. JOE PEREZ, Author of From Numbers to Narratives that Transform Businesses: Harnessing the Power of Data Visualization

About the Author

MALCOLM HAWKER is a data strategy and management leader with over 25 years' experience in the industry. He has authored industry-defining research and has consulted to some of the world's largest businesses on their data and analytics strategies. He's a frequent public speaker on data and analytics best practices.