Marriott Vacations Worldwide (MVW), a leading global provider of vacation ownership and exchange programs, operates in over 90 destinations worldwide with a strong portfolio of premium brands including Marriott Vacation Club, Sheraton Vacation Club, and Westin Vacation Club. The company serves over 700,000 owner families and consistently ranks among the top vacation ownership businesses globally. In today’s experience-driven economy, data and analytics are central to how Marriott Vacations enhances guest experiences, optimizes operations, and drives long-term growth.

In this first installment of a three-part series, Jackie Guan, SVP, Global Data Analytics (CDAO) at MVW, speaks with Andy Gress, Sales Executive at AMEND Consulting, about the continuous journey of aligning data strategy with business priorities and measuring the real impact of analytics investments.

Data strategy is a continuous, iterative process

For Guan, aligning data strategy with MVW’s broader business goals is not a one-off task but a dynamic, ongoing process anchored in the company’s strategic priorities.

“Aligning data strategy with our broader business goal is definitely not a one-time exercise. It’s a continuous, iterative process,” says Guan. “We start with our company’s overall strategic priorities. Enabling data analytics is one of our top five priorities, alongside operational excellence, evolving core offerings, empowering leadership talent, and launching new products.”

These priorities are not abstract statements; they translate into hundreds of initiatives spanning business functions, supported by a multi-year roadmap. Data and analytics, powered by AI and machine learning, play a central role in driving value across these initiatives.

“To do all this successfully, we need a scalable, trustworthy data foundation,” Guan explains. “That’s why we’re on a multi-year journey to modernize our data platform, migrate to the cloud, and build strong data governance functions. We call this our data enablement program, which underpins self-service analytics and the integration of AI into core business processes.”

Bringing everyone along the journey

While technical challenges are significant, Guan highlights that the human element is often the most critical and difficult aspect of data transformation.

“The biggest challenge is bringing everybody along for the journey,” she says. “We can align initiatives to strategic goals fairly easily thanks to clear priorities from leadership. But achieving the full potential of data analytics requires trust building, consistent delivery, thoughtful change management, and education at every level of the organization.”

Cultural transformation, Guan notes, takes time. Success relies not only on delivering high-quality data products but also on articulating the “what’s in it for me” for every stakeholder.

MVW has already seen tangible results, including the consolidation of business intelligence tools onto a single platform, the launch of a Power BI Center of Excellence, and the deployment of multiple AI and machine learning models in production, with more in the pipeline.

Measuring impact: Linking analytics to business value

Measuring the impact of data initiatives is another cornerstone of Guan’s approach. MVW uses a mix of quantitative and qualitative measures to ensure analytics investments deliver on their promises.

“We always start by linking each initiative to a specific business objective — whether it’s increasing revenue, reducing costs, improving customer satisfaction, or accelerating innovation,” says Guan.

Key steps include selecting relevant KPIs, estimating financial impact before development, conducting scientific before-and-after comparisons such as A/B testing, and ensuring that realized benefits are reflected in budgets.

“Lastly, we stay close to our users, tracking adoption and gathering feedback,” Guan adds. “Continuous improvement is vital to ensure our tools and models are truly delivering value.”

CDO Magazine appreciates Jackie Guan for sharing her insights with our global community.