(US & Canada) VIDEO | The Data Ecosystem Lies at the Core Of Building Trust In Data — Otis Elevator Company CDAO

Pooja Dewan, VP and Chief Data and Analytics Officer at Otis Elevator Company, speaks with David Zhao, Managing Director of Coda Strategy, in a video interview about the importance of data governance at Otis, having a central core with regional localization capability, measuring enterprise data value, the need to enable efficient processes, the need for constant evolution, and finding the right partners.

Otis is the world’s largest elevator and escalator manufacturing, installation, and service business. The company serves customers in over 200 countries and maintains more than 2.2 million elevators and escalators.

At the onset, Dewan states that the data ecosystem lies at the core of building trust in data, and data governance is a crucial part of it. From a platform perspective, her team has been mindful while going through the hybrid ecosystem journey, she adds.

Dewan notes that the team has focused on governance and quality while bringing in data to ensure that the system is built from an end-user perspective. It is about the right data being available at the right time, and the goal is to create personalized insights, she says.

Discussing the transformation journey, she says that when the company started, the federated ecosystems were managed by different regions. Now, the company has built a central core with capabilities that are synced with the regions closest to customers.

The key, Dewan says, is having a central core, which gives each region localization capability to serve the customer, while also allowing the organization to share solutions from different regions to the central core and scale them to make them available to other regions.

Leveraging these local insights creates a snowball effect for the organization for technology development and from a business perspective, enabled connections between field leaders from one region to another. She refers to it as a “Google translator” helping them learn from each other.

When asked how all the business lines collectively agree on measuring enterprise data value, Dewan states that it is important to always tie back strategies to the business plan. By doing so, it creates the right ecosystem and allows organizations to focus on both the cultural and technical aspects.

Citing an example, she says that one of the company’s regions in North America had an idea to manage field efficiency differently. To achieve this, Otis worked with the region on the core ecosystem and enabled personalized insights that can drive change and business impact. This resulted in a significant increase in business value for the region.

In addition, Dewan states that having the right ecosystem and culture enabled Otis to support the region in its initiative. Consequently, the same was leveraged by all other countries to achieve higher levels of efficiency in managing branches.

Further, Dewan considers this as a great example from a cultural perspective. She mentions that the Digital Technology organization did not need to sell technology as a solution because the business had ownership. This led to the continuous journey of each region coming up with a new variation that the company continues to evolve upon the product.

When asked about using technology suppliers, Dewan states that build-versus-buy and insourcing-versus-outsourcing have been dilemmas for every technologist. From Otis' perspective, she affirms having partners who help as the products evolve in the data landscape and with implementation.

Dewan suggests that, for any manufacturing company, enabling efficient processes is crucial. It requires bringing in the right talent and technology, which varies depending on the specific use case. In the past decade, there have been advancements in cataloging, governance, and data platforms provided by cloud providers.

According to Dewan, this has disrupted the current landscape, making it crucial for companies to constantly evolve. She emphasizes the importance of having an internal team dedicated to technical strategy to ensure the company is making the right choices and causing further disruptions to bring value to the business.

She notes that it is not just about finding solutions but also finding them quickly and efficiently and staying updated with new capabilities like artificial intelligence and machine learning. Dewan advises engaging with the company's business objectives, keeping a path in mind, and continuing to evolve with the aid of vendors and partners.

In conclusion, she asserts that without proper staffing and focusing on the correct business issues, organizations may not be able to transform to the next level. Dewan believes that a company should devote time to individualizing decisions and implementing them according to the specific needs of the organization, its current state, and the stage of its transformation.

She also recommends finding and collaborating with suitable partners as necessary for the company's growth.

CDO Magazine appreciates Pooja Dewan for sharing her insights with our global community.