(US and Canada) Ethiraj Purushothaman, Head – Advance Analytics & Data Science (interim), Best Buy, speaks with Leonard Maganza, Chief Customer Officer, Syniti, about the key traits of successful data leaders and the culture at Best Buy.

Purushothaman says that data-driven leaders must continuously look for evidence based on data. They need to ask the right questions to confirm a hypothesis or discover new insights, and they should be able to understand, question, and have the confidence to act on insights.

He mentions that the data analytics strategy is a fundamental difference maker for Best Buy. A fair amount of effort goes into encouraging a learning culture where people can create more innovation. That way, they can not only thrive but also make a difference for the company.

From a data-driven leadership and culture POV, Purushothaman says that executive sponsorship is the only thing that can actually make or break in terms of driving success. The next most important aspect, he says, is the test-and-learn culture. He stresses that senior leaders within the organization should push for more testing of ideas, learning from them, and then making course corrections.

Speaking about an area of improvement for himself, he points toward the ability to communicate the data solutions to the executive business stakeholders. He says it is a continuous journey, and he needs to keep improving and telling stories better through data.